Chapter 11
AXEL
Soft snoring reaches my ears as I wait for Gray to return with some clothes, and I can’t help but chuckle. Poor little thing is worn out, understandably so. Today has been rather eventful, so I let her sleep while I watch my family continue their celebrations.
Someone has broken out the whiskey, and my brothers are toasting each other with amber-filled glasses as their laughter fills the air.
It’s a welcome sight after so many months—years, really—of constant back and forth between our lumber yards and the island.
They’ve more than earned the chance to let loose a bit, and as long as they don’t get too rowdy with my babygirl, I’m happy to let them enjoy themselves.
Gray returns with one of my t-shirts and a thick pair of socks I already know will be too big for my Little girl, but they should keep her plenty warm.
“She’s asleep,” I whisper, shifting the motionless form in my arms so Gray can wriggle the oversized shirt over her head.
“Poor thing.” Gray’s soft murmur echoes my earlier thoughts as she maneuvers Lanie’s arms into the shirt. “I can only imagine how exhausted she must be. After dinner you should take her on up to bed.”
“I will.” As much as I hate to wake her again, she will need to eat something. God only knows the last time she actually had something to eat or drink other than the hot chocolate from earlier.
Again I’m hit with that heavy feeling that Ford was right. I don’t know the first damn thing about caring for a Little girl, despite all the time I’ve spent with my nieces on the island.
“Stop overthinking it.” Amusement winds around Gray’s words and that same amusement fills her eyes when I look up at her. “You’re going to be fine. I mean, you’re absolutely going to fuck it up, and we’ll be here to kick your ass for you when that happens. But you’re going to be a great Daddy.”
If nothing else, I know I can cling to her promise to kick my ass when I fuck up and oddly enough that settles me enough to simply enjoy the weight of my babygirl in my arms. “Yeah. Yeah, I am.”
Crouching in front of me, Gray rolls the socks up Lanie’s legs. As expected, they’re far too big and they go well over her knees. Between that and my shirt that’s several sizes too large, she looks exactly like a Little girl playing dress-up in Daddy’s clothes.
It’s fucking adorable.
“Aw, hell.” Sitting back on her heels, Gray blinks and for a moment I could swear she has tears in her eyes. But then she blinks again and her eyes are clear, so maybe I imagined it. My little sister isn’t exactly given to fits of emotion. “She’s the cutest damn thing, Ax.”
Pride fills my chest. “Isn’t she?”
The music cuts off, drawing loud cries of protest from our brothers. Looking over, I find Ford standing in the doorway to the dining room, a wide grin on his face.
“Dinner is served.”
What the hell is he up to?
Cradling Lanie against my chest, I push to my feet and follow my siblings to the dining room. Where I have to stop and blink at the sight that greets me.
Ford, it seems, wasn’t off sulking somewhere while the rest of us partied. He was setting out a wedding feast to rival any banquet hall. On the table are large bowls of steaming stew, the yeast rolls Gray has been fighting to perfect for years, and some kind of casserole dish I can’t quite place.
“Figured it was as good a time as any to warm up what was left of our winter rations,” Ford says with a shrug. “It’s not much as far as wedding feasts go but—”
“It’s perfect,” I interrupt, pulling him into me for a hard embrace. “Thank you, Ford. It’s absolutely perfect.”
Taking my place at the head of the table again, I give my sleeping bundle a gentle shake. “Time to wake up, sleepyhead. Your Uncle Ford made us a feast.”
Whining softly, Lanie buries her face in my neck, pressing herself more tightly against me in a way that has my throat aching. My family watches on, all with varying degrees of wonder and amusement as I rub her back.
“I know you’re so very tired, little one. But it’s time to wake up now. We need to get some food in that cute little tummy.”
“Don’t wanna.”
Adorable, and stubborn.
Just the way I like it.
Putting a hint of steel in my voice, I give her diaper-covered bottom a firm pat. “Unless you’d like to be eating dinner with an extra-sore bottom, I suggest you do as Daddy says, little girl.”
That seems to get through to her. Lifting her head, she blinks, then narrows her eyes at me, her bottom lip pushing out in an adorable pout. “Not hungry.”
As if on cue, her stomach rumbles, loud enough for everyone at the table to hear and I have to swallow a laugh as I pin her with a stern stare. “Are you lying to your Daddy, little girl?”
The sleepiness slowly clears from her eyes, and I can see the wheels turning in her head as she calculates her response. “Maybe I’m a little hungry.”
“Uh-huh. That’s what I thought.” Shifting her so she’s perched on my thigh, I force myself to remain stern no matter how fucking cute she looks all rumpled from being so well-fucked earlier.
“Since it’s our wedding day, I’m going to let you off the hook on that one.
But the next time you lie to Daddy, you will be getting that naughty bottom spanked. Understood?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
Fuck me, I don’t think I’ll ever tire of hearing those words, no matter how sulky she sounds saying them right now. “Good girl. Now, what do you want to eat?”
Melanie
Dinner is… an adventure.
Everything is delicious, and even the green beans Axel forces on me have had some kind of culinary magic performed on them to make them palatable. But the food is the least interesting part. It’s Axel’s siblings I find the most fascinating.
Unlike my own family, Axel’s is loud. Obnoxiously so. And yet, there’s something about the noise that’s almost peaceful. Perhaps because despite the noise, there are no angry words, no shrill voices. They genuinely just seem to… enjoy each other.
Fascinating.
What’s even more interesting is the dynamic.
Despite Gray being the youngest, everyone seems to look to her for leadership alongside Axel and I find myself wondering how that developed.
Is it just because she’s the youngest and the only girl, so their instinctive response is to spoil her and give her everything she wants?
Maybe, but they don’t strike me as the kind of men to simply go along with whatever their baby sister wants just to make her happy. Especially not Axel.
Or maybe that “give her whatever she wants” attitude simply doesn’t extend to me.
Rude, if so.
Whatever the reason, it’s clear that while they’re a rather cohesive unit, Gray is the leader. From my perch on Axel’s knee, I watch the others, trying to parse out who is who in this odd family.
Ford is the quiet one, certainly. Sweet, almost shy in a way the others aren’t. Bram is quiet too, but in more of a watchful way. Every now and then I get the feeling he’s just… studying me, like a puzzle he’s trying to figure out.
Then there’s Colt, who is the complete opposite of his twin. Goofy and loud where Bram is silent and almost brooding. All through dinner, Colt shares tales of his exploits in the business world, his latest travels here and there and everywhere.
“Vegas?” My interest piques when he mentions that sinful city further west. “I’ve always wanted to go to Vegas.”
Flashing a smile, Colt grins. “Then we’ll go. I’m sure we can talk your old fuddy-duddy of a Daddy into a trip once the snow melts.”
“Absolutely not,” Axel growls, literally growls, his entire body seeming to vibrate with the sound. “You are not taking my Little girl to Las Vegas.”
Twisting around, I glare up at him, doing my best to look at least somewhat intimidating, which is rather difficult when I’m wearing nothing but a diaper and his far-too-big clothes. “I’m a grown adult. If I wanna go to Vegas, I’m going to Vegas.”
An expectant hush falls over the table, almost as if everyone is suddenly holding their breath waiting to see what happens next.
Axel doesn’t even answer me. Leaning forward, he plucks a roll from his plate and slathers it with butter, then holds it up in front of my mouth.
Determined not to be that easily ignored, I cross my arms. “No, thank you. I want an answer, not bread.”
“Suit yourself. They’re pretty damn good. Your Auntie Gray worked hard on perfecting this recipe.”
“It’s the one thing I can actually make without completely fucking it up,” Gray says, her mouth twisting up in a grin. “Otherwise, they don’t even let me in the kitchen. That’s Eli’s domain.”
“Really?” Curious now, I look over at Elias.
Other than Axel, he’s the largest of the bunch, with an equally large beard to match.
And Axel included, he’s certainly the roughest of them all, at least on the outside.
Everything about him, from the set of his jaw to the darkness in his eyes screams stay the fuck away.
I try to imagine him in the kitchen, and my brain immediately conjures an image of this giant, brutal man wearing a tiny apron over his flannel and jeans, and a giggle bursts out of my mouth before I can think to smother it.
From his spot to our left, Eli raises a brow. “Something funny, little girl?”
Uh-oh. I’ve poked the bear. And by every metric, I should be scared of him. But maybe it’s because I’m surrounded by others or because I’ve got Axel’s broad chest at my literal back, but I’m feeling brave.
So I flash him a grin. “Just thinking of you in a cute little frilly apron that says something cheesy like ‘Keep Calm and Bake On’. Is it pink? I bet it’s pink.”
Eli’s eyes narrow, and despite the bravery I was feeling just a moment ago, my stomach quakes and I have to resist the urge to press myself back against Axel. Instinct tells me that if I let Eli see he’s cowed me, he’ll try to run roughshod over me my entire time here.