“But, but bugs…” I sputter.
Evie plants her hands on her waist and juts one hip out to the side. “I’ll protect you from the big, bad bugs Dacen. I might even make you a s’more later.”
My ears perk up. “The extra special chocolate peanut butter kind?”
“Like there’s any other kind worth eating.”
“Gah! Okay fine. I’ll go.”
Evie squeals and jumps up. “You will NOT regret it Dacen. It’s going to be so much fun!”
Right. We’ll see. Now that she’s won, her pouting and begging are completely gone. Evie clears her throat and starts talking more specifically about who might be at the party today. I tune in about thirty seconds into her babbling.
“And probably Matt and Lucy, too. You’ll love them. Basically all the seniors show up to this thing.” Elbowing me in the side, she continues. “Lord knows you’ll be the hot topic there among all the girls. You’re fresh meat. I’m sure you’ll have your pick of company.”
With our height difference, she has to crane her neck up to look me in the face. I look down to meet her halfway and see she’s wiggling her eyebrows up and down suggestively. The notion of having my pick of girls makes me scoff because, well, obvious reasons.
“God, I hope not.”
“What do you mean? What guy wouldn’t want to be the focal point of a bunch of,” she leans in and whispers the next part. “Attractive horny females? Why not?” Her light laugh trails off. I’m certain she can see the tightness between my brows and notices how I gnaw at the inside of my cheek. Her forehead crinkles and she tilts her head to the side, waiting patiently for me to respond.
“Well, I’m not… into girls… like that.”
I look down at her again to gauge her reaction. Her lips have formed a silent ‘O’ expression and the light of recognition dawns in her eyes as she likely runs back through all of our conversations over the past few weeks, considering things I may or may not have said and thinking them through with a new lens. Then she smiles.
“Okay, we do have some very attractive guys as well.”
She wraps one of her arms around my side and gives me a squeeze. I’m so relieved at her acceptance of me it takes me a moment to react, so she steps in front of me, wraps both of her arms around my middle, and hugs me tightly. My arms find their way around her and squeeze back. The knot of nerves in my chest loosens considerably, and I breathe easier. She pulls her head back and looks up.
“Thank you for telling me your truth, Dacen. I already absolutely adore you, and now I do even more for trusting me.”
She gives me a shy smile, and I pull her close again, squeezing her as if I can absorb some of her extra sweet goodness in the process. “Thanks, Ev.”
My voice is gruff, catching in my throat, and my insides feel raw and exposed because you just never know how someone will respond. She squeezes me tight once more and then lets go, takes a step back, and stares at me intensely for a moment. An innocent—a.k.a. not at all innocent—look flits across her face and she tilts her head to the side again while one hand comes up to hold her chin. Her eyes widen; you can almost see the lightbulb go off in her head.
“Dacen.”
My fingers absentmindedly tap against the counter. “Evie.”
“You totally have the hots for Ryne Sutton.”
My blush probably speaks for itself and she winks at me as her mom enters the kitchen through the garage entrance.
“Aww, all of my favorite people all in one spot! What a wonderful thing to come home to.” She beams at her kids and then looks at me. “That includes you, Dacen.” Have I mentioned how much I love Mrs. Tanner? Evie’s mom is like my second mom. She’s wonderful. She works her way around the room, kissing each of her kids on the top of their heads. “How were things today, sweetie?” she asks Evie over her shoulder as she helps Ollie and Maddie out of their booster seats and steers them toward the sink to get cleaned up. I swear when those two sit down for a meal they walk away with half of it on their hands and faces and mashed into their hair and clothes.
“Good as usual, nothing major to report.”
“I’m glad to hear it. All right, let’s get you two upstairs. You can play quietly while I change out of these work clothes, then we can read a story before nap time.” Ollie and Maddie link arms and skip away. Mrs. Tanner faces us again. “So, you two have fun plans the rest of the day?”
“Yeah, remember it’s the senior bash, Mom. Dacen finally agreed to come with.” She grins and I stick my tongue out at her.
“What she means is she finally twisted my arm hard enough I’ve decided to go.”
Mrs. Tanner playfully clicks her tongue at Evie and shakes her head, then clears her throat. She ticks her next words off on her fingers. “Just a few reminders, kids. Don’t swim alone, watch out for weirdos, and keep an eye out for snakes.” A shudder moves along my spine. “Wear sunscreen. Take a sweatshirt. Charge your phone before you leave. Don’t drink. I think that about covers all bases.”
Evie huffs out loud. “Okay, Mom.” She turns to me. “You better get home and get your stuff. And then it is ON.”
I hold back my cringe. This sounds so out of my comfort zone, but Evie is wicked excited.
