Brielle jumps between us, almost landing us into the glowing Caribbean blue water of the swimming pool behind us. “All right! West Paragon class of—” she looks uneasily to Chloe and me, but we’re too busy locked in our silent standoff to answer. “Whatever! Hit it,Ellis!”
The music shifts to an old, familiar, dare I say reliable beat that my hips swayed to what felt like a million times while I screamed my heart out for Logan and Gage, and Ellis, too, for the entire West Paragon football team as they brought us victory aftervictory.
My body snaps and shakes to those familiar moves as we gyrate, scream, and shout to the delight of the boys, some of the girls, too. But it’s Logan and Gage my eyes stray to every chance I get, each one holding a precious little button-nosed boy in their arm, and my heart is full oflove.
The girls break out into pyramid formation, and I pause. Hell, I think we should all give this ode to genuflection a little post pregnant pause. Let’s call a spade a spade. I’m not the butterfly I oncewas.
Chloe climbs into position and roars, “Get on,Messenger!”
Like a reflex, my body hikes up Em’s back and lands my right knee on Chloe’s spine and left on Bree’s. The crowd goes wild at the sight of this postpartumfeat.
Now. Usually our dismount consists of me leaping to the ground with my arms held high like some Olympic hopeful on her way to gold, but at the moment the grass has about all the appeal of a thousand tiny razors pointing up at me with their knife-sharp tongues, and my knees cringe at the impact they’re about to absorb. I’d rather not find my kneecap floating near my femur later this evening. But Chloe and Bree apparently have other plans as they send me flying backward into the powder blue water that looks about as welcoming as an arcticglacier.
My body breaks the surface like a Volkswagen through a plate-glasswindow.
COLD!FREEZING!
Oh my shit! My fingers twitch to the surface as I sink ever closer to the bottom, and one by one I watch as those old familiar West Paragon uniforms and the girls in them dive in around me like carbonated missiles. Then I see her. Chloe comes at me like the demon I know her to be, pinning my arms and legs with her own as she drives us to the bottom. Her eyes grow wild with rage as she ignites a bubbling scream right in myface.
I know what you’ve done to me, Skyla. And I will show nomercy.
Dear God, what have Idone?
Gage snatches her off me and races me to the surface with a laugh caught in his mouth. My beautiful husband with his dark hair slicked back, those black grease marks under his eyes only accentuate those cobalt spheres I’m obsessed with. Gage’s eyes are the only color that seems to exist on this haunted horridnight.
“Damn, you’re hot.” His dimples go off as he lands a heated kiss over my lips. “Let’s get the hell out of here,” he whispers into my ear. “This football player has a cheerleader he needs to score a touchdownwith.”
“Sounds like you’re about to make all of my jersey chasing dreams come true.” My chest bucks as I struggle to catch my breath, but it’s Chloe my eyes are gluedto.
She slithers out of the pool like a serpent and takes off into the night, dripping with water, dripping withrevenge.
What the hell have I donenow?
Dear God, I don’t think I want toknow.
I let my body sink below the surface once again, feel the air turning into bubbles in my ears. I’m frightened. I’ve been frightened nonstop ever since I’ve set foot on thisisland.
Welcome toParagon.
Every day is Halloween,indeed.
November comes with a tidal wave of blessings just out of reach, and it becomes painfully clear what I’ve done to deserve Chloe Bishop’swrath.
“Shit,”my mother hisses as Chloe’s face stains that oversized television screen Drake has stuffed into the room as an ode to his financial empire he and Breebuilt.
My heart thumps once as I switch the television off. My mother doesn’t let the expletives fly for nothing, but even she is shocked to hell concerning the fate of ChloeBishop.
“How does something like this happen?” she laments as Gage and I finish feeding the boys. “Anyway”—she shakes Chloe and all of her bad juju off with a shiver—“happy birthday, Skyla.” She plants one on me. “And happy birthday to you, too, young man!” She strips off Nathan’s sock and does her best to gobble up his tinytoes.
“Careful there. He’s just about ready to take off on those cute little puppies.” I wipe his face clean as his Mee-Maw dots him with a kiss. It never ceases to amaze me that the boys look more and more like Gage Oliver doppelgangers with every passing day. I have no doubt that in just a few short years, the girls will be breaking down the door. Of course, I could never blame them. Gage Oliver is a work of holy glory—totally worthy of a few attempted break-infelonies.
I scan the house with a smile. The balloons are up. Mia and Melissa are still working hard to put the finishing touches on all the decorations both in and out of the house. The party will be small, just family and a few friends, and the cake is homemade, something vegan and organic, a gift from Emily and Ember who helped in the endeavor. She’s quite the little chef intraining.
Gage cleans up Barron and nods me outside to the patio where the afternoon fog is already settled in the valley of the Landonbackyard.
“Happy birthday, beautiful.” Gage steals a kiss as the boys squirm betweenus.
“Let’s put them down. We can’t carry them forever.” I regret the words as soon as they leave my lips. I very much want to carry my boys forever. Barron latches onto my leg and Nathan onto his father’s. “Can you believe a year ago they were still safe in mytummy?”
