“Not even for a minute. My solo childhood was probably for the best.”
Holt’s the oldest of six, and all of them were adopted out of the foster care system when they were little. Every single one of them acts like they’re blood-related, which I find wonderfully refreshing.
“I’d better get these over to my brooding man.” Gia tiltsher head toward where Holt is sitting on the back of his tailgate. He’s very obviously lost in thought, and I wish I could do more to help him.
“Go, I’ll see if I can find a way to distract him.”
Gia grins in thanks before heading off toward Holt. I glance around at the mostly familiar faces surrounding the bonfire. A lot of the people here either grew up with me or I’ve interacted with them since I moved back. I spot Holt’s youngest brother scrolling on his phone that’s connected to a speaker.
“Hey, Gage.”
He glances up, a wide smile forming the second he sees me. “Farrah! How are you, babe?”
“I’m fine. Look, I was wondering if you could play something we could dance to. I want to help Gia get Holt out of his funk.”
Gage’s crystal-blue eyes flick over to where Holt and Gia are cuddling. “You’re brilliant, fairy friend. Give me a sec. I’ll find the perfect song.”
I have no idea where Gage comes up with his nicknames, but he says that kind of stuff to everyone. Sometimes I wonder if he can’t remember our names fast enough, so he says something else instead.
He scrolls for a few seconds before turning on an upbeat song we’ve all danced to at the Howling Wolf bar. Grayson grabs his best friend, Kylie, to dance, Gage reaches out for Gwen, and Gia encourages Holt to dance with her. It’s exactly what I’d hoped for.
Off to the side, Leah’s sister Lauren is watching her dad twirl Gia around with a soft smile on her face. I quickly grab Lauren’s arms and pull her out to the makeshift dancefloor with everyone else. It makes her laugh, and she drops her head back as her giggles ring out.
My gaze strays over to Knox, surprised to find himlooking at me. I’m taken aback by his expression, but it’s gone within a second.
Was that affection in his eyes just now? No. There’s no way. He hates my guts. It doesn’t matter what I say to him—it pisses him off.
He must have been looking at Lauren. Or maybe Finn. He just pulled Leah into his arms to dance, which is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.
I spend the rest of the night studiously avoiding looking at Knox. Whatever he was thinking earlier has no bearing on how he actually feels about me. It would be stupid to think that maybe he’s ready to bury the hatchet.
I would need to hear those words straight from the horse’s mouth before I’d believe it.
CHAPTER 8
Knox
“Goddamn, son of a bitch, motherfucker,” I curse, shaking out my hand as it throbs in pain. It’s taking all of my control not to chuck this stupid gate across the barn. Images of my dad doing the exact same thing are the only reason I’m able to curb the impulse. I’ll never be able to clean up my language, but I can breathe through the angry, impulsive actions that won’t do a damn thing to fix the situation.
“Are you okay, Daddy?” Finn looks like he’s on the verge of crying.
I slowly let out my breath as the ache in my chest slowly recedes. “Yeah, buddy. I’ll be all right. I’m sorry I cursed.”
Finn also takes a deep breath. “It’s okay. It’s a non-harmful way to get your feelings out.”
“Unless the fence has feelings. Cursing at it wouldn’t be very nice then.”
Finn giggles. “It’s not alive.”
“Oh, good. I was about tell it sorry too.”
“You’re so silly, Daddy.”
I wink at Finn before turning back to my task. One of thehorses bent the hinge on the stall gate with a well-placed kick. It’s been a pain in the ass trying to replace it this afternoon. Finn has spent the time coloring in his coloring book on the floor of the barn, while I’ve done everything I can to keep my mind off a certain woman from the bonfire last night. I haven’t done the best job of it, given the blister forming on my thumb.
I’ll just add it to the list of things I’m pissed at Farrah for. The woman sure knows how to get under my skin.
Last night, she danced with just about every one of Holt’s brothers. Xander’s the only one who didn’t ask, but he spent the whole night sitting in a camping chair, not talking to anyone. I should’ve done the same thing, but both of Holt’s girls asked me to dance multiple times, and London was not about to be left out, either. There’s no denying them anything, especially when they turn their puppy dog eyes on me.
