Someone's in the kitchen with Mike

Bryson let me take all the time in the world getting ready. It felt nice to not be in agent mode. I put on a pair of ripped jeans and one of my mom's shirts I stole from the Goodwill pile. To add to his level of generosity, he drove and his car too.
"You're awfully nice today." I looked out the window at the fading familiarity as we left our town.
"I'm nice every day." I chuckled.
"No you're not, but you're like extra nice today though."
"Well, I'd do anything for you." I gave him a side-eye.
"It was the breakfast, wasn't it?" He grinned.
"You got me, it was the breakfast."
"I'll have to keep lacing it with Xanax in the future." His laughter filled the car, drowning out the music. He seemed happier lately, for that I was grateful.

The drive back to my mom's didn't feel that long. Normally an hour nearly killed me, but I hardly realized we were driving sometimes. Bryson and I seemed to have something to say. Maybe it was different because of Bryson, he seemed to be changing a lot of my life recently.

Seeing the front door in again for the first time in a while gave me a swirl of emotions. Sometimes I missed being here and calling this home but I love where I am too. It's a mix of nostalgia and price; homesickness and independence.

Bryson barely stopped the car before I popped out and was on my way to the front door.
"Jeez, you just leave me behind."
"You can take care of yourself." I teased, and he jogged to catch up to me. Patting down my pockets, I forgot my keys because Bryson drove. Knocking on the door, I shifted on my feet.
"Do you think Mike cooked or the twins?"
"I know for a fact it wasn't the twins." I grinned at him. The front door flew open. Mike filled the door frame.
"You made it." He gave gentle smile before pulling me into a hug.
"We did, but hardly with Bryce's driving!" I joked. The twins towered behind Mike like I hadn't been home in years and they were waiting on a hug. Releasing from Mike, they both scooped me up and crushed me between them. While Mike and Bryson were exchanging pleasantries, I tried to wiggle free from the twins. "Would you let me go?" I wheezed.
"Say we're the best."
"No." My face was pressed against Damion.
"Then no freedom."
"Fine, we're the best." Scott, always finding me funny, released me.

A smell lingered from the kitchen. My stomach gurgled, it was close to dinner time.
"Mike, what are you making? It smells good in here." He smiled.
"It's a surprise, go look in the kitchen." I squinted at him in suspicion. Mike didn't cook surprises, he made the same 6 meals. Making my way to the back of the house, I stopped in the doorway. I think I'm hallucinating. There is no way. She spun around, her ponytail following effortlessly behind her. A grin plastered on her face.
"Mom!" I nearly tackled her in a hug. "I've missed you so much." My words were muffled by her shoulder. Tears freely flowed down my cheek.

We broke apart after a few minutes, everyone stood in the doorway.
"Hello, again Bryce." My mom wiped the tears from her face. I clung to her side.
"Hi again." He smiled at us. Something told me he already knew she'd be home today. I'll have to grill him on that later.

The twins set the table as I finished helping my mom cook.
"I've really missed you," I said as I stirred the sauce.
"I really missed you too." She wrapped her arms around me and kissed my cheek.
"I felt like something was missing without you."
"You did?" She scooted around me grabbing things from all over. "What about Bryce?"
"What about him?" I chuckled lightly, trying to brush it off.
"He isn't a part of your puzzle?"
"Of course he is. He's my best friend and work, partner. That doesn't change your my best friend and my mom. You are still the better choice."
"We are not the same." She grabbed my hand.
"He's a good boy." My heart ached.
"Even if I wanted to date, it's against policy. Agents can't date. If they break up, it gets messy. Business and love life have to stay separate. If we weren't shoved together in which we made a friendship, I think we wouldn't even be friends outside of work." My mom stared at me for a moment before she rolled her eyes and shook her head.

My mom and I set the table as Mike and the guys were outside. They were looking at all the yard work they had neglected in my moms' absence. She and I didn't miss a beat in carrying on a conversation. I told her nearly everything.

I pushed open the kitchen window and hung my head out. My hair fell like a waterfall.
"Dinner's ready to shit heads." I smiled. Quickly, I grabbed my hair before the twins yanked on it as they did often. Bryson found a small strand and twirled, the butterflies in my stomach mimicked the twist.

They all trooped inside and washed their hands. I stood in the doorway after placing the final pot of food.
"The twins told me yesterday," Bryson informed me as he gave me a side hug.
"You suck for not telling me."
"Sarah wanted it to be a surprise. How could I go against her wishes?" Smiling, I leaned further into him.
"I suppose you are forgiven." He squeezed me. Laughing, I pushed him towards the table.

My mom and I sat right next to each other as both Mike and Bryson sat at the heads of the table. Bryson and I kept knocking on knees, every time it gave me butterflies. The thought of eating on a stomach full of nerves was nauseating.
"Are you sure you still want to be an agent?" My mom muttered about, cleaning her plate. I rolled my eyes.
"Yes, mom."
"You can always get out, you know. You too Bryce. I would hate to see you kids hurt." Bryson looked at me, slightly I shook my head. My mom didn't know Bryson was shot. "It's a dangerous job."
"And being in the Army isn't?"
"You're in harm's way." She gave me a stern look.
"We're always in harm's way no matter what we do, the chances of being hurt is the only thing that changes." Her expression softened.
"You become more and more like your father daily." She spoke barely above a whisper. "He would have been proud of you." My insides turned to mush.
"I hear that a lot," I admit quietly. Her eyes flickered with that sparkle she got when she thought about my dad. She loves Mike, but my dad was "the one".

After dinner, the guys cleared the table. My mom and I decided to walk the neighborhood, something we did frequently together.
"Are you two working a case?" Casually, she asked.
"Yeah, it's some sort of wedding scam. I don't know. We didn't have a case for a while, but this one has me lost." I shook my harás, my hair swishing around me.
"It's weird to see your hair down." She ran her fingers through the tips. Sheepishly, I smiled. Bryson and Joe made one comment and I have worn my hair down since. "But back to your case." She shook off her glazed look.
"Right, I don't know. It's something to do with getting married and being scammed with the money. Sometimes the husband runoff, sometimes the wife runs off. We are trying to figure out who is creating the scam and why."
"Do you have any leads?"
"No, that's the problem. Bryce and I spent two days touring churches. We cannot find one thing that links them all together. Nothing." I tucked my hair behind my ear, now very aware of it hanging around me. She hummed in thought.
"How much money are they losing?"
"It varies. Some people thousands, others hundreds. It usually falls within their range of what they can afford."
"So it's something to do with money and having to be married. But what's the catch?"
"That's where I'm at a loss. Where is the money going? Why? All of it. I just don't get it. How are the people connected? The only thing I can think of is like a bride order scam but that doesn't explain to the husbands unless they do both?" My mom played with the tip of her ponytail which was much longer than the last time I'd seen her.
"I don't know. I feel like that would be too easy." I nodded in agreement. Sometimes it's the obvious answer, but we don't get those kinds of cases. We get the hard-to-crack cases, the ones that make you think.

By the time we were back in the guys were all out in the yard playing football. We finally had even teams.
"There they are, the queens themselves." Damion gave us a slow clap. Twisting my hair into my previously famous bun, I grabbed the ball and whipped it at him. It ricocheted from his chest with a solid thud. He coughed trying to catch his breath as Scott nearly peed himself with laughter. My mom wrapped her arm around my shoulder and kissed me on the cheek, beaming from ear to ear.
"Still got it." She whispered.
"Why do you always do that?" He finally asked when his laughter died down.
"Do what?" Damion snapped, rubbing his chest where I hit him.
"Underestimate her? She has proven time and time again she will whoop your ass with no hesitation."
"She's a force to be reckoned with," Bryson added on.
"Because she's my younger sister, I gotta keep her on her toes." He tried to play it off. We all knew that wasn't the case.
"Okay, so are we playing football or braiding each other's hair?" I clapped my hands.
"Let's play ball!" My mom shouted.