CHAPTER 47
Henry
She did look a little like she’d been fucked good and hard. Her hair was still wild, despite how many times she ran her fingers over the curls to tame them. Her mouth, throat, and the back of her neck were peppered with beard burn. The white dress she’d worn that morning had been ripped so she’d dressed in the old-fashioned jeans that made her ass shine like a beacon. The little tank top she’d pulled on had my mouth watering and my eyes trailing her around the party.
How we’d gone from throwing punches with her big brothers to having them host our wedding party was beyond me. The three big fuckers stood on the porch, beers in hand, watching over the party like some sort of moody overlords. They weren’t cramping anyone’s style, though. The whole town had shown up to celebrate.
Nellie was tipsy and taking Woodrow for a spin on the makeshift dance floor. Her hair flew up around her face as she twirled and her smile was so bright it hit me dead center of my chest each time it was aimed at me.
Seth stopped next to me, Waylan in his arms. She’d devoured what had to be close to half a cake and had passed out. “She’s supposed to go home with Vera but do you think she’ll be freaked out if she went to sleep with us and wakes up with them?”
I shrugged. “That’s a question for an experienced parent.”
We both looked around for one to ask but everyone was either drunk or childless. Seth looked down at Waylan and then back at me. “She’s coming home with us. I don’t want her to be scared.”
Woodrow came up to us, a sheen of sweat coating his face. He smiled at Waylan’s sleeping form and then shook his head. “It feels like just a week ago that I was watching her chase Papa Jack down the road.”
Nellie stopped behind Woodrow and pulled her phone out. “That’s too cute not to capture.”
Seth growled at her. “I’m not cute, woman.”
She reached out and tapped him on the nose. “Big man with a sleepy little girl? That’s cute.”
Steve showed up and swung Nellie into his arms. “I’m stealing my girl for a dance.”
I watched as he and Nellie swayed together on the dance floor. She watched the older man with something close to hero worship. He was a good man and it was clear he loved Nellie like a daughter. It’d also been clear to me the week before that he was sneaking a woman in and out of his shop. I still hadn’t managed to see who the woman was, though. The old guy was sneaky.
“Boys, you know that I’m thinking of selling?” Vivian joined us and tapped her beer to ours. “It’s a lot of house for an old lady. Do you know anyone with a big family looking to grow bigger?”
My pulse thumped harder. A home of our own? I loved the B&B and had already thought of a dozen different projects which would make it perfect for a single family. “Don’t toy with my emotions, Ms. Vivian.”
She pulled me into a hug and patted my head. “How many more babies you thinking?”
Seth grunted. “A full dozen should do it.”
Woodrow snorted. “He didn’t know what toddlers were last week. He called one a walking baby. Now he wants a dozen kids.”
I watched Nellie on the dance floor and shook my head. “I don’t care if we have one, a dozen, or none. As long as that woman comes home to us each night, I’ll die a happy man. Now, if you’ll excuse me. I’m going to dance with my wife.”
Steve spun Nellie into my arms when I got closer and she came laughing. “Treat her right, young man.”
I nodded to him and held Nellie close. “You’re so beautiful, Nell.”
She blushed. “You’ve been drinking.”
I ran my finger over her warm cheek. “How you still manage to blush after what we did today…”
“I can’t believe any of this is real.” She looped her arms around my neck and leaned back, head tipped up to the night sky. “It’s like magic.”
“It is.” I pressed a kiss to her throat. “You’re the most beautiful woman in the world, baby. I feel like the luckiest bastard.”
“I’m the lucky one. I get three hunks to take home every night. I have the best daughter. I also have Papa Jack, though I’m not sure that makes me lucky. He slapped my ass when I walked by him earlier.”
“Cat’s got taste. In those jeans, I can’t even blame him.”
She started to say something else but her eyes shifted to something behind me and she frowned. “Who’s that?”
I turned us in a circle so I could see who she was talking about. At the edge of the party stood three men. Like lumberjacks in suits, they towered over Nellie’s sister, Maxie. Maxie always looked like she was seconds from snapping but the set of her shoulders made it seem like she was really about to lose it.
“Does Maxie have three boyfriends she’s currently fighting with?”
Nellie grunted. “It would be news to me but I also thought I knew who my real father was until yesterday, so what do I know?”
Forgetting about Maxie since she’d vanished into the crowd, I winked down at Nellie. “Come on, now. You know who your real daddy is.”
She slapped my shoulder and groaned. “That’s awful!”
A loud screech pierced the air and I watched Waylan shoot out of Seth’s arms like a bottle rocket. “Papa Jack!”
Sure enough, the giant black cat shot through the party and went straight at the local DJ who was playing country music. We watched in horror as Papa Jack launched himself at the man. Waylan wasn’t far behind. Nellie swore and took off after them both.
“Papa Jack! You were supposed to stay in the car! I told you that you could come but you couldn’t get out! Now you’re going to get me in trouble! You big ass!”
Nellie put on the turbo jets and scooped her daughter up in one arm and the cat in the other just as the cat was about to maul the DJ. Turning to us with her arms full, Nellie grinned broadly and hoisted her spoils. “I’m getting faster!”
Papa Jack screamed again and Waylan screamed back. “Turn off the country! He wants something with a beat!”
Nellie nodded, like it made perfect sense. “He’ll tolerate rock but he likes old school rap the best.”
Seth and Woodrow joined me on the dance floor. We all watched with our arms crossed and smiles permanently stretching our faces. Seth grunted. “That’s our life.”
Woodrow pumped his fist in the air and shouted, startling the party goers who had all stopped to watch Nellie and Waylan wrestle the cat. “That’s our life! Hell, yeah!”
Rap came out over the speakers and Papa Jack transformed into a normal cat. He curled up in Nellie’s arms and yawned. Waylan started dancing to the music and the moody overlords on the porch might’ve even cracked a smile. The kid had the dance moves of a beetle knocked onto its back.
Life was short but the night was long so I threw caution to the wind and joined her.
The End.