Chapter 15 #2
“Debatable,” Orry calls out from the porch. “Have you seen your brother’s ass in his pants?” He lets out a whistle and all the guys on my team come to the defense of my ass in football pants.
I shake my head. “You know, I could’ve done this without you guys. I told you I had it handled.”
Boone claps me on the back hard enough to rattle my spine. “You did, and that’s precisely why we’re here.”
Jake gestures toward my SUV. “He’s right. Plus, where’s the fun in that?”
Sutton crosses her arms and looks at me. “Admit it. You recruited an entire football team to move eight boxes.”
“I absolutely did not. I promise you that.”
“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get the lady moved in.” Kyler gestures toward the driveway and the chaos begins immediately. Boone grabs two boxes. Jake grabs three. Orry tries to carry one under each arm like he’s competing in the Strongman Olympics.
“This is unnecessary,” I say.
“No, it isn’t,” Boone says. “This is male bonding.”
Sutton laughs quietly beside me and walks toward the guest house, and it’s all I can do not to stop in my tracks and ask her to laugh again. The sound of it, so light, so carefree…it makes me feel so fucking good.
Within thirty seconds every box she owns is inside, which means the entire moving operation is basically over. Kyler sets the last box on the kitchen table and then opens it.
“Careful,” Sutton warns. “My six-pack of dildos are in one of these boxes somewhere.”
The room goes so quiet you could hear a football deflate. Eight professional athletes, over twelve hundred pounds of muscle, frozen like someone hit pause on the universe.
My brain short-circuits.
Fuck me.
She said dildos…
Dildos plural…right?
A six pack?
Like they come in bulk from Costco?
Is there a variety pack?
Different…sizes? Colors?
Do they all do different things?
Do they go in different…holes?
Does she really have stuff like that?
Holy fucking shit this is an image I will never be able to get out of my head.
Sutton on the bed in the back room…
Fucking herself with…
Shit.
Stop, Shepherd.
Your thoughts would be flagged by the FCC.
Do not think about it.
Not even a little bit.
Stop. Stop it.
And don’t let these asshats think about it either.
Kyler’s mouth hangs open. Jake’s eyes are wider than regulation footballs. Boone looks like he’s doing advanced calculus in his head. And me? I can physically feel my blood rerouting from my brain to…elsewhere.
Sutton looks at each of us and bursts out laughing. “Got ya!”
Jesus Christ, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a room full of grown men look so terrified and then so relieved in such rapid succession.
The collective exhale creates a breeze strong enough to ruffle the curtains.
Orry actually crosses himself. Bennett collapses against the wall like his knees gave out.
The look on Killian’s face alone is worth framing.
“Fucking hell,” Jake mutters, hand over his heart. “You nearly gave me a cardiac event. I think I just saw Jesus.”
Sutton folds her arms across her chest, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Sorry boys, but I had to make sure none of you turned into amateur gynecologists while unpacking my underwear drawer. The dildo lie was cheaper than installing security cameras.”
“Message received,” Boone says with a respectful nod.
I watch her settle into the space, her shoulders relaxing slightly as she takes in the guest house.
I spent most of yesterday getting it ready with fresh linens and a stocked fridge.
I even bought a new coffee maker because she likes coffee.
The place isn’t huge, but it’s comfortable, a one bedroom, living area, small kitchen, and a bathroom with a decent shower.
“So,” Bennett says, breaking the silence, “this is cozy.”
“It’s perfect,” Sutton corrects him, and something warm spreads through my chest at her words.
Kyler glances down into the box he put on the table and his smile falters. “Oh shit.”
Everyone turns their attention his way.
“What is it?” I ask.
Kyler slowly lifts one of the teacups out of the box. “Oh fuck. Sutton, I’m so sorry. They must’ve gotten damaged in transit.” He pulls out a second, and a third. “Every single one of these is broken.”
He looks genuinely horrified, like he’s about to be sick, but Sutton steps forward, her eyes softening as she takes the cup from Kyler’s hands.
“They’re supposed to be chipped,” she says gently. “That’s why I collect them.”
I watch as confusion ripples across Kyler’s face, quickly replaced by understanding. He glances my way, a silent question in his eyes. “Oh. Right. Okay.”
“She rescues them,” I explain, unable to keep the pride from my voice. “Things other people would throw away.”
Boone picks up another teacup, turning it carefully in his massive hands. “Huh. That’s…actually pretty cool.”
“They’re not really broken. They’re just chipped,” Sutton says, arranging the cups on the table with careful precision.
“They can still serve a purpose and they all have a story.” She lifts one from the box.
“This one came from an estate sale. The owner had passed, and nobody wanted her things.” She picks up another.
“This blue one was in a thrift store, pushed to the back of a shelf all alone and I thought it was cute.”
I lean against the doorframe, watching her transform from the guarded woman I first met to someone completely in her element. The guys gather around the table, these giant athletes suddenly gentle as kittens, handling her treasures with surprising care.
“Why this one?” Bishop asks, pointing to a particularly damaged cup with a large chunk missing from its rim.
“That one,” Sutton says, taking it carefully from his hands, “survived a bar fight. I saw it happen. Some guy threw a chair, it hit the shelf behind the bar, and everything came crashing down. This was the only one that didn’t shatter completely.
” She runs her finger along the jagged edge. “I asked Cal if I could keep it.”
The guys are all staring at her like she’s some kind of rare creature they’ve never encountered before. It’s written all over their faces. They get it now. They understand why I’ve been acting like a lovesick teenager. Why I can’t stop thinking about her.
“How many do you have?” Jake asks.
“Twenty-three,” Sutton answers. “So far.”
“Twenty-four,” I correct without thinking.
She turns to me, her brow furrowed. “What?”
“I, uh…” My neck heats up. “I found one. For you. It’s…it’s in the kitchen cabinet.”
Killian makes a whipping sound under his breath, and I resist the urge to elbow him in the ribs again.
“You bought me a teacup?” she asks slowly, like she’s trying to process this information.
“He buys everyone teacups,” Jake says quickly, trying to save me from my own embarrassment. “Got me one shaped like a football last Christmas.”
“No, he didn’t,” Boone counters, shoving Jake’s shoulder.
“You’re not helping,” Orry mutters.
Sutton’s lips curve into a soft smile that makes my heart do something ridiculous in my chest. “Can I see it?”
I point to the kitchen cabinet where I put it for her to find.
Sutton sets down the cup in her hand and crosses the room to the cabinet, opens the door, and there it is, a small porcelain teacup with a delicate pink and yellow floral pattern, a hairline crack running from rim to base and a tiny chip just beneath the handle.
“Why does that look so familiar?” Killian asks.
“Because I didn’t buy it. It was our grandmother’s,” I explain, suddenly self-conscious under everyone’s stares.
“Uh, I found it in a box of her things I had stored for my parents. It’s been sitting in a closet for years because I couldn’t bring myself to throw it away, but I didn’t know what to do with it either. ”
Sutton carefully lifts it from the shelf, cradling it in her palms like it’s made of spun glass. Her eyes meet mine over the rim of the cup, something unspoken passing between us.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispers. “Thank you.”
I catch Killian and Bishop’s eyes over her head. They’re both grinning as they give me a subtle nod that says “We get it now. She’s cool.”
Someone in the room clears their throat and then Boone says dramatically, “Well, this has been heartwarming and all, but I think our work here is done. We should probably give these two some space.”
Jake nods enthusiastically. “Yeah, we’ve got practice in the morning anyway.”
They file toward the door with surprising speed for men their size, but Sutton stops them. “Wait. You guys can’t go. We’ve got beers for everyone and Shepherd promised to get pizza. It’s on its way.”
The guys all stop and turn to me, registering my equal look of shock. “I did?”
Sutton places a hand on her hip and winks. “Yeah, remember? Last night? You promised you would get the guys pizza for helping me out?”
I bite back a laugh because I did no such thing and she knows it.
I see what she’s doing here, baiting me into hanging out with the guys.
Any other time I would say fuck no and spend my evening in peace and solitude, but the easy-going smile on Sutton’s face has me wanting to give her the world, so I can certainly handle a few pizzas and beers for these mindless fucks.
“Yeah, you’re right. How could I have forgotten?” I shrug.
“Silly, you,” Orry teases, giving me a playful punch to the shoulder. “I’ve got time for a beer and a slice.”
“You mean six slices,” Kyler jokes.
He pats his stomach. “What can I say? My mama says I’m a growing boy.”
Boone cackles. “She said that when you were ten, man!”
The guys file out of Sutton’s new home following Kill and Hop to the main house, but I linger until I’m the last one left. “You okay?” I ask, keeping my voice low so the guys can’t hear from outside.
Sutton runs her finger along the rim of my grandmother’s teacup, a small smile playing on her lips. “Yeah. I’m great. I just didn’t expect all of them to show up.”