Lola throws her hand over my mouth before I can respond.
“No fighting. I’m good, you’re good. We’re all good.” She smiles at me, then Matthew, lingering with hearts in her eyes. She’s smitten.
“Matthew,” I whisper.
He must see what I see. “I promise, Annabelle, I truly feel the same about her.”
He’d better.
“Hughes,” Leo and Nate yell as they approach my brother, slapping him on the back.
My brother laughs, hugging them both. “God, what’s it been, twenty years since I’ve seen you two?”
“It’s been way too long. You need to come out for a New York summer in the Hamptons for old times’ sake,” Nate says. “Where are your brothers, by the way?”
“Definitely, would love that,” Matty replies, then nods toward the corner where Theo is sitting with a girl I’ve never seen. “Oliver stayed home with Mum. She wasn’t feeling well.”
“Hey,” I interrupt. “Where’s Sebastian? I haven’t seen him all night.”
“Calling Harrison to make sure all is good at home. He’s the helicopter uncle,” Leo responds.
“Oh, that’s sweet. Jack’s the same way with Sadie’s girls.”
“There she is!” Jack calls. “The most beautiful bride there ever was.”
Sadie comes skipping over to us, wearing a wide grin and holding out her arms for her brother.
Nate grabs her first, practically throwing her up in the air. “Sadie girl!”
“Put me down, Nathaniel!” Sadie playfully scowls, only to have Jack pick her right back up and spin her around.
“You guys are crazy.” She chuckles. “Are you all having a good time? You can request any song from the band. They’ll play it for you.”
“Even Eminem, Slim Sadie?” Declan chuckles at their inside joke while he walks over with a smiling Nora.
Knew it, she definitely won the fight.
While everyone else is preoccupied with Sadie, I turn toward Leo. “I’m disappointed in myself. I completely forgot about the snake dick comment until I saw you guys today.”
He throws his arm around my shoulder and pulls me in.
“You know, the second Jack sees you like this, he will come over and lose his shit.” I chuckle.
He sniggers and shrugs. “I know. I count on it. He’s always giving everyone else crap, it’s good to see him squirm a bit. If you get Jackson to come to New York, I’ll tell you the story.”
“Leo, that’s cruel. It’s the worst cliffhanger. I need to know.”
“I know… I have to get him there somehow, though. We miss him. My parents miss him. They were mad as hell that they couldn’t come, but my dad just had hip surgery and couldn’t make it. So, you get him to New York, and I’ll tell you all the stories.”
“Deal.”
“Hands off, dickhead.” Jack snakes his arm around my waist, pulling me into his side.
“Told you.” I smile and lean my head on his shoulder, getting as close as possible without it looking suspicious.
Although, I guess to anyone who doesn’t know us, they would assume we’re a couple either way.
I’ve missed him all day, and after getting to spend this past week with him, I crave his touch.
