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Perhaps if he sat in the damn chair, they’d stop. Unfortunately, as he approached the throne, the chanting and clapping only rose in volume until the noise could probably be heard in another galaxy. Good thing they had acres of land around them or the police would definitely be getting a disturbance-of-the-peace call.
Something glowing emerged from the house a few minutes later. Cake. Flaming cake. Nicole and Tessa each carried an end of the monstrous confection, while Aliza got a rousing chorus of “Happy Birthday” going. Soon everyone joined in to sing, but Jackson could only focus on one thing.
Isabel. Lit by candles. Singing.
For him.
Suddenly the cake was in front of him, Donovan and Landon helping Nicole and Tessa lower it to a small table. The song ended and Christian yanked Jackson from his seat.
“Make a wish, bro!” Christian positioned Jackson in front of the cake as if he was a puppet. Due to the amount of alcohol he’d consumed at this party, his limbs did feel as if they were controlled by strings.
For the number of people gathered around him, it sure had gotten quiet as if they all wanted to hear the wish he made. No chance of that happening. Everyone knew if you shared your birthday wish, it wouldn’t come true.
And he wanted this one to come true.
Closing his eyes, his head feeling a little swimmy from all the cocktails and the beer, Jackson leaned over the cake. The heat from all the flickering candles hit his face and it certainly felt as if the women had literally put thirty-one candles on that cake. He’d need a good lungful of air to blow them all out at once, but he was up for the task.
He drew in a deep breath, but before he released it, he looked up at Isabel on the other side of the table. Their gazes connected for a second then he extinguished each of those candles with that one breath.
His family and friends went wild, his brothers taking turns clapping him on the back, but Jackson kept his gaze on Isabel.
She kept her gaze on him.
“Who wants cake?” Aliza picked up a knife and wielded it like a Samurai sword.
Jackson accepted the first piece then waited as cake made its way out to the masses. Somehow he ended up back in the throne and in little groups, guests cycled by to wish him well and chit-chat. He enjoyed talking to everyone and didn’t mind all the attention, but Isabel appeared to be purposely staying away. She’d helped distribute cake, eaten her own piece, and conversed with other partygoers.
But she didn’t come over to him.
Had he freaked her out in the kitchen? Was staring at a woman’s lips while you fantasized about kissing her considered creepy? Was his birthday wish an impossibility?
Little by little, the party wound down as guests bid their farewells. Jackson made several promises to get together with people while he was in town and surprisingly, he actually wanted to make those interactions happen.
Soon it was only his brothers, their women, Isabel, and Jackson left in the backyard where the sun had dropped to hover above the western horizon, casting pinkish streaks across Christian’s fields.
“I forgot how beautiful it is here.” Isabel came to stand next to him as he looked out over the land. She had a trash bag in her hand as she helped clean up, though Nicole had told her she didn’t have to.
“I forgot a lot of things about this place,” Jackson said.
“Such as?”
He looked at Isabel. She was a whole foot shorter than he was and he’d always loved the way her height made her fit against him below his chin. As if she belonged right there.
Shaking his head to clear that image, he winced when the motion made his stomach uneasy. “I forgot how nice it is to be with my crazy brothers. I forgot how many good friends I have here. I forgot that small-town vibe I swore I didn’t miss.”
“But you do miss it?”
He nodded.
“I think I learned that lesson here tonight too.” Isabel puffed out a breath. “I mean, I was terrified that you brought me here at first, but now that seems so silly. Everyone was lovely. The old friends are still amazing, and the new ones feel like old ones.”
“So you had a good time?” he asked.
“The best time I’ve had in a long time.”
“Good.” Jackson turned to face her. “Then there’s only one thing left we need to settle.”
Enough sunlight shined on Isabel that Jackson saw the panic fill her eyes. “What do we have to settle?”
