Dalton cackled. “That’s what you get for almost running over the new girl.”
“Would’ve served him right if she kicked his ass,” Diego added, grabbing a deviled egg off a tray as he went through the kitchen and instantly getting smacked with a wooden spoon.
“You’ve got ten fingers, Diego,” Hannah said, cool as anything. “I can take a few if you don’t keep them to yourself. And that bottle of dish soap over there? Don’t think that just cause I ain’t your momma, I won’t wash your mouth out.”
He followed me, grinning like an idiot. “Sorry, ma’am.”
“Hands off until I say so,” she added, then looked back at me just as I opened the door. “And if you everdomanage to speak to that girl again, maybe try leading with something that doesn’t sound like it came from an overweight trucker in the back of a Love’s Truck Stop.”
“I wasn’t flirting,” I grumbled.
Dalton laughed, “You called herprincess, man.”
“It’s aword.”
“It’s adeath wish,” Diego said. “She looked at you like you were a bug she was debating squashing.”
“She did squash him. She had a hell of a look in her eye,” Dalton agreed. “I liked her.”
“Of course you did,” I snapped. “She hatedme.”
“You gotta admit, though,” Dalton said, “she was kind of hot.” He dodged the apple Hannah lobbed at his head and hastily shut the door behind us. Clint, a friend of his dad and theowner of a seriously badass Indian Scout, eyed the rolling apple before giving us an admonishing look.
“Don’t go pissing off Mrs. Mills, you three. You oughta know better than that.” I was about to say something to him when it dawned on me what Dalton had just said.
“Hot?! Dude, she almost bit my head off!”
Dalton slung an arm around my shoulder, all grinning sympathy. “Welcome to Georgia, buddy. Where the girls don’t play and youreallyshouldn’t try to impress them by almost turning them into roadkill.”
I shoved him off, half-laughing despite myself. “Remind me why I hang out with you losers?”
“Because we’re pretty, and we make you look better by comparison,” Diego shot back.
Just then, the side door creaked open and in walked August Mills, sweat glistening on his brow, clipboard in hand. The whole room shifted like it always did when he stepped in. Not from fear. Just respect. He glanced at us. “Mac in the kitchen?”
I nodded. “Yes sir. He was bringing in those chairs last I saw.”
He bent, grabbed the apple off the floor and tossed it to us. Diego caught it easily, gave it a wipe on his shirt, and took a bite. “Mrs. Mills kicked us out.”
“That’s my girl. You boys stay out of her way unless she asks for you, ok? Why don’t you go outside? Make yourselves useful. See if Silas needs help.” He gave Dalton a squeeze on the shoulder as he passed. The kitchen door closed behind him and the sound of Hannah’s delighted squeal echoed around the room. I couldn’t help but smile. Those two were always messing with each other.
Outside, I could hear the deep rumble of bikes pulling in, kids laughing, someone blasting Lynyrd Skynyrd a little tooloud. The fundraiser was in full swing, and this—this kitchen, this chaos, this family—was the heart of it.
And for all the teasing, all the yelling, all the clatter and sass and barking orders…I couldn’t help but feel like I was exactly where I was supposed to be. Even if one blonde girl with a razor tongue had wrecked my pride in a parking lot. Whatever. Not like she’d crossed my mind again or anything. I mean, seriously. What was her problem? If she hadn’t went freaking mental, I would’ve just apologized and went on my way. Probably. But “man child with small dick syndrome”? Like hell was I just going to sit down and take that shit.
Diego interrupted my thoughts, bumping his shoulder against mine. “Thinking of her again, lover boy?”
“Shut up, man.”
Mac came up behind us. “Come on, leave the guy alone. Not his fault some strange chick destroyed his fragile ego.”
“Fragile?!”
Dalton laughed. “We better go find something to do before Dad comes back out here. But it’s a good thing that was a one-off thing. Not sure you could take another hit.”
I gaped at him, then threw myself at him. We wrestled for a bit, Clint and a few others hollering at us for being idiots, before Mac pulled us apart. “All right, all right. Dalton was right. We gotta go help.”
Fragile. Fucking fragile. Those damned hazel eyes flashed in my mind again. There had been an odd look to them. And it suddenly dawned on me what it was.
