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“No, Chloe, Merida is Scottish. Why the hell do I know that?” I laughed and turned to Steed. “Typical Parker woman right here, always getting the Parker men wound up so tight they don’t know which way is up.”
He rolled his eyes. “Tell me about it.”
“Uncle Cord!” Chloe demanded.
“Her name is Maebh. She’s from Ireland, and I’m not a hundred percent sure, but I don’t think she’s a princess, at least not the kind you’re thinking of.”
Chloe looked back at her. “She sure looks like one.”
Swallowing hard, I let my eyes drift over Maebh’s body. She was wearing a sundress that hugged her curves perfectly. It fell to the floor and covered almost every inch of that creamy skin, but the way her shoulders were exposed had my heart racing. She looked fucking breathtaking.
“You might want to take a breath, little bro,” Steed said with a chuckle.
Mitchell was on the other side of me. I turned away from Maebh and set Chloe down. “What, Mitchell?” I whispered. “Why the hell are you staring at me like that?”
“Do you remember that day in the bar with Tripp? That day you told me I looked like a goddamn Smurf?”
“Don’t even fucking say it, Mitchell,” I hissed in a low voice so Chloe or Gage didn’t hear me. Steed’s rumbling laugh came from behind me.
“Dude, that pretty little thing over there has you so flat on your ass you can’t even get up. You know what this means? It means those blue balls are blue for more than one reason.”
Steed clamped his hand on my shoulder and flashed a wide grin. “You’ve been Smurfed.”
Pushing Steed away, I snapped, “Fuck off!”
“Cord Michael Parker!” my mother shouted from the other side of the room. “Watch that mouth of yours!”
“Sorry, Ma,” I said.
I stared at Maebh for a moment before Amelia’s death look nearly knocked me over. Maebh grabbed Amelia’s arm and pulled her close. It was easy to read her lips as she laid into my baby sister.
“Why didn’t you tell me your whole family was here?”
Amelia grinned devilishly and shrugged.
Wade walked up to us, wearing the same damn smile Amelia had plastered on her face.
“You knew she was coming?” I said, my voice low and directed only to him.
“Yep.”
I rolled my eyes at how he popped his fucking p when he said that.
“Why didn’t you warn me, you bastard?”
Wade shrugged. “Because this way was a helluva lot more fun. You can’t pay enough money for a shit show like this.”
“You’re dead to me, Wade. No longer a part of this family!”
He punched me lightly on the arm. “Damn, I love this family.”
I glared at my brother-in-law. “Did you tell Amelia anything I said?”
Wade ignored me.
My hands turned to fists, and I was about to knock him in the head when he turned to face me. “I didn’t have to say anything because Amelia told me Maebh likes you…a lot.”
My heart jumped into my throat.
“What?”
He shook his head. “She did like you a lot, but she mentioned you acting like a prick and that Maebh was no longer interested.”
“What?”
Wade simply shrugged. “That’s all I know, bro.”
Wade had been privy to my drunken confession after poker two nights ago when I admitted I was attracted to Maebh and had no fucking clue what to do about it. The bastard’s only advice was to talk to my father. I wasn’t about to do that. My mother already was trying to push me and Maebh together. Talking to my father would only add fuel to the fire.
Maebh laughed at something Chloe said and my body jerked in response. What in the hell is going on with me? I wasn’t the one-lady type of guy. I liked women. Lots of women. Seven days a week of women. I couldn’t honestly see me settling down with just one.
Or could I? If it was Maebh, I could.
Maybe I no longer felt that way. Now it was only one woman who consumed my every waking and sleeping thoughts. Even thinking about getting laid by someone else made my stomach revolt. And I knew a lot of my problems were because I hadn’t gotten laid in weeks. Hell, not since the first time I laid eyes on her.
Fuck. My. Life.
“Here. I got you something,” Mitchell said, grinning from ear to ear.
“You know the rules, no presents,” I replied, taking the box.
Mitchell shrugged. “I know the rule, but I had to get it.”
“Uncle Cord’s got a gift!” Chloe called out, and Mitchell’s smile fell.
About that time, Corina walked into the room holding Merit and all the attention was diverted.
“Thank fuck,” Mitchell whispered. “Do not…”
My mother cut Mitchell off when she announced, “Cord, who is the gift from?” She looked around the room, ready to reprimand one of my siblings.
Melanie Parker was a stickler when it came to following the rules. Or I should say, following her rules. Once we all hit eighteen there was no more gift exchanging. Christmas was the only time when gifts between siblings were allowed. Birthdays were meant to be celebrated with a family dinner and game night afterwards.
