“What does that mean?” My stomach starts to knot as the silence stretches after my unanswered question.
A few minutes later, Gwen pulls into a long, oddly familiar driveway. The tree-lined gravel road opens up to a gorgeous log cabin that tugs at an old, hazy memory. I’m pretty sure my dad used to work at this farm, but I don’t remember it looking this nice.
Several trucks are parked a little way from the house, and Gwen finds a spot off to the side of them. “Okay, don’t be mad, but I knew you wouldn’t come if you knew where we were going.”
“Gwen…” I have a sinking suspicion I know whose house we’re at.
“Look, I know he hasn’t been the nicest guy, but I figured I could run interference all night, and Holt’s brothers are here too, along with Gia and all the kids. You won’t have to interact with him at all, I swear.”
I sigh. “You owe me for this. I should’ve been told where we were going.”
“I’ll make it up to you. Promise. And we’ll leave the second Knox is an asshole to you.”
I get out before I can change my mind. It’s too tempting to stay in the safety of Gwen’s car. Maybe there are enough people here that her promise might be kept.
I’m not going to hold my breath.
* **
“You have my mad respect.” Nix presses his palms together and bows.
I roll my eyes at his theatrics. Holt’s brother is the epitome of the broody, cool high school art teacher that all the girls have crushes on—students and teachers alike.
Tonight, he’s wearing paint-splattered jeans and an old T-shirt that looks like it’s from when he was in high school. With his wavy blonde hair stylishly pushed back off his face and charming smile, he could fit in just about anywhere. I’m a little jealous of how easily social he is in any setting. We’ve interacted a bit at school functions, but I don’t know him all that well.
“If I had to deal with the attitudes of teenagers, I think I’d go crazy,” I respond.
“I don’t know. Kids’ tantrums can be rough.”
He’s got me there. It’s not an everyday occurrence, but there are times when all the kids struggle to listen. It can be exhausting.
“Daddy!” Finn calls out. “My marshmallow’s on fire.”
Knox darts toward his son, calmly blowing out the flaming ball of sugar. Finn looks like he’s a second away from crying. Knox squats down and speaks quietly to Finn, rubbing his back in soothing strokes.
“It still amazes me how well-suited Knox is to fatherhood,” Nix murmurs to me. “He loves that boy more than he’s ever loved anything.”
“I think the feeling is mutual,” I respond as Finn drops his head back in laughter. Knox is grinning at his son, the firelight sparkling in his deep brown eyes. Without his cowboy hat on, he looks like a totally different person. He’s a little less rugged tonight, with a flannel over his grey T-shirt and his jeans cleaninstead of dusty from a long day on the farm. Even his beard looks a little less unkempt.
I startle when Knox’s gaze crashes into mine. It’s the first time he’s ever looked at me without a sneer curling his upper lip.
When he finally looks away, I exhale as if I’d been holding my breath the whole time.
“Well, that was intense,” Nix says with a hint of humor.
I shake my head, refusing to acknowledge whatever that was. “I’m going to grab a drink.”
“I’d need one too, if Knox Waters looked at me like that,” he teases.
I roll my eyes but can’t hide my smirk. Instead of responding, I head over to the coolers to grab a soda. Gia is digging through one, mumbling under her breath about how her heart is going to stop from how cold the ice is. She rights herself with two beer bottles in her hands. “Hi, friend,” she greets me. “I’m glad you came.”
“Me too, oddly enough. I was a little iffy on it when we first pulled up.”
Gia scrunches her nose. “Yeah, that was sort of my idea. Sorry for tricking you.”
I chuckle. “It’s okay. I’m glad you did. I’m having more fun than I expected. Holt’s brothers are hilarious.”
“Can you imagine having five brothers around you all the time?” Her wide eyes mirror my own horrified thoughts on the subject.
