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More little voices spoke all at once. They were excited to be talking to Remy, I could tell. The moment he opened his mouth, they all fell silent.
“How about I come by one day this week and we see if you guys are any better at smack talk now?” Laughing easily, Remy sounded like a completely different man. “Jones, don’t think that I haven’t noticed how much you’ve grown in just a few weeks. You’re going to have to play as an adult soon if you don’t slow down.”
That set off a gang of demands to be measured and when I peeked around the corner and saw Remy kneeling in front of a group of kids who couldn’t be older than seven or eight, I melted. The little kids were all so cute, dressed in khakis and nice button-down shirts. They were looking up at Remy like he’d hung the moon.
“Who’s that?” One of the little kids had noticed me and before I could plaster myself against the wall to hide, Remy shot a look over his shoulder and spotted me.
I winced and decided to leave him to the kids. It was probably beginning to get suspicious that I wasn’t back from the bathroom, anyway. Before I got anywhere, though, Remy’s hand gripped my arm and pulled me back around the corner and into the middle of the group of kids.
“Guys, this is my friend, Memphis.” Remy pressed his hand against the bare skin of my back and pointed to each kid, naming them without hesitation. “Megan and Sam thought it would be really special to have the kids involved tonight. These guys were lucky enough to get picked.”
“Memphis? That’s not a name.”
I grinned at the boy who’d said it. “It’smyname. Memphis King. It’s nice to meet y’all.”
Giggles erupted from them and I even felt Remy chuckle from beside me. It was clear that my accent amused them, but I didn’t mind.
“Okay, okay.Y’allhad better go back with Mr. Greg. You’ve got a song to sing.” Still smiling, Remy high-fived each kid. “I’ll be by this week to wipe the floor with each of you.”
After the kids made their way through an open door halfway down the hallway, Remy turned to me and wrapped his hands around my waist, just holding my sides. I looked up at him and felt a surge of heat surge to life between my thighs.
“Spying on me?” He leaned against the wall behind him and pulled me closer.
I braced myself with my hands flat on his chest, loving the feeling of his muscles flexing under my palms. “No. I was exploring. I’m not sad I witnessed that, though. You’re great with them, Remy. I can’t believe I ever worried about you wanting kids.”
His jaw muscles worked as he studied my face, his smiles all gone without the kids present. “I brought you to the gala so you’d see we do care about kids. I didn’t plan on you seeing me with the guys, though. I would never use them.”
“Remy, I never would’ve thought that. You’re genuinely great with them. That’s not something you can fake.” I stroked my hands up to cup his face and smiled. “It was nice to hear you happy.”
He grunted. “I’m happy plenty.”
Patting his cheek, I made a face that made it clear I doubted him. “You’re broody and cranky plenty. You don’t laugh or smile very often, though. With them, you were all smiles. It’s adorable.”
“Are you trying to compliment me somewhere in there?” His grip tightened just slightly around my waist and he made a sound of disgust. “Adorable? Jesus, sweetheart.”
I stretched up and pressed a kiss to his chin. “You’re going to be a great dad, Remy.”
He stiffened against me, but was back to normal so quickly that I thought I’d imagined it. I leaned forward, thinking he was going to kiss me, but instead he dropped his mouth next to my ear and whispered. “I’m a better disciplinarian already, sweetheart, and I do believe you sneaking around and spying calls for a lesson.”
I shivered and felt my body react like a match to gasoline. I’d never known I had a darker sexual appetite, but when Remy said things like that, I was ready to bend over and ask politely for whatever he planned on giving me. “Can we leave after the kids sing?”
Nodding once, Remy guided me back to the table and shot a look at Wells and Boone. “Text Jake to have the car ready and the partition up.”
31.
***Wells***
Anger.Thatandshame. They’d become so familiar to me since my accident. Every time my hands shook or my heart raced when I was in a public place, I wanted to break shit and scream at the top of my lungs. Feeling like my body and mind were betraying me was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before. Even when I could look around the ballroom and see that there was no threat, no danger coming for me, my body reacted like I was still fighting to escape my car after the crash. I could still feel the fire licking at my body. Heat still engulfed me and I could still smell my own blood.
I didn’t want to be fucking broken. I didn’t want to struggle to do anything outside of the house. The person I was sitting in that ballroom was worlds away from the man I’d been before the wreck. Traveling across the world, touring every artist hotspot I could find, I’d been an adventurer. I’d done things that would’ve made both Boone and Remy go gray early, if they knew. All that was gone, though. I was just…a shell. Worse than a shell, really. I was filled with fear and anxiety.
I’d barely been aware of anything during the dinner. I just knew that Boone had stayed close to my side. That’s what my brothers did when I joined them out in the world. One of them babysat me. I’d only managed to rejoin the conversation once we climbed back in the car to go home. Even then, I could only listen. I was too angry at myself to join in.
Staring out the window, I balled my fists at my sides and tried to calm down. I didn’t want to waste more time feeling insane. I wanted to enjoy some time with my brothers, and Memphis, if I was lucky. I was so far gone that I couldn’t pull myself out, though. That kind of night typically required a large bottle of scotch and a session in the gym hitting something.
I flinched when a soft touch grazed my face and then ground my teeth together when Memphis settled her soft weight on top of my lap. She wrapped her arms around my neck loosely and smiled at me. Squeezing my eyes shut, I fought against the need to take it out on her body. Controlling her, taking her hard, it would make me feel better, but I wouldn’t chance hurting her. I wouldn’t even touch her while I felt so volatile.
She straddled me fully and peppered kisses along my jaw and neck. “Touch me, Wells.”
