Lanie is still hemming and hawing over her decision when a happy squeal cuts through the din of the ice-cream shop. “Oh my god! Josie!”
Spinning around, I manage to brace myself just as Poppy throws herself at me, her arms tightening around my neck. “I was beginning to think I’d hallucinated you!” Pulling back, she runs her gaze over my dress, her eyes widening with delighted surprise. “Well don’t you look fuckingadorable.”
“Persephone,” Auntie Gray scolds through gritted teeth. “Watch your language.”
But Poppy just rolls her eyes and ignores the daggers Auntie Gray is glaring at her. “Anyway. I was starting to worry I’d never see you again. I had thisgreatidea the other day and I’ve been dying to talk to you about it.”
Now every eye in the shop is on us, and I silently wish for a giant hole to open up in the ground for me to disappear into. Poppy is sweet, she really is, but the last thing I want is to draw any more attention to myself than necessary when I’m dressed like a freaking toddler—diaper and all.
Unfortunately, the attention is already laser-focused on us, and the last thing I want to do is snap and say something rude to a fan, so I force a smile and nod. “What kind of idea?”
“A book signing! At my store!”
My instinctive reaction isHell no. But she just seems so excited, I don’t have the heart to turn her down cold.
“Planning a signing like that is a lot of work,” I say gently, a sympathetic smile on my face. “Are you sure you’re up to it?”
“Totally.” Poppy rolls her eyes again. “What else do I have to do around here?”
I hesitate, still unsure, and Poppy squeezes my hand, bouncing excitedly on her toes. “Please, please, please? It would make my wholelifeto host a signing for my favorite author.”
Twisting around, I look up at Daddy, fully expecting him to step in and be my “Hell no” person. “What do you think, Bram?”
To my surprise, he grins. “I think that sounds like a great idea. And I’m sure you can help Poppy with the stuff she doesn’t know.”
Okay, well, I wasn't expectingthat. But now that I know he’s on board, my brain begins to go to work, thinking of all the fun things we could do with a book signing in a town like Forbidden Pines. “That’s true. I’ve only done a few small signings, but… it could be fun to help plan one.”
“Ahhh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” Poppy throws her arms around my neck again and squeezes. “Can you come by the store tomorrow and we’ll start planning?”
Again, I look up at Daddy and he nods. “Sure. I’ll bring her by tomorrow after lunch. Say around two?”
“Perfect! Oh, this is going to be so much fun!”
With another happy hug, Poppy hurries from the ice-cream shop, and I turn back to the counter to pick my flavor, happily ignoring all the curious stares from the rest of the patrons.
Let them stare. And let them keep staring when my new friend and I put on the best book signing this town has ever seen.
Josie
By the time we get back to the cabin, I’m practically vibrating with anticipation over my plans with Poppy. As hesitant as I wasat first, the more I think about it, the more excited I get over all thepossibilities.
I’m so excited, in fact, I almost don’t notice the giant of a man sitting at our dining room table with a laptop open in front of him. But when I do, I freeze completely, unable to do more than stare.
He’s…huge. Even larger than Uncle Eli, if such a thing were possible. Larger, and a lot more dangerous-looking, which is something else I didn’t realize was possible. Everything about him screams grizzled mountain man, from the worn flannel to the wild beard sprouting from his face.
“Who the hell are you?”
The question bursts out of me before I have a chance to consider the repercussions, and a heavy swat immediately lands on my ass. And even though the blow is mostly cushioned by my diaper, humiliation heats my face as the stranger turns to glare at me.
He doesn’t even have the decency to address me, but rather looks from me up to Daddy, who is standing right behind me. “She yours?”
The stranger’s voice is as rough as the rest of him, and I instinctively bristle at his question. But a hand comes to rest heavy on my shoulder, and Daddy gives it a warning squeeze.
“She is. Josie, this is Gunther, he’s our resident tech expert.”
Nothing he could have said would have shocked me more. “Thisguy is your tech expert? What about Colt?”
“YourUncleColt is good with some things, but Gunther is who we bring in when we need help beyond Uncle Colt’s capabilities.”
