Under The Willows (Jackson Bay #1)

by Ciara Shayee

  Eyeing her dad as he leaves her room on Monday afternoon, she licks her lips and turns her head on the pillow. “He knows, doesn’t he?”

  My stomach knots, my pulse speeding up. This isn’t how I wanted this to go. There are far more romantic ways and places to tell the woman who owns your heart that you love her, but my time is running out fast. Shifting closer, I hold out my hand and smile when she quickly takes it, twisting our fingers together. She was able to have a proper shower for the first time this morning, her skin soft and now smelling faintly of her usual body lotion. I gently bring our raised hands up to kiss her knuckles before sucking in a deep breath.

  “He knows,” I admit softly. “They all know. Carson, Bethany, Bass, Rosie, Ev…” my smile turns into a smirk. “Jude wants to congratulate you on landing me.”

  She snorts, a pretty blush infusing her cheeks. “How did they take it?”

  “Your dad is…on the fence. Bass is following his lead.”

  Sebastian doesn’t frighten me, but he cut an imposing figure when he pulled the big brother routine on me and offered a reminder that he’s no stranger to putting guys in their place when they hurt his sisters. I know that all too well, having been the one to go with Carson to bail Sebastian out of jail after he broke the nose of one of Everly’s exes a few years back.

  “And Mom?”

  “She’s happy for us,” I say, pleased when a relieved grin takes over her face. “Everly says she’d guessed something was going on because the boys have been talking about us spending so much time together, and Rosie suspected you were seeing someone because she found a man’s t-shirt when she was watching the boys the other day.” Lifting an eyebrow, I purse my lips. “Can I assume the Gators tee I’ve been looking for is said t-shirt?”

  Piper laughs quietly, squeezing our twined fingers. “Sorry. I wore it home the other day and it’s so nice to sleep in, I thought I’d keep it safe for you.”

  I could think of other things you can keep safe for me. My foolish, fragile heart, for one.

  Huffing a chuckle, I shake my head. “Keep it, short stuff. I trust you to keep it safe for me.”

  Sobering a little, I try to muster all the courage I’ll need to get me through this next part.

  It’s been a long time since I’ve put myself out there at the mercy of somebody else. Piper knows I care about her and she knows I think she’s worth whatever discomfort our relationship will cause until everyone gets used to the idea of us, but she doesn’t know my heart beats for her and those three little boys she birthed, that I’d do anything, be anything they need me to be; or that I’m completely and overwhelmingly in love with her.

  It’s about time that changed.

  “Piper, I need to tell you—”

  The door flies open, hitting the wall with a thud. The adrenaline that had begun to course through my veins melts away again, Arlo thudding into the room on his crutches with Jude fondly rolling her eyes at him from the doorway. Like Bethany, she’s an ally I wasn’t expecting. The last couple of days have been full of waiting, waiting, and more waiting. That time needed to be filled with something. Usually, the boys drown out the silence with their chatter, but once they fall asleep or go home, it’s time for the grown-ups to talk and for me to learn tidbits about what brought Piper back to Florida.

  Laughing humorlessly, Jude shakes her head and runs her fingers through Arlo’s hair. He fell asleep on her a few minutes ago, his long day catching up with him. By all accounts, Arlo has barely slept through a whole night since the accident, so it doesn’t surprise me that he’s finally caving to his exhaustion with Jude lightly scratching his head with her blunt nails, the radio playing quietly in the corner of the family room.

  “Hasn’t she told you about their break-up?”

  Frowning, I rake a hand through my hair, my hand slipping down to rub the back of my neck. “We haven’t really talked about it.”

  “Then I don’t want to overstep by sharing things that aren’t mine to share, but I will tell you this, just to stop you pulling all that lovely hair out.”

  My ears get hot as she winks at me. “You’re a mean lady, Jude,” I grumble half-heartedly, not meaning it at all. I’ve definitely come to see why Piper regards her so highly.

  Taking a moment to gather her thoughts, she smiles at Arlo’s snuffly snores before meeting my gaze. “Piper and Richard were already separated when she found out she was pregnant with Arlo. She gave him a second chance to be the father he promised he’d be, and he screwed up again. I think she went into it with a guarded heart, expecting him to let her down. She’s had that guard up ever since, but with you, I don’t see it.”

  Relief and gratitude flood my body. Blowing out a long breath, I lift myself from the squeaky chair and press a kiss to her cheek. “Thank you, Jude.”

  I’m pulled from my memory by Arlo tapping my knee, hinting for a lift up onto the bed. “Help, please.”

  “Sure, buddy. Here you go.”

  Once he’s settled on the bed beside Piper, I offer Jude my seat and head for the door. As much as I want to spend time with Piper, Jude’s time is far more limited. She offers me a grateful smile and takes the chair.

  Just because I can, I lean in and press a quick but firm kiss on the top of Piper’s head before giving Arlo the same treatment and leaving the room with a promise to return later. Down in the cafeteria, I grab a cup of crap coffee and sit my ass on one of the hard plastic chairs, figuring I can use the time to answer a few business emails and check in with my team.

  My preoccupation doesn’t stop me compulsively checking my watch to see how soon is too soon to return to Piper.

  Twenty-nine

  Piper

  “…And that’s you, and me, and Jax, and Finn, and Easy, and—”

  “Whoa, kiddo,” I laugh, stifling a wince because laughing hurts my bruised sternum, but the boys get upset when they think I’m in pain.

  Arlo’s cheeks flush fire-truck-red as he halts his rambling speech.

  “Take a deep breath before you pass out, okay?”

  Sucking in a big breath, he flashes me a grin and nods. “’Kay, Momma. But look, Max is here, and Nana and Papa, and Uncle Bass and Aunt Gi.” He continues pointing to the stick figures on the paper, pointing out almost everybody he knows here in Jackson Bay as well as Jude and a couple of his old friends from nursery back in England.

  Content to just listen to him talk, I cuddle him as close as I dare and soak him in, breathing in his apple and pear shampoo and reveling in the softness of his hair between my fingers. The last week has been painfully slow as my strength has started to return bit by bit. I can’t walk yet, I can’t lift up my boys, and I can’t go home. We’re now on day twelve after the accident and I’m finally able to stand unaided, although I am a little wobbly, and I can make my arms move enough to hug my boys. It’s killed me being unable to snuggle my babies and comfort them when they’ve needed me.

  Thankfully, they’ve got a great support system in place. My family has been beyond amazing and we’ve had friends stopping by for the last week and a half with food, gifts to entertain the boys, flowers for me, and offers to help with Max. Luckily, our floofy beast is perfectly happy with Sebastian, Gianna, and Danny, so at least I don’t have to worry about him. As much as he’s a pain in the ass at times, I miss my Max like crazy.

  It makes me smile, remembering my hesitation when we first brought him home and Kellan’s assurance that I’d fall for him fast enough. He was right.

  As Arlo jibber-jabbers on, my gaze wanders to the window between my room and the corridor. Kellan is out there now with Dad, Sebastian, and Jude. They’re all smiling and laughing, getting on like a house on fire. There aren’t words to express how happy it makes me to see Jude slotting into my family so effortlessly, as if she’s always been here. There have been a few awkward moments while we all adjust to everyone knowing about me and Kellan, but overall, they’ve all been a steady mix of suppo
rtive and teasing.

  Now people know about us, our relationship feels real.

  My sisters have taken the news in stride easier than I ever expected. Rosie quietly admitted that Kellan is exactly the sort of man she’s always pictured me ending up with; someone mature and secure in themselves and their career. Someone dependable. “You’ve always struck me as someone who’d need an older man to balance you out,” she said with a shrug when I laughed and asked what she meant.

  Everly…Everly loudly congratulated me on landing ‘a Daddy,’ which didn’t go down well with Dad, who walked in just as she raised her hands for a double high five.

  A light tap on the door interrupts Kellan telling me about how Max put his head through the screen door at Mom and Dad’s yesterday, Everly’s shit-eating smirk cutting off my laughter and putting a frown on my face.

  Uh oh.

  “Do you mind if I have a moment with my dear sister, KP?”

  Kellan’s brows arch. Oh yeah, he’s caught her sugary sweet tone, too.

  “Sure thing, Ev.” Leaning over to press a kiss against my forehead, he offers me a wink before leaving us alone. Everly takes his seat with a girly sigh and waits a whole four seconds before erupting.

  “All right, can I be the first to say congratu-freaking-lations? Holy moly, sis. KP?”

  My cheeks burn even as I blow out a light laugh. “Thanks…I think?”

  Her eyes are wide and bright as she shifts closer, grabbing my hand. “Oh, it’s definitely a compliment.” Shooting a quick look at the window—Kellan is out there talking to Dad, but he’s not looking at us—she turns back to me and shakes her head in apparent wonder. “He’s a total Daddy, Piper. Serious man candy. Well done, girl. Big props to you. You’re officially my hero.”

  Mom is over the moon—she’s told me as much a hundred times already. Dad is more hesitant, as we expected. We can appreciate how strange it must be for him, seeing his best friend-slash-pseudo brother dating his daughter, so it’s easy to be patient with him. He’ll take a while to come around, but I haven’t had the ‘he’s not right for you, you need to ditch him’ speech he gave me after I introduced him to Richard.

  Incidentally, he was right about Richard, but I’ll never tell him that. I’d never live it down.

  I guess, with Kellan, it helps that Dad has seen the same things I have.

  I’ve never felt more like a family than when Kellan has helped me tuck the boys in at night or spent his meager breaks calling the boys to watch them eat dinner or chat about their day at school. I don’t think it’s always intentional, but he’s a dad without actually being their father. The developing bond between him, Jaxson, Finley, and Arlo is a beautiful thing to behold. Dad—and everybody else—has seen most of those things, too. Maybe not all of it, but the boys don’t see the harm in telling Nana and Papa how ‘Easy’ tucked them in last night or raving to Sebastian about how he’s teaching them to play soccer, all things that would have seemed relatively innocent until they found out that we’re together.

  “Hey, can we come in?” Jude asks, poking her head into the room with Kellan, Dad, and Sebastian right behind her.

  Thanks to my now-less-critical state, I’ve been moved down the hall to a new room. This one doesn’t have a visitor limit, thankfully. They all pile in, but Jude quickly explains they’re not all staying.

  “We’re going to head off now and let you get some rest. It’s been a long day.” To Arlo, she adds, “Come on, little love. Shall we get you back to Nana and Papa’s for dinner? Jaxson and Finley are waiting for us in the cafeteria with Aunt Everly.”

  “’Kay, Nanny.” Leaning up to kiss the tip of my nose, he grins. “See you tomorrow, Momma. Be good, okay?”

  “How about you be good, and I’ll see if we can go get some ice cream together tomorrow?”

  It’s the boys’ first day back at school tomorrow, and I’m nervous for them, so ice cream is the perfect treat.

  “You’ll come with me?” His eyebrows lift, his sweet smile widening. So far, I haven’t made it further than the end of the corridor, but I’m determined to get more mobile so I can get home. Being stuck in here is driving me crazy, and the only way to get stronger so I can go home is to keep building myself up.

  Plus, my slow gait makes Arlo feel better about being awkward on his ‘wonky foot,’ as he calls it. His brothers are healed up and tearing around the hospital corridors while he has to limp along behind them. My little livewire hates it.

  “I’ll walk as far as I can and maybe get someone to bring a chair with us, in case I get too tired.”

  “Okay, that sounds fun. I’m gonna go tell Jax and Finn. See you tomorrow, Momma! Love you!”

  “Bye, baby,” I laugh, blowing him a kiss as he slips off the bed and grabs his crutches. “Love you, too.”

  After saying ‘bye’ to Dad, Sebastian, and Jude, I’m left with Kellan and his lopsided grin as he sinks into the seat beside the bed.

  “How are you feeling? Tired?”

  “Always,” I admit with a grimace. “Sitting around all day makes me more exhausted than working a late shift at Vaughn’s.”

  He smirks, taking my hand and rubbing small circles over my knuckles with his thumb. The gentle motion makes me hum as I wriggle around to get comfy. “Did I tell you they hired someone to fill your position?”

  “No, but if you get me their address, I’ll be sure to send a sympathy note,” I grumble, unable to resist smiling when his beautiful, rich laughter fills the room.

  He really has no idea how much I adore him. This silly, sweet, complicated, and sometimes grumpy man has well and truly ruined me for all other men, and he has no clue. My eyes sting with ridiculous, impending tears as I gaze at his face, watching him check his phone when it chimes.

  So handsome.

  My gaze roams over him while he’s too distracted to notice, following the curve of his neck into his broad shoulders and muscular arms. Those arms have held me together when I’ve been emotional and in pain. They’ve cradled Jaxson, Finley, and Arlo when I wasn’t able to. The defined chest that draws my attention next has been a pillow for my sons and a place for me to cry when everything hurts and my recovery is too slow.

  My mind wanders, because I know what that chest and those arms look like without the Henley currently covering them and I miss seeing them. I miss the intimacy we had before I wound up here. I miss falling asleep wrapped up in him and I miss being able to jump his sexy body.

  “You’re testing my restraint, short stuff,” Kellan rumbles, his gravelly voice not helping my situation as my eyes snap up to meet his. His dark gaze and faint smirk tells me he knows exactly where my thoughts had wandered to. “I spent six years on my own, but a couple of months with you and I’m like a teenager again.”

  A delighted grin steals over my face. It still blows my mind that this gorgeous man wants me. I’m confident enough in myself to be able to say I’m relatively pretty and have a good figure, thanks to having three active sons and now a dog, but still.

  Kellan is Kellan, the hot guy I drooled over as a teen and crushed on hard.

  Now he’s mine, and everybody who really matters knows it.

  “If it makes you feel any better, I’m in the same boat,” I offer, not quite able to squash my grin completely. However, it slips a little at the look on Kellan’s face as he reaches up to rub his neck, refusing to meet my gaze. “What? Talk to me.”

  “This isn’t going to be smooth or slick in any way whatsoever,” he grumbles softly, seemingly to himself, before shaking his head and blowing a deep breath out through his nose. Only then does he look at me, curiosity and hesitance written all over his face. “We talked about my relationship with Shannon. Is it…would you…”

  My lips stretch into a smile again. “Would I mind sharing my horrendous dating history?”

  Snorting, he grips my hand a little tighter. “Pretty much. Sorry, there’s no nice way to ask and this is the shittie
st place for this conversation. I just…I think we need to be on the same page.”

  “Nah, it’s okay. I’m not going to get upset and bawl on you over it,” I tell him wryly. “I’m way over it. The only feelings I have for Richard now are frustration and disbelief that I put up with his bullshit for so long.”

  Twisting to get comfortable, I offer Kellan a genuine smile, hoping it will reassure him.

  “I met Richard during my freshers’ week at university. He was a couple of years ahead of me, but we ended up with a bunch of mutual friends so we saw each other a lot. Then he wouldn’t quit asking me out, so I eventually said ‘yes’ just to shut him up and ended up falling for him.”

  Saying it out loud now, knowing what I know and having spent the last decade growing as a person, I can’t believe I ever fell for a man like Richard. He’s selfish, immature, and pigheaded. He has his good qualities, of course—I wouldn’t have had children with him otherwise—but my youth and inexperience with relationships definitely made me naïve. I stayed for too long and put up with too much. We weren’t compatible, but I was stubborn and determined to make it work.

  “It doesn’t surprise me that he was a persistent asshole. I mean, you’re you,” Kellan murmurs, obviously not enjoying this conversation even though he was the one who brought it up. “But I guess I don’t understand why you stayed so long.”

  “I was young, dumb, and I thought I was in love,” I admit with a shrug, hating how foolish it makes me sound. “I thought we’d get through it and prove the doubters wrong. Lots of people warned me about his reputation, but I just didn’t see it for the longest time. Then we had Jax and Finn, and I was determined to make it work for their sake.”

  ‘It’s just a rough patch,’ ‘being new parents tests every relationship,’ and ‘we just need to work harder’ became my mantras.

  “I even told myself that him not caring about the boys’ surnames wasn’t so bad, because it just didn’t occur to me to think otherwise. Some women don’t take their husband’s surnames when they get married, so why should it be a big deal that Richard didn’t care whether the boys had his surname or mine? At least that’s what I told myself at the time.”