Her blush increases, creeps down to her throat. “You will?”
“Yeah, I will.”
“Okay,” she whispers, her body swaying.
“Tell me what you’ll say to your mom.”
Her breaths become stuttered. “That Dean will teach me everything.”
“And why’s that?”
“Because I’m his now. And he’ll take care of me.”
“Good.”
Fuck it, I’m going to kiss her.
I know it’s her home and her parents are somewhere around here. And her dad might take an issue with it and throw me out but I don’t care.
I have to kiss her.
And she wants me to kiss her, with the way she keeps licking her lips and shifting against me restlessly.
It’s my job to give her everything she wants.
But just as I’m about to do it, the bell rings and the front door opens up. We both turn to see who it is.
A brunette steps inside. Actually, now that the sun falls on her, there are a few golden strands visible, which makes it very hard to pin down her hair color.
Which, in turn, tells me who she is. Violet, one of Willow’s friends that she met while she was at Heartstone. And the large, bearded man who steps in behind her is her husband, Graham Edwards.
I clench my teeth.
I don’t like Graham Edwards. Not at all.
Even though his size falls in the category of intimidating for the most part, I’m not afraid to take him.
Because of what’s going to happen in exactly two point five seconds.
“Oh my God, Auntie Vi and Uncle Graham are here,” Fallon chirps from beside me. “Oh my God, am I blushing?” She turns to me with her hands on her cheeks, her eyes wide. “I’m blushing, aren’t I?” Then she goes ahead and fans her face with those hands. “Gosh, it’s so embarrassing. I always do that when he comes around. Like, he’s so big and masculine, you know? I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone this large and tall and dreamy. Damn it. I need to stop blushing.”
I know.
I fucking know about the blushing.
She’s been doing that ever since she turned twelve or something. Every time they came around, she’d blush and make me want to punch something.
Punch him, to be exact. Graham Edwards.
So yeah, I’m not afraid to take him.
In fact, I’d like to have a go at him one of these days. Just to prove to her he’s not so large and tall and fucking dreamy.
“I’ve seen bigger,” I clip, barely holding onto my animosity.
Fallon finally focuses on me.
I don’t hide anything. Now that she’s mine, she needs to know that I won’t let her blush for other men.
She is not allowed to blush for other men.
“And yes, you do need to stop blushing,” I tell her.
She frowns up at me. “Are you ordering me to stop blushing?”
“Yes.”
“You do know that it’s kinda involuntary? Blushing. It happens.”
“It happens when you’re excited. So stop being fucking excited.”
She watches me a few seconds before a small smile appears on her lips. “Are you jealous?”
I lean down to intimidate her a little. “Fuck yeah, I am.”
“But it’s Uncle Graham.”
“I don’t care who he is. You’re not allowed to blush for other men.”
She chuckles then. “You’re crazy. But okay. I will cease all blushing and excitement right this second.” When I clench my jaw, she caresses it with her soft hand. “But I only get excited because of how cool their love story is. Uncle Graham and Auntie Vi’s.”
I know about their love story too.
Not because I have any particular interest in it but because Fallon, back when she heard it and was in her Disney stage, would keep telling it to me.
It’s the coolest thing, Dean. So Auntie Vi and Uncle Graham are like star-crossed lovers. They loved each other for ages before the world tore them apart because he was her best friend’s dad and people thought that their age gap and stuff is gross. And then, Uncle Graham vanished. But Auntie Vi was like, no, I’m going to find him and she did. All the way in Colorado. Have you ever been to Colorado? It’s all woods and mountains and so pretty. And he was living in this remote cabin, all alone, sad and miserable without her and when she showed up, she brought him back to life. And guess what? He gives her roses all the time. It’s so beauty and the beast, right?
I don’t understand how it’s like beauty and the beast but whatever.
So I know about their love story and what they went through in more detail than I’d like to.
“Besides, what do you think gave me the idea to move all the way to stupid California?” she teases and I sober up.
“Listen, Fallon, if you don’t want to stay there, we can come back here. I know you don’t like it there. We can—”
She puts a finger on my lips. “I don’t. And that’s because you’ve never shown me around. Maybe if you do, I might start liking it.”
I kiss her finger. “I will. I will show you around. Take you anywhere you want.”
“Because I’m yours now.”
“Yeah, you are.”
I bend down to kiss her again.
And again, we get interrupted. This time by thumping footsteps and a voice, “Why don’t you two get a room or something?”
This is said by Brendan who passes us by – he was probably in the backyard somewhere helping with the party stuff – in a flash and almost collides with the glass back door in an attempt to get inside as soon as possible.
“What’s… with him?” I ask, as I watch him dash down the hallway to where all the guests are convened.
Fallon laughs. “A girl.”
“What?”
“Rosie.”
Rosie is Violet and Graham’s daughter and a couple of years younger than Brendan, I think. She’s standing off to the side, her hands fidgeting as the adults hug and greet each other. It’s obvious that she’s uncomfortable and shy.
“What about her?” I ask, watching Brendan walk on the scene.
“So my little brother has a huge crush on her. Like, huge.”
“What?”
“Yup. He’s going to talk to her, probably try to joke around and she’ll be all shy and sweet and his ears are going to get really red. Just observe.”
So I do.
I observe as Brendan tips his chin at Rosie, who bites her lip and waves at him hesitantly. Then Brendan begins talking, propped up against the wall, acting like a cool kid and Rosie nods and smiles. But she’s barely able to make eye contact with him.
And well, he does get red.
The area around his neck is flushed and so are his ears.
Poor kid.
Fallon laughs beside me. “Oh my God, my idiot brother. He’s got it bad for her.”