After discussing it with Holden and Beckett, Ren and I decided to let the rest of the Lost Boys know about us at the next Meeting House Saturday cleanup. I drove separately, while Ren went with his son and their family. I arrived early so that I could grab a few things from the office.
With that taken care of, I stopped by the gardens to chat with Walker and Ozzie for a bit. Ozzie’s parents were visiting, and Kiyana’s eyes lit up when she saw me. “Major! You get more and more handsome every day,” she said.
“What about me?” Preston asked, wrapping his arms around his wife and kissing her temple.
“You know I think you’re the sexiest man alive, husband. Don’t you worry about that,” she said, kissing his cheek.
Preston’s blush went all the way up his bald head, and I had to admit, the two of them did look happy and sexy together. Before I could get into any conversation, however, Hikaru’s voice rang out across the parking lot.
“Major! We’re here with Jiji!”
I was happy that we were telling everyone today because eight-year-olds didn’t know the first thing about keeping a secret. Ozzie was already tilting his head funny at Ru’s greeting. The four of them approached us, Holden and Beckett grinning broadly as Hikaru ran up to me and threw his skinny arms around my big belly.
“Major, you missed pancakes! Jiji makes the best pancakes.”
“I know,” I said, ruffling his hair.
He scowled at me, but it didn’t last long. That kid was built to be happy.
Ren went around Holden and Beckett and walked directly to me. “Hey,” he said, his smile more than a little mischievous.
I reached out and cupped his face. “Hey.”
Kiyana whistled under her breath, and Ozzie’s mouth dropped open. It was Walker who asked, “Is there something going on here that we should know about?”
Ren wrapped his arm around my waist. “We are in a relationship. It’s serious. And before you ask, that husband of mine insisted that I find the best person for me after he was gone, and I didn’t have to look any further than Major.”
Shit. I wasn’t expecting all of that. Heat flashed up in my cheeks and down into my chest.
“Troublemaker,” I stage-whispered.
“Your troublemaker,” he shot back, a gorgeous smile lighting up his face.
Ozzie was still in shock. “You okay, dude?” I asked, clamping my hand on his shoulder.
His eyes ping-ponged between me and Ren, and it took a good thirty seconds for him to respond, “I’m fantastic. This is, like, the best thingever.”
Ru thrust his hands up in the air, victorious. “I told you they would like you two together.”
We all laughed, and Walker looked at Holden. Lifting his chin, he asked, “And you’re okay, too?”
Holden sent me a crooked smile, the same one he often directed at Ren. “More than okay. Major takes care of Dad and doesn’t expect us to forget Pops.”
Walker patted his chest. “That’s all I needed to hear.”
Sawyer and Hendrix were the next to make their way up the walk, entering the gardens with their heads tilted toward one another. The most surprising thing about their relationship over these last several months had been its sweetness. Sawyer adored Hen, and Hen soaked up his love like sunshine, reflecting it back like the black light goth he was.
It took them a few seconds to pull their attention away from each other enough to notice that something was going on.
“What’s happening here?” Hen asked. “Why’s the vibe different?”
Ren and I had drifted from each other as we caught up with everyone, so he returned to my side and put his arm around my waist. Hendrix blinked, not quite registering what he was seeing. He opened his mouth and shut it, only to open it again as he pointed at us.
“Well, look at that,” Sawyer said, chuckling as he kissed the side of Hen’s head. “You rendered my fiancé speechless, and that’s not something that happens every day.”
Hendrix, still unable to say anything, mouthedWhaaat?and the entire group cracked up. He shook his head as if warding off a hallucination. “I—I’m so glad to see Ren happy. I couldn’t stand seeing him sad.”
It didn’t shock me in the slightest that he’d perceived Ren’s unhappiness when so many others had been fooled by his facade.
