I ignore his smile and turn my back to him, just as I’ve done every time I’ve seen him over the past year. I can feel his eyes on me as I make my way out back. Maybe a year ago, I would have laughed with him and asked him why he continues to put the women in his life in time-out, but not now.
Cohen continues down the steps when I pause at the railing and look around at everyone spread out over the large backyard. Megan is walking away from her husband, smile on her face, and heading down toward the dock. Lee, her husband, is standing with Cohen’s brothers, Cam and Colt, following his wife’s retreating back. That is until Cohen steps up and gives him a good-natured shove. Zac, Jaxon, and their dad, Asher, are tossing the football around with Beck and Greg. Axel and my dad are standing around the grill while Izzy, Dee, and Chelcie move around the huge farm table that takes up one side of their outdoor dining area.
Spotting my mom with Melissa, Sway, and his partner, Davey, I make my way to where they’re playing with Dani’s boys. I stop to give my mom a hug, saying hello to everyone else I pass as I make my way down to the dock.
Just as Cohen said, all the girls are there. All six of them indeed giggling in their little makeshift huddle. My sister looks up when my feet hit the wooden planks and gives me what I couldn’t mistake as anything but a relieved smile.
Being the baby of the girl side of our group—hell, the baby of the whole group—I don’t spend as much time with them as she does, but it doesn’t mean our bond isn’t strong. All of our parents have been friends for so long that even though I only share blood with one of them, we are very much a family.
Dani breaks away and gives me a hug before pulling me forward. Megan smiles and gives me a hug as I walk by, and then Stella, Lyn, and Lila are next before my sister gives me one of her bear hugs that I swear cracks a rib every time.
“About time you got here!” she yells after backing away.
“Don’t start. Dad was in the driveway when I pulled up.”
She laughs, and the others follow suit. “I told you. Over the shoulder threats are never made lightly by him.”
“Yeah, yeah … what did I miss?”
“Oh, nothing,” she says sweetly, a little too sweetly.
“We’re planning Saturday night,” Dani says, earning a scowl from my sister.
“And that would be the party I didn’t ask for?”
She nods, and I see the others’ smiles grow. Shit … this can’t be good.
“Would anyone care to fill me in?”
Each of them barks out a ‘no’ at the same time, and I narrow my eyes. No one moves to speak, but Stella starts laughing so hard that I worry she might fall into the lake.
“I’m not sure I like the way this is going right now,” I admit, feeling even more uneasy about the weekend plans I don’t want.
“Well, you don’t even need to worry about a thing. We’ve got it covered from your makeup and hair, all the way down to what underwear you’re wearing under the dress we’ve already bought. All you have to do is show up at Dani’s house to get ready around dinnertime Saturday.”
I narrow my eyes at my sister, but before I can speak, Axel bellows out that it’s time to eat. “This conversation isn’t done,” I threaten, but they all wave me off as they start to walk up to where the food is being set out on one of the custom-made buffet-style bars that line the Reid’s outdoor kitchen of sorts.
I do my best to ignore the huge six-foot-four man wearing a tutu as I fix my plate and wedge myself between Cam and Colt at the large table. I swear this thing is big enough to fit a whole football team, but even with all that space, I feel like nowhere is far enough away with Nate here.
My eyes never leave my plate, but I see him sit down across from me next to his sister and Cohen. I can see him out of the corner of my eye bend down to kiss his nephew, Owen, before looking back in my direction.
Conversation flows easily when we’re all together. Typical catching up on what everyone has been doing. When Melissa, Greg’s wife and Cohen’s mom, asks about my art exhibition coming up, I finally look up.
“It’s already looking to be pretty big. From what the owner of the gallery has said, there are already whispers of a few pieces that she anticipates will sell quickly.”
“That’s wonderful, Ember!” she praises. “You know we’re all going to be there.”
“Hell yeah, we are,” my sister yells from the other end of the long table.
“Maddisyn Locke,” I hear my mom scold. “Children at the table.”
I watch Maddi raise one perfect brow at her, and I know she’s about to throw some of what my dad calls sass. “Need I point out that these children have heard much worse from every person in attendance, especially all you elders?”
I hear a grumbled ‘sass’ from the end my father is sitting at, and my mother just laughs.