“Oooh, I’m bringing it.” Her retort unleashes another round of laughter.
A delicate clearing of a throat has me turning around. Raleigh hesitantly stands and starts for the table, but she doesn’t lean down and give Nash a kiss first. Even though I don’t want to think about it, I wonder how new they really are. Have they even shared a kiss? I quickly shake the thoughts away, as I watch her close the distance from where she was to the table. As she sits in one of the red cushioned chairs made of shiny red vinyl with chrome legs, ones that resemble something you may find at a fifty’s diner, Nash stands and walks over to her and leans down and gives her a soft peck on the cheek. That I can handle. That is sweet. He then walks over and grabs himself a beer fridge, and goes to stand next to Jake. No one has left the cabin, as Abigail ordered. To the contrary, everyone has settled in to enjoy the show.
When Abigail gives me her, let’s do this look, I turn and give Max a quick peck on the cheek, then stand and walk over to the table and sit down. Allie comes over wearing a huge smile and takes a seat as well. Finally, Abigail moves. She walks over and grabs two bottles of wine and sets them on the table, then proceeds to uncork them before handing out red solo cups to everyone at the table except Allie, which makes her frown. “Sorry,” Abigail mouths to her. She pours some wine in Kore, Raleigh and Victoria’s cups along with her own, then walks over and grabs a bottle of water for Allie and a beer for me. She finally sits down at the table, that matches the chairs with its red top and chrome legs, and turns her sights on Kore.
“Kore, you think you’re prepared for this?” Abigail asks, her eyebrows rose.
“Yes. Ask me anything.” Kore smiles her beautiful smile, then takes a sip of her wine before looking over at Jake. “Going to ace this, babe.” She blows him a kiss, and Jake winks in return.
“Ugh, barf,” Abigail groans.
“Gag,” I mutter, while pouring my beer into my cup.
“Since they’re all staying.” She gestures to our brothers, “I have to set some ground rules. The first rule…” Abigail begins.
“There are no rules,” Allie lowers her voice like a man, mocking the famous line from Fight Club, and I snort laugh as soft chuckles can be heard from all around the room.
“Pretty much.” Abigail nods in agreement.
“Okay Kore, I’m sure you know Jake played sports in high school.” Kore smiles huge and nods. “But did you know he also took gymnastics?” Kore’s eyes fly to Jake, and he’s gone pale before breaking out in a deep red blush. “This one time he had a recital at Sunken Gardens, yes, a recital.” Sunken Gardens is our city’s amphitheater. “What happened that EMS had to be called?” Abigail keeps her face blank, while Jake grabs another beer from the fridge and downs half of it while Kore watches him in question. Everyone in the room is laughing and some of them walk outside to gather themselves, before coming back in and waiting to see how this plays out.
Now, I remember that fateful evening because I had a recital too, only I took tap while Jake took gymnastics. And here’s the thing, he didn’t really take gymnastics, and it was kind of my fault he was drug into what happened. He was my ride to class, and well, the teacher with the adjoining gymnastics classroom to my tap classroom, talked him into helping her because he was always just sitting there bored. Jake has always been a big guy, so the teacher taught him to be a spotter.
For the recital in question, she had to stay on the sidelines to send in her students, while Jake waited for them at the mat. The gymnastics students, mostly older teenage girls, another reason Jake didn’t complain too much about being my ride or sticking around while I had practice, would run up, jump into a flip, and Jake would help them with the follow through, if needed. All was going smoothly, until this one girl came charging at the mat full speed, and lunged into the air off track of the mat. Jake tried to catch her, but it was like she had super flying powers or something, because she was soaring high above his head and was about to miss the mat completely and land on the cement. Jake jumped up and caught onto her waist, in hopes to steady her, but she panicked, and her arms and legs begin flailing which ended up with one of her knees connecting with his face. On that, he dropped her to mat, causing her to cry out while he grunted and covered his now bloodied nose.
Someone in the audience called 911, because within minutes a huge fire truck and ambulance flew into the back entrance of the outside theater with lights and sirens on. Paramedics rushed to Jake to check him over, even as he was brushing them away. He was embarrassed at the attention he was getting and a deep blush, like the one he just showed covered his face. Finally, Violet got him to let the paramedics take a look and the entire time he was getting checked, the girl, uninjured thanks to Jake, whined and complained saying it was all Jake’s fault she fell, which it wasn’t. He saved her from crashing into the hard ground and possibly breaking something, but no one could tell her that. No. She just kept on whining. She should have been saying she was sorry for hurting my brother, and thanking him for saving her, and I was about to tell her just that when Grandpa, having sensed my protective anger rising, pulled me away. “Darlin’, let it be. Jake’s a big boy and she’s embarrassed. He’s strong enough to take that for her,” he told me, and pulled me into a one arm hug.
I let it go, not fully understanding at the time what Grandpa meant, but in time, I got it. He taught my brothers how to be protective of women, even the ones that didn’t want it or necessarily deserve it. In the end, they were both fine, other than both their bruised egos and Jake’s nose.
I glimpse at Jake and see he’s still blushing, and that makes me grin. When Abigail begins to whistle the Jeopardy theme, I give her my attention. She stops her torment, takes another drink of wine, then sets her cup down and waits silently, yet smugly, for Kore’s response.
Kore glances over at Abigail and throws up her hands in defeat. “No clue,” she admits.
“Okay, well, I’ll let Jake tell you about it later. It’s a rather long and detailed story.” Abigail then turns to Victoria, leaving Kore with her mouth hanging open and her eye brows drawn.
“I’m going to call you later, Jaycee. I’m going to tell you what your brother tells me. You need to tell me if he’s told me what really happened, because I want to know this story,” Kore says with a huge smile of anticipation.
“Okay,” I agree while laughing.
“Victoria,” Abigail carries on. “On rainy days, what did Chase enjoy doing by himself?” Victoria's eyes fly to Chase and they widen, before she bursts into a fit of giggles.
While barks of laughter can be heard throughout the room, Chase blows out a huff of breath then closes his eyes, as he begs Heaven for patience. I know he wants to kill Abigail right now because that didn’t sound right. Nope. Not at all. Oh boy.
“That came out wrong.” Abigail puts her hands out and shakes them, making an ew face.
“You think, runt?” Chase barks, giving her his narrowed eyes.
“Okay, yeah, ew. Sorry.” She takes a deep breath then tries again. “On rainy days, Chase had a hobby…” Abigail stops again and shakes her head. “Nooo.” She tries again. “A past time…” She groans, and throws back the rest of the wine in her glass. “I can’t come back from this now. Moving on.” When she turns away from Victoria and towards Raleigh with a scrunched-up face, the room in roars with laughter.
“Hey,” Victoria protests.
“He enjoyed studying the solar system,” I share, and Victoria eyes come to me. “He even painted it on his ceiling in glow and the dark paint. We would lie down on the floor and he would point out the astrological signs and the little and big dipper, and other things.” I explain, and her face goes soft as she smiles up at Chase. I smile as I watch Chase relax at her expression, as Abigail moves on.
“Raleigh, my brother, Nash, the badass fireman that rides the most badass bike. Do you know what his favorite song was when he was younger?” I glance at Nash, and his body goes rigid as he glares at our baby sister. �
��Because, I’m going to say, Nash can be a little scary, I admit it, but if you know this, poof, just like magic, he becomes much less scary.”
A loud growl rumbles through the room, but no one cares. No one cares, because everyone just remembered what song Nash was always singing when he was younger. The women are aw’ing at the memory, while my brothers are trying to hold back their laughter.
One rainy summer day, we sat around watching movies. In the mix, was The Muppet Movie, which of course has the sweetest song ever, The Rainbow Connection. Nash walked around for days, if not weeks, singing it. He even learned to play it on his guitar, and he played it well. Nash, like Jesse, plays guitar, but I’ve haven’t seen him play in a long time. He sings, not like Jesse, who has an amazing smooth voice. No, Nash’s is rough, more like Bob Seger. But, Bob Seger singing The Rainbow Connection? That’s something special to hear.
“I don’t know?” Raleigh concedes. I doubt Nash has told her much since they’re brand new, and even if they weren’t, I’m not sure he would tell her this particular tidbit of information. But as a woman, I hope he does because this will melt her heart even more than I see it already is for my brother.
Nash walks over and looks down at Raleigh, with a red blush across his face, like Jake’s. I’m not sure what he’s about to say or do, but when I hear his words, I release the breath I’m holding and smile.
“The Rainbow Connection,” Nash confesses softly and waits for her reaction.
“I love that song, Nash,” she whispers up at him, her lips parted in surprise but tipped at the edges in a soft smile.
“He even plays it on his guitar and sings. He’s really good,” I tell her, and Nash’s eyes slice to mine. I can see he wants to be angry with me, but instead his eyes go soft as he glances between me and Abigail.
“Will you play it for me some day?” Raleigh inquiries timidly. Nash’s eyes go back to her and he nods. No grunt or growl this time. Just a gentle head nod. Progress?
“Okay, new category. Family pets. I’m going to assume you discussed pets.” She tilts her head at Kore, in question. Kore glares at Jake, and his eyebrows shoot up.
“I told you what I remember, baby,” he promises.
“What was the name of his pet hamster? The one that would escape the cage and hide in the broiler of the oven?” Kore grins, and takes a sip of her wine. It seems she knows, but before she can answer, Abigail holds up her finger and amends the question. “Not the nickname Jake gave it, after we cooked dinner with her in the broiler and her little ears were singed from the heat. Not Sizzle.” Kore’s mouth snaps shut, and she aims her pretty daggers at Jake, then back at Abigail, and then Jake again.
“I completely forgot about that,” he tries to explain.
Defeated, Kore gestures her hand at Abigail. “Give it to me,” she insists, then lifts her cup to her mouth.
“Pinky Paws,” Abigail blurts out right as Kore takes a sip. Kore spits out her wine, then quickly grabs a napkin from table and wipes her mouth while laughing.
“I was just a kid,” Jake defends.
“You were fourteen, son,” Dad hollers from across the room. “Granted, you weren’t thirty, but you weren’t five either,” he teases.
Kore stands from her chair still giggling, and walks over to Jake. She wraps her arms around his waist, then glances up and him and asks, “Pinky Paws?” Jake’s jaw ticks, and that causes her to drop her head against his chest and giggle some more. He groans low as he tries to explain, “She had little pink feet.” On that, Kore’s entire body bucks from laughing as she grabs onto his shirt, while hiding her face against his chest to muffle the sounds.
Everyone loves this game except, Nash, Chase and Jake. Allie and Jesse can’t stop laughing.
“Okay, second, but also last round.” She reviews Victoria and purses her lips as she thinks. “What is Violet’s nickname for Chase?” Violet bursts into laughter, as Chase drops his head and begins to shake it back and forth, just wanting it all to stop already.
“I don’t know. Spill,” she demands, and glances between Abigail and Violet, grinning.
“Booger butt,” Violet confesses, and laughs along with everyone else.
“Booger butt? Mom, really?” He groans. “That doesn’t even make sense,” he complains.
“No, it doesn’t,” she admits, and walks over to him. He watches her with wary eyes, until she stops in front of him and grabs his cheeks “My cute little booger butt.”
“Mom!” Chase barks and turns red in embarrassment, just like Jake and Nash, both, did.
“Jesus, Violet,” Dad barks, but there’s humor in his voice. “Leave the boy alone.”
Abigail is laughing as hard as everyone else, then straightens her features and looks at Raleigh. “Okay, Raleigh, if you get this right, you win. What is Nash’s middle name?” She leans back in her chair and waits.
“Hey, that one was easy. I knew that one,” Kore teasingly complains.
Allie laughs and stands from the table, then makes her way over to Jesse. She must have told him about the whole Bagdagmagdoda thing, because he’s laughing too.
Victoria is just watching in suspense while drinking her wine, and I hold my breath steady and wait. Abigail’s soft expression shows she’s not trying to trick her.
I doubt Nash told her his middle name, which means if she knows it, she’s done a little research. “Colin,” Raleigh says, and we all smile.
“We have a winner!” Abigail exclaims. “Nash, get your woman a nice prize.” She points at Raleigh. “Wait!” Abigail claps her hands and narrows her eyes at Nash. “Double points if you can answer this, brother.” Nash doesn’t say yes or no. He just waits. She glances back at Raleigh, grins, and then gives Nash her attention. “What is Raleigh’s middle name?” Nash’s eyes drop to his feet as he begins to regard his boots, before he coughs and looks back at, not Abigail, but Raleigh.
“Harlow,” he replies, his deep voice soft, and Raleigh’s lips part in surprise. Guess Nash has been doing his homework too.
“Alright, it’s late and that was fun, but I’m going to get Allie back to the resort, so she can rest. Stopping by Dairy Queen first, who’s in?” Jesse asks as he pulls his keys from the counter.
Everyone stands, so I guess we’re all going. The cabin is clean, so we all head out to our cars, while Dad and Uncle Duke secure the cabin and garage. One by one we back down the incline in front of the cabin, and head into town to invade the local DQ. While in line I study the menu. Normally, I’d order a Reese’s blizzard, but I’m feeling nostalgic for the days of my childhood, so I order a simple vanilla cone. After we receive our orders, we go outside to enjoy our ice cream near our vehicles in the parking lot.
Back at the resort, Raleigh and Nash make their way to the counter, with Nash holding Raleigh’s bag. One just small enough to fit in his saddle bag. I’m guessing Garrett and RJ will bring more tomorrow when they arrive. Nash must be checking her into her own room. That’s so sweet. The clerk is typing away, then regards both of them before she shakes her head. No rooms. Nash and Raleigh keep each other’s gaze for a few moments, before Nash apparently makes a decision for both of them. He takes her hand and pulls her to the elevator, where we’re all waiting. We exit our respective floors and head to our rooms, on soft goodnights and yawns. Today wiped everyone out.
Back in our room, Max and I, take a long hot shower, then I dry my hair while Max gets the bed ready. The moment we lie down, Max pulls me to him. I settle my head on his chest and soon, the sound of his strong heartbeat and the warmth of his skin lull me to sleep.
37
It’s Friday and tomorrow’s the big day, which means there’s so much to do today. This afternoon we have our rehearsal dinner, and most of our guests are arriving. We’ve set up a mini reception and rehearsal dinner, at a restaurant/bar across from the resort. I’m more than a little sore from skiing and wiping out, but it’s been so worth it. Max and I’ve just dressed, when there’s a knock at the door. Max
opens it to find a smiling Johnny and Macie.
“Hey brother,” Max greets and yanks Johnny into a man hug, then leans over to Macie and kisses her cheek. He then stands back, and they come in the room.
“Hey y’all,” I call out and walk over to give both of them a quick hug.
“Hey, we’re just across the hall. Dropped off our stuff. We saw Stone downstairs. Everyone is here. RJ, Garrett, Bella and her family. Not to mention, Jack, Tara, Patrick and Jenny. The lobby is packed with people checking in early. Jake and Stone, are taking everyone out on the boats, while Duke heads to the cabin with Mom and Dad to set up for the pig roast. Jack and Patrick brought jet skis. You two going out?” Johnny questions, and Max glances back at me.
“Jaycee?” he asks. From his excited expression, I know he wants to hang with his brother and do some more skiing, so I respond enthusiastically.
“Heck yeah.” Today I’m going to enjoy being a spectator. I’m going to take it easy, while watching my man ski and ogling his hot body.
“We haven’t had breakfast. You?” Max asks them, as he walks over and takes my hand in his.
“Yeah. We stopped on the way up, but I could eat again,” Johnny informs us and glances at Macie. “You still hungry, babe?” Macie’s eyes bug out at his question.
“Johnny, we literally just ate,” she replies. Johnny nods and shrugs his shoulders, but doesn’t speak. Macie, keeping his eyes, grins and concedes. “I’m not hungry, but I could definitely use some more coffee.”
We head downstairs and Johnny wasn’t lying; the lobby is packed with people. Max and I walk around saying hello to everyone, exchanging hugs with a few of them. I smile when I see Ronan and China are standing and talking with Linc and Delta. When we walk over and say hello, Linc tells us Lina and Red should be arriving later tonight, or early tomorrow. I know to others it may sound strange, but we’ve all become very close. My grin explodes when I see Levi, Darcy, Huck and Star.
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