by Amanda Perry
At the end of my first month with the family the guys spend more time around the house. Because Jack was finally home, they all took a full week off to spend with him. Lochlan, Dominic, and Declan even stayed in their old rooms. The first day or two I tried to stay out of their way. They needed family time and I’m not part of that.
But every time I’d sneak off to my room someone would come drag me back. The first time Duncan came knocking on my door with concern etched in his features. “Are you alright?” He asked when I opened my door for him. “You left kind of abruptly.”
“I’m fine, I just wanted to give you all some guy time.”
“Please come back,” he coaxes, taking my hand in his. His touch strikes me dumb and I willingly follow him down the stairs.
That night, everyone came around for dinner again. This was the first time since the day I arrived the whole family was accounted for. When Maggie yelled upstairs that it was time to eat, I stayed behind in my room to work on some homework, trying once again to allow them family time.
Talen came up searching for me a while later. “Hello, Sugar,” he sing songs, leaning closer to me. “Can I take a pretty girl to dinner?”
“Erm,” I stutter, wishing words would form on my tongue. Talen flirts a lot, but it’s his compliments that get me every time. “Okay?”
He laughs loudly, pulling me up from my bed and leading the way to the kitchen. When Dominic spotted me he winked and tugged me into his side. “I’ve told you- we have told you- a million times. You aren’t intruding, Parker. We want you around.”
I just smile and shrug my shoulders as a feeling of warmth spreads through me.
The more time I spend with the guys, the more confusing they become to me. After Talen came to get me that night, I stopped sneaking away to my room and decided I’d let them tell me when they wanted me to get lost. They haven’t yet, though I’m still waiting.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Okay, I can do this,” I tell myself firmly. I put one foot in front of the other, slowly inching forward. “I won’t die from it.” Another step, and another. “Stop being a baby, Parker.”
“Are you talking to yourself?” Lochlan’s deep voice comes from close behind me and I jump two feet in the air, spinning around to face him.
I prop my hands on my hips and give Lochlan my meanest glare. “Do you guys enjoy scaring the shit out of me?”
Lochlan’s lips twitch slightly as he shrugs. “Yes, yes we do. Now answer my question..”
“Yes, I was talking to myself,” I growl. “I’m working on… something.”
His eyes lift from my face to seek out my obvious destination. He smirks widely, crossing his tattooed arms over his massive chest. “Poor little Parker is scared of the big fluffy doggies.”
My cheeks burn bright with anger and embarrassment. “Shut it, Lochlan. I’m not scared. I’m being cautious. That beast tried to kill me once before. I have a right to be a little ambivalent.”
“You’re being dramatic.”
He strolls past me, toward the far corner of the backyard where Kit and Pup lounge lazily. A dirty, well chewed, bright orange tennis ball sits abandoned between the two of them. Lochlan marches up to the dogs, sitting down and picking up the ball. Pup and Kit jump to attention at the chance to play. Lochlan tosses the ball to the other side of the yard and I watch as the two beasts take off after it. Lochlan turns his attention back to me and motions for me to join him.
Hesitantly, I make my way over to him, sinking down to the grass. “They love that damn ball. If you play fetch with them, they’ll be your best friend.”
“Where’d the ball come from?” I tense as Kit races for us, tennis ball wedged in her powerful jaws. Instead of running me over- or eating me- she drops the ball in my lap and plops her butt down. Her tongue droops from the side of her panting mouth and her tail swishes back and forth with glee. I giggle at her playfulness. Between the two, Kit’s my favorite. She didn’t attack me after all.
As Lochlan answers me, I grab the ball from my lap and throw it. The ball doesn’t go nearly as far this time, but Kit and Pup still chase after it. “Greyson picked it out for them when we first got them.”
“He’s adorable.” I smile to myself thinking of the blonde tornado currently getting a bath from Maggie. She hadn’t planned on giving him one at such an early hour, but the markers he found and used to draw his tattoos warranted a scrub down. “He tried to draw tattoos on his arms earlier. He said if you can have them then he can, too.”
Lochlan’s lips turn up into the biggest smile I’ve seen from him yet. “He always wants to do everything I do.”
“I noticed.” I chuckle.
Lochlan’s brows draw together and he frowns. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Erm.” I glance at him from the corner of my eye, and then back to the dogs. They’ve abandoned the ball for belly rubs. Kit rolls onto her back in front of me and Pup takes Lochlan’s attention. “It means I noticed?”
Lochlan makes a noise of disbelief and I sigh deeply. “Why does everything have to have a hidden meaning with you? I don’t really speak in code, Lochlan. If I say something, I mean it.”
He considers me for a long time and I remain silent, allowing him to think. After a while he deflates, his shoulders slumping forward. “I don’t mean to be a dick all the time. Greyson is my soft spot. I can’t help how protective I am of him.”
“You two have a crazy close bond. He’s a mini version of you.”
“He always has been. When he was first born he cried a lot, colic baby. Not much calmed him down, but if I held him he’d get quiet almost instantly. His eyes would get big and wide and he’d just stare at me like I hung the moon. He trusted me with his life and I swore I’d never let him down.”
I peek up at Lochlan under my lashes and give him a soft smile. “You could never let that little boy down. You’re his hero and I have a feeling you always will be.”
Lochlan doesn’t respond, but his features soften further as he pets Pup’s belly. “What do your tattoos mean?” I ask, changing the subject in hopes of lifting the mood.
He glances down at his arms and shrugs. “It would take all night to tell you about all of them.”
“Do you have more than what’s on your arms?” My gaze wanders to his chest and I have the urge to lift his shirt and inspect him, not just for tattoos.
He nods. “Quite a few more, actually.” He points to a large tattoo on his forearm. “This is for Mom. She loves sunflowers. She’s really important to me and I wanted to honor her in a subtle way. She cried when I came home with it, though I think it was part in shock of me getting another tattoo.”
I giggle thinking of Maggie’s reaction to Lochlan covering his arms in tattoos. “What about the yin and yang symbol?”
“Dad and Pop,” he explains. “The two of them are complete opposites, but our family wouldn’t work without both of them.”
“Are most of them for your family?”
“Yeah, most are for them. The football is for Talen. He loves sports and played all through school. We all wondered if he’d go pro, but he wanted to work with Declan instead. The wrench and saw are for Dec. The word peacemaker in Spanish, I bet you can guess who that’s for.”
“Dom?”
He smirks. “Good guess. The stack of books is for Duncan and the dragon is for Greyson.”
“Dragon? Does he like them?”
“Yeah, sort of.” Lochlan snorts and rubs a hand over his head. “I told him to pick whatever he wanted. Thank fuck he chose a bad ass looking dragon. He was into them a year ago when I got it, but he was also into that purple princess on TV. Now he’s more into cars and trains.”
“You let a three year old pick a permanent tattoo?” My eyebrows rise to my hairline.
Lochlan scratches at his jaw and shrugs. “He really wanted to. I couldn’t say no to him.”
I study him for a moment. He would do anything for his family. Maybe his rough and
tough exterior is just his way of protecting them. I suddenly want to get past the bullshit and figure out what he’s really like.
“Maybe I’ll tell you about the rest some day.”
I perk up. “I’d like that.”
A loud bang sounds from the house and our heads swivel to find the source. I bark out a laugh when I realize Austyn has knocked on the glass, holding up a piece of notebook paper with the words “HELP ME, STARSHINE” written in bold black ink. He points behind him to Maggie and back to his sign. I squint, getting a closer look at Maggie and find her at the stove. She’s trying to make Austyn cook. I throw my head back and laugh. Poor guy needs a rescue. He presses his face against the glass, making weird faces at us.
“I suppose I should go save him.” I hop up to my feet and turn back to Lochlan. His famous scowl is back in place, though I can’t figure out why. We were having a good chat five minutes ago and now he’s all grumpy again.
He gets up also, barely giving me a nod as he walks away toward the garage. I don’t know that I’ll ever figure out these guys and their odd behavior. I pet Kit’s head once more, then stroll toward the house. Austyn continues to press his face against the glass until Maggie sneaks up behind him and smacks him upside the head. He ducks and spins toward her, giving her a sheepish smile. She says something to him and hands him a rag and a bottle of window cleaner. She points to the smudges he made and walks away. When he turns back to me, I’m at the back door. I roll it open and point at him. “Ha-ha, you’re in trouble,” I sing.
“Shut it, Starshine.” He presses the trigger on the window cleaner harder than necessary and goes about cleaning his mess.
I stick my tongue out at him and walk into the kitchen, around the island. “Make me, Buttercup.”
“Play nice, children.” Maggie pats my shoulder as she walks by, her lips turned up into a content smile.
“She started it.”
“He started it.”
“Don’t make me pull this car over,” Dominic growls playfully. He and Talen enter the kitchen, taking seats at the island. “What are the two darlings bickering about this time?”
“Austyn’s a wiener.”
“Parker’s a butthead.”
Dominic and Talen roll their eyes at us and Maggie chuckles. “You two are impossible. Austyn, I saw your call for help. If you don’t want to help me bake the cookies, maybe Parker will.”
“Great plan, Ma! Later, Starshine.” Austyn rushes out of the room, window cleaner and rag still in his hands.
I glare at his rapidly retreating back. “You’re a damned traitor!” I cringe and glance back at Maggie. “I meant darn.”
“I’m sure you did.” She shakes her head good naturedly. “But now you have to help me with the cookies.”
“Ah, Mom,” Talen whines while slumping down in his seat. “We wanted the cookies to be edible.”
I grab the dish rag from the counter and throw it at Talen’s head. “Jerk.”
He laughs, pulling the rag off his face. “Sorry, Parker, but you know I’m right.”
“He’s definitely not wrong.” Dominic adds, cringing slightly when I glare his way.
A sudden and brilliant idea pops into my head. “Maybe Declan will like the cookies I make.”
Talen’s eyes grow wide. “You wouldn’t.”
“Oh, I would and I will.” I shoot him an evil grin. “If I tell him Maggie made them, he won’t even ask questions.”
“She’s devious.” Talen jumps off his stool and rounds the island. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me into a hug. “I cannot wait to see his face. You’re an evil genius.”
“I’m not getting on Declan’s bad side.” Dominic throws his hands in the air and vacates his stool. “I know nothing about this. I was with Lochlan in the garage the entire time.” He strolls out of the room, whistling innocently.
Talen waves Dominic off, turning back to me and Maggie. “I’ll get in on this. If he sees me eating some of mom’s cookies he won’t question taking one of yours from the only plate on the counter. He won’t even think twice.”
“Normally, I would say don’t poke a bear, but this does sound a bit fun.” Maggie’s mischievous smile doesn’t surprise me. She knows how to have a little bit of fun. “Let’s get to it.”
Two hours later, Maggie has three perfect batches of chocolate chip cookies and two batches of sugar ones. I genuinely tried to make my first batch, but they’re more like hockey pucks than cookies. I tried to bite into one and nearly broke a tooth. “I really don’t know what happened! I did everything the same way as Maggie.”
“You put the eggs?”
“Yeah, I put the eggs.”
“Did you remember flour?”
“Of course I added flour!”
“And the baking soda?”
“Yes I… Oh… Oh no!” I smack my forehead with the palm of my hand. “How did I forget the stupid baking soda?”
“It’s okay, Parker,” Maggie soothes, her hand on my shoulder. “We can make the next batch right. Just use this one for Declan’s special treat.”
“I may as well.” I shrug. “I was going to make a real batch first and then add hot sauce to Declan’s, but I suppose this will work just as well.”
“True genius,” Talen sighs dreamily, fluttering his eyelashes at me. “Marry me, you sneaky lass.”
“I can’t marry someone who calls me anything rhyming with ass,” I counter. My lips twitch.
Talen hangs his head in defeat. “Fair enough. I’ll try again someday.”
“Sure you will.” I wave him off and continue on baking my second batch.
They turn out much better than the first. “They’re not too bad,” Talen exclaims.
“You don’t have to act so dang surprised.” I rest my hands on my hips and narrow my eyes at him. “I’d like to see you bake.”
“Calm down, Tiger.” Talen snickers. “It was supposed to be a compliment. Now wait here, I’m going to go call for everyone to come down and grab some cookies.”
I scrunch my brow. “Doesn’t that mean everyone will get one of my hockey pucks? I thought it was just Declan we were going after.”
“Casualties of war, Parker.” He winks and strolls from the kitchen to round everyone up.
Clapping my hands together, I grin gleefully and rub my hands. “This is so awesome.”
Maggie and I lean against the far counter and watch as the guys come rushing into the kitchen. Everyone picks up a cookie from the only plate on the island. Maggie conveniently hid her cookies in the pantry. Dominic clearly knows to keep away, so he remains behind the guys watching them with a twinkle in his eye.
As most of the guys attempt to take a bite of the cookies, it becomes harder and harder to hold in the laughter. The reactions range from shock to outrage.
“What the fucking hell happened to the cookies?” Austyn cries while banging the rock hard baked good on the counter.
“Are you mad at us or something, Mom?” Duncan sets his cookie down on a napkin in front of him and scoots it away. “Do we need to talk about it?”
“Holy shit, Ma.” Lochlan coughs, wiping his hand across his mouth.
Maggie sniffles, covering her face with her hands. Her shoulders shake and to anyone else it would appear she’s distraught and crying. Talen, Dominic, and I know her issue isn’t tears from being upset. It’s tears from laughing too hard and trying to hold it in.
“Guys, what the fuck?” Declan hollers at them, stepping around the island and hugging his mom to his chest. “She worked hard to make those and you fucks are acting like douche bags about it.”
“You might want to taste it before you defend her, bro.” Austyn holds his hands up, not willing to surrender.
Declan lets Maggie go and stomps over to the island. He picks up his cookie and attempts to take a normal bite. The problem with a normal bite from these cookies is they’re too hard for that. Declan’s back is to us but his shoulders hunch forward, telling us the second he
realizes how right his brothers are.
“Come on, Ma, don’t cry.” Lochlan slinks over to his mom and hugs her tight. “It’s not that we don’t like the cookies. It’s just that they’re… different than you normally make.”
Maggie breaks character by snorting, her laughter soon following. “I’m sorry, Parker. I tried.” She barely manages to get the words out before collapsing into another laughing fit.
“What does she mean?” Declan swirls around on his heel and pins me with a glare.
My eyes widen and I glance around at the four indignant men around the room all watching me. Talen and Dominic remain silent. Not wanting to go down alone, I point at Talen. “Talen made me do it!”
Without another word I try to run away and hide out, but Declan catches me around the waist. He pulls my back to his front, wrapping both arms around me and holding tight. “You’re not going anywhere.” The whisper of his breath against my neck sends shivers of pleasure through my body. “Now that I’ve got you, what am I going to do with you?”
“I can think of a few things.” The breathy words leave my lips before my brain to mouth filter kicks in. Declan stiffens behind me momentarily before his arms tighten further around me. I melt into him, not caring if he comes up with a devilish plan of retribution. Being held by him is worth the payback.
Declan presses his lips against my neck and I send up a silent thanks to anyone listening that we are faced away from the other guys currently groveling to Maggie in the kitchen. My lips part and a shuddered breath leaves me. “I think,” Declan whispers, his voice husky and deep. “I’ll save my payback for another time. I like this better, anyway.” His lips come to rest on my neck again.
“Dec, are we going to throw her in the dumpster with her shitty cookies or what?” Leave it to Austyn to ruin a moment. Declan drops his hands from around my body as if I suddenly caught fire. I groan out my frustration, turning with him to face everyone.
“If you try throwing me anywhere, I’ll shave your head while you sleep, Buttercup.”