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“Are you saying you can’t hang?”
“Oh, I can hang, but these heels are killing my feet.”
“Take them off.”
“What?”
“You said that the heels were killing your feet, so take them off.”
“The floor is probably dirty and sticky, and just no.”
“Good call. We can sit,” I tell her. “I don’t want you hurting yourself just to fulfill a silly bet.”
“I’m good, Brooks. Just don’t expect me to go dancing circles around everyone here.” She winks, and I feel the action in my chest, a tightening that I’ve never felt before.
I chalk the feeling up to my dry spell. I’ve been picking up a lot of hours the last few weeks to cover for another nurse who was on maternity leave. That hasn’t left much social time. I need to do something about that. I make a mental note to call a few of my brothers so we can hit the town. Maybe head over to Harris and hit a bar there for the night.
“Let me know if you need a break,” I tell her.
“Trust me. I will.” We’re both quiet for a few minutes, just swaying to the slow beat, when her eyes connect with mine. “You know, you could be missing out on a lot of fun by not giving Jackie that dance.” She nods behind me, a grin plastered on her face. I twirl us around so I can see what she’s talking about.
I have to bite down on my cheek to keep my laughter contained and not draw attention to us or the situation. Jackie is standing between my two baby brothers, and they’re all three grinding on each other like they’re at a strip club and not the small manor on the outskirts of town.
“They better hope our momma doesn’t see them,” I say for Palmer’s ears only.
“They’re young, and a hot older woman is showing them attention. Let them live it up.”
“I’m not breaking that up. I’m not going anywhere near that clusterfuck, but they better hope that Mom doesn’t see it. She’ll drag them both away by their ears.”
“There is so much to be learned from Momma Kincaid.” She laughs. “I can only imagine the chaos of raising nine rowdy boys in one house.”
“It was all kinds of loud, but it was also fun. My parents let us be kids, and honestly, I’m not sure how we didn’t drive them batshit crazy.”
“Love.”
“What?”
“Love. That’s why you didn’t drive them batshit crazy.”
“You’re probably right,” I agree. My parents have a love for one another that surpasses anything I’ve ever witnessed before. And that love they have for each other spilled over to all of us kids. There was never a day growing up that I didn’t know that my brothers and I were the most important people in their world. That’s how it should be and why I’m still single at the age of twenty-nine. Sure, that’s not old by any standards, but I’m also not getting any younger. One day I’ll find her. I’ll find the woman who tilts my world on its axis and makes me feel whole at the same time. When I do, I’m never letting her go.
CHAPTERTWO
Palmer
I’m dancing with Brooks Kincaid.
Brooks Kincaid!
Brooks’s older brother Orrin was best friends with my brother, Deacon, growing up. Orrin usually had a brother or two with him when he came to visit. Most of the time, it was Declan or Brooks. That’s where my crush started. In fact, I can tell you the exact date that my young heart fell for him.
I was eleven the day Brooks Kincaid became my hero. Deacon was twenty-one and home from college. He invited Orrin and some other people over, and as always, Orrin brought Declan and Brooks. I was eleven and starving for my brother’s attention. Not that he didn’t give it to me, but Piper was the one who got the majority of his time. Now that I’m older, I get it. She was closer to him in age. At sixteen, she wasn’t the nuisance of a little sister that I’m sure I was. I know I’m a lot to handle. I own that.
Anyway, I was missing my big brother and was acting out to get his attention. He and his friends, along with Piper and a few of hers, were sitting outside around the fire. The sun was just starting to set, and I knew that my mom was going to tell me it was time to come inside soon. I was jealous of my sister and how she got to hang out with Deacon. So my eleven-year-old mind thought it would be a great idea to climb the tree near the fire pit. I thought for certain I would climb to the top and call out to Deacon, and he would be so proud of me for how high I made it.
I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that my plan was a disaster. I climbed about halfway up and made the mistake of looking down. I’d been in my treehouse before, but that was with the ladder my dad and brother had built. Once I looked down, my knees started to wobble, and my palms became sweaty. I called out for my brother, but he didn’t hear me. I started to cry as fear washed over me. I just knew I was going to fall to my death. Yes, a little dramatic, but I was eleven and upset.
It just so happened to be my lucky day. Brooks walked away from the fire to take a leak and heard my cries. He wasted no time climbing up the tree and bringing me down with him on his back. I clung to him like he was my everything, and that’s when it all started. Over the years, I’ve run into him, more so when his cousin Ramsey and I became best friends.
