“Hey, everyone. This is my girlfriend, Emery.”
The wordgirlfriendhangs in the air as electricity pulses around us. All eyes snap to us, and forks pause. Emery stiffens against me, but I use my thumb to give her short, reassuring strokes on her side.
“So, it is true!” Emma’s best friend, Wren, says, breaking the silence. “The infamous Knox Cooke has finally been tamed.”
Laughter chimes throughout the room, easing some of the tension in my shoulders. “Very funny, Wren,” I say, shooting her a dirty look.
“So, tell us, Emery,” Emma says, pulling Emery away from me and into one of the empty chairs. “How did he manage to trap you?”
I scrub a hand over my face and make eye contact with my brother, who gives me a supportive but useless thumbs-up. I answer with a different hand gesture until I get a nasty look from my mom across the room.
“Trap?” Emery sputters, her eyes widening in a slow panic. “He didn’t?—”
“The better question is, how has Knox not annoyed you already?” Wren’s fiancé, Blake, asks. “I wanted to punch the kid two seconds after meeting him.”
“To be fair, he was hitting on me,” Wren says, curling into Blake. Her hand flexes with her new ring perched proudly on her finger. The two of them just got engaged a few weeks ago and were happier than ever. They deserved it after waiting so long to find their way back to each other. A quiet and empty pang echoes through my chest.
“Bullshit,” I say, scrambling into the empty seat beside Emery and placing my hand on her thigh. “I was being a gentleman. I noticed your drink was empty and I simply offered to refill it like your fiancé should’ve done.”
“Ouch!” I yelp. Pain radiates up and down my shin from the strategically placed and well-deserved kick from Blake.
“Everyone relax,” Emery says, slowly pulling the attention off me. “He didn’t trap me. He just begged me incessantly until I finally caved.”
I nearly choke on my drink, holding back the proud smile on my face. A few quiet blinks fill the space between my friends and family before roaring laughter erupts around the room. Even my dad joins in, making the nerves in my stomach settle to a simmering hum.
Emma leans in, almost in tears. “I need details. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Knox beg for anything. He simply expects girls to fall to pieces around him.”
Something dark edges at my heart. I usually roll with the punches, but there’s something cold and defeating about being put in a box. Especially by the people you care about the most. But I ignore the pain and convince myself I have to earn their respect.
“Okay, maybe saying he begged was dramatic,” Emery smiles, laying her hand on top of mine. The movement throws me off, but then I realize we have a role to play. “He was actually very sweet. I just moved to town a few weeksago, and he’s been helping me get my truck back on the road. He’s even helped me haul a few things for my business. I don’t know what I would’ve done without him.”
The mood in the room shifts, and I’m tempted to pinch myself to wake up from this dream. The woman who couldn’t stand my presence only a few days ago is suddenly sticking up for me. And I like it. I like it a lot.
My dad nods his head, and I might be going crazy, but a sparkle of pride shines behind his eyes. “Knox always shows up for the people he cares about, so consider yourself lucky.”
Emery responds with a bright smile and a tight nod. The warmth in my chest flares at an alarming rate. I feel like the Grinch when his heart grew three sizes. That’s always Milo’s favorite part, and now I know how the green bastard felt.
My dad grins and continues. “But I will warn you, he might show up late sometimes. I remember he had just gotten his license, and I let him take my truck to the store to get milk and a few other groceries. Well, two hours later, he shows up with the groceries and a baby goat in the tailgate. Apparently, some old guy on the side of the road was selling them, and Knox thought it was a necessity.”
“Hey! Otis was a great pet and an even better lawn mower,” I say, defending my version of man’s best friend. I was going to use Otis to pick up chicks, but he kept head-butting every date I brought over. Sooner or later, he became my mini shadow and the best way to get out of yard work. I missed him.
The room gets loud again, and everyone starts tossing around their own “classic Knox” stories that seem to get more and more ridiculous with each round. But Emery soaks it all in, and I just watch as the dimples decorating her cheeks get deeper and deeper.
Emery leans in, lowering her voice just for my ears. “I didn’t take you as a goat guy.”
“Don’t act like you wouldn’t fall in love with one. Trustme, Otis was way cuter than Klepto and more useful, too. At least my goat helped with chores. All Klepto does is sleep and steal your hair ties.”
She nudges my shoulder. “Don’t be rude. Klepto is the best manager the Hollow Hinge has ever had. I’m even ordering him a mini tie for the grand opening.”
“I can’t wait,” I smile, happy our conversation is hidden from the rest of the table. But my smile drops when I think about what happens outside the confines of our makeshift agreement. I start to question what the future holds for us, and suddenly, I can’t imagine not talking to her again, even if that’s what I promised.
Emery leans back into the chaos and lets her laughter blend in with the rest of my loved ones. I’m quiet as I watch how easily she seems to mold into my life. Her smile feels like it belongs in this room.
“I never thought I’d get to say this,” my dad says, interrupting the side conversations happening all around us. “But we’ll finally have an even number for our touch football game at Thanksgiving. You’re going to be there. Right, Emery?”
All eyes turn on us, and panic tiptoes to the front of my mind. I wasn’t prepared for this kind of question, and neither is Emery, based on the way her nails dig into my jeans.
“Honey, you can’t expect her to drop everything to come to our family’s holiday. She has a family of her own. Just ignore my husband. He just got excited. He’s been waiting for Knox to settle down.”
