Chapter 30
THIRTY
ISLA
While my mom, Aunt Mila—my dad’s younger sister—and grandmothers work in the kitchen, cooking only God knows how many pounds of food, I set the last plate down at the dining room table and admire my own work because this table looks like it’s straight from Pinterest, I can’t lie.
And it’s probably because that’s exactly where my and my mom’s inspiration came from …
Despite the various Christmas trees scattered throughout our home and the fact that my parents’ house very much looks like The North Pole right now—and has since the clock struck twelve on November 1—Thanksgiving has always been one of my mom’s favorite holidays.
My grandparents always come out for it, and sometimes, Aunt Mila and her husband, Beau, and their kids will come out too.
This year is thankfully one of those years where they could make it.
Hendrix went over to visit Juliet this morning for the holiday. I told him I could go, but I think he knew that I usually help my mom with the Thanksgiving festivities, so he told me he’d go alone and be over right after.
The past few times we’ve gone to see her, she’s seemed more confused than ever. And she’s lost a lot of weight too. It’s easy to tell how hard it is for Hendrix to see her that way, but still, he makes sure to go visit her or to call weekly.
And Lilly has made a point to go see her too. The first time she did, we tagged along, and the second Lilly walked through the door, Juliet’s face lit up. She couldn’t place her name or how she knew her, but she just kept smiling, and it seemed like a certain calmness washed over her.
Like she was waiting to see her again.
I’m so excited that Lilly—and her foster parents, Paige and Kolt—will also be joining us for Thanksgiving this year. The Kolburnes are such good people. Lilly literally hit the jackpot when it came to finding them. And I don’t mean their money either.
As happy as I am that she found her forever family, it’s actually insane to me that this whole time her brother was wondering where she was, she really was only a few hours away, living with Kolt, who is one of my dad’s NHL friends. And my mom adores Paige and has met her for lunch several times.
When things finally shifted between Hendrix and me and I saw through the act he was putting on and he actually opened up to me about his sister, I knew I had to help him find her.
And since my friend Collin Carter is weirdly good at finding information about people, I knew he’d be the one to help me.
Collin helped me when I wanted to find out more about who my biological father was, but even he couldn’t find much out about Lilly’s whereabouts, aside from the school she attended and the restaurant she worked at.
Then again, he’s only nineteen years old, and he isn’t an actual private investigator, just in school to become one.
His grandfather just owns a wildly successful PI firm, and he’s learned from that too.
But in the end, it all worked out because knowing where she worked was enough for us to find her.
I can hear my dad and all the other men in the house laughing from the other room. My dad, as usual, is making himself the center of attention, and every now and then, I hear Uncle Beau’s deep voice chime in.
Hendrix and I have been together for a little over a month, and even though he’s been around my parents and my little brother, he hasn’t met my grandparents or my aunt and uncle yet.
And let’s be honest; I’m not sure who’s more intimidating—my grandfather Hardy, my grandfather LaConte, or my uncle Beau.
It’s a close race, for sure. But seeing as Beau has huge muscles that are covered in tattoos and a tough staredown … I may go with him.
My dad’s father, my Bampie, is the nicest guy—once he trusts you. But to outsiders, he can come off a little rough and intimidating.
Papa LaConte coached college hockey up until a few years ago when he retired, and I’ve heard of him making multiple players cry.
So, I guess what I’m saying is, if Hendrix is sweating a little on the way here, I’d understand.
There’s a knock at the door, and just knowing that it’s likely Hendrix sends my heart into a crazy rhythm, and my cheeks actually hurt because they are so damn hot.
Despite feeling like a schoolgirl with her first crush, I eagerly rush toward the door. It’s been a few days since I’ve seen my guy, and I’m beyond ready.
When I pull the door open, I’m met with his signature grin that, however many times I see it, still gives me the stupid butterflies. Then again, I’m sure Hendrix’s grin could do that to just about anyone on the planet.
“Happy Thanksgiving,” I practically squeal, my nerves slowly melting away just before I leap into his arms. “I’m so glad you’re here!”
“Happy Thanksgiving to you, Nineteen,” he drawls, twirling me around. “Missed you.”
“How was Juliet today?” I ask softly, knowing that it may have been a rough morning for him.
He smiles, but I can’t tell right away if it’s a disappointed smile or a happy one.
“You know, she was actually pretty good,” he finally says. “She didn’t know who I was, but she was happy to see me. We played a few rounds of bingo in the community hall.” He breathes out a tiny laugh. “You know how much she likes that.”
Before I answer, he looks me in the eye and plants a kiss on my lips, like he’d been waiting all day to do that and couldn’t wait another second or something. Sliding one hand up my back and to my hair, he intensifies it slightly while also still keeping it romantic and not too hot and heavy.
As corny as it sounds, I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of kissing Hendrix. And I hope he doesn’t ever get sick of kissing me either.
“Y’all are cute and all, but you know, I’m nineteen, too, so you coulda been talking to me,” my dad drawls slowly from behind us.
I can practically feel Hendrix tense up at his words. My dad may be okay with us, but he’s still an overprotective father.
Hendrix sets me down quickly, and we both scramble to turn toward my dad, only to find my grandfathers and Uncle Beau at his side too.
“Also, it’s about fifteen degrees outside in this damn state,” Bampie Hardy says. “Why in the hell are you two lovebirds leaving the door open while y’all play tonsil hockey?”
My hand finds Hendrix’s, and I squeeze it. It’s my way of telling him that, yes, he has to deal with these men for the holiday, and yes … I am sorry in advance.
Hendrix quickly reaches out to close the door. “You’re absolutely right, sir.” He nods hastily. “Sorry about that.”
Bampie’s eyes search over Hendrix for a moment, and I think I hold my breath. This man came into my life when I was a toddler, and honestly, he’s as protective over me as anyone is. Finally, he steps toward us and holds his hand out.
“I’m Jaxon,” he mutters, shaking Hendrix’s hand and keeping hold of it. “I hear you’re sweet on my granddaughter here.”
“Yes, sir,” Hendrix practically squeaks.
I have to admit, I’m kind of enjoying seeing him so nervous. He’s always so sure of himself—as he should be. Who knew a man in his sixties would make Hendrix so uncomfortable? But here we are.
“I don’t need to give you the spiel; I’m sure my boy has already done that,” he says with a curt nod and finally releases his hand before stepping back.
My uncle Beau watches the interaction before uttering something to my dad. I can’t hear what he said, but whatever it was must have been funny because my dad’s face breaks out into a full grin, and he chuckles lightly.
“Care to share with the class, Uncle B?” I say, jerking my chin up toward him. “We want to laugh too.”
He glances at my dad before smirking.
“I was just telling your dad that Hendrix must feel about like your old man did when Papa figured out your dad was chasing after Addy,” he drawls slowly, his eyes cutting to Hendrix. “Good luck, man. That’s all I gotta say. This family is, uh … a little fucking insane. But you’ll do fine.”
“All right … annnd I’m regretting saying anything,” I mutter, thanking my lucky stars when the women of the house walk out of the kitchen.
Instantly, my mom eyes over the guys suspiciously before she walks over to us.
“Thank you so much for joining us, Hendrix,” she says with her signature warm, inviting smile before giving him a small hug. “Are your sister, Kolt, and Paige on their way?”
Hendrix quickly nods because, just like my dad does, my mom makes him nervous too, I can tell. “Yes, ma’am. They should be here any minute.”
“Great!” My mom claps her hands together. “We’re waiting on Mila and Beau’s kids too. Which, by the way, it looks like you’ve already met Beau, but this is Mila. Mila is Cam’s sister and Isla’s aunt.”
“I know exactly who she is,” Hendrix says quickly. “Growing up, my sister was a huge fan of yours.”
“Wow, really?” Mila’s face lights up before she nudges my uncle’s side. “See, babe. I’m still cool. Bet he didn’t even know who you were.” She winks.
Beau rolls his eyes, and she giggles.
“I’m joking. I’m joking.”
Even though her hair is dark and she tends to wear dark clothing, Aunt Mila is one of the nicest people I know.
But she’s also a complete badass. The woman has won more drag races than most of the men she competes against put together.
She’s retired now, but for a while, she was featured on so many magazines and was even on a reality show about drag racing.
“For the record, I do know who you are,” Hendrix says to Beau.
“It’d be hard not to know who NFL legend Beau Bishop is, I think.
” Hendrix glances at me and grins. I can tell right away that he’s trying to force himself to be more comfortable.
“You didn’t tell me that Thanksgiving would basically be all famous athletes. ”
The doorbell rings, and he widens his eyes. “And seeing as that’s probably my sister, we can add another professional athlete in the mix.”
I squeeze his hand again. “It’s going to be fun, I promise,” I whisper before I release his hand and open the door.
His sister, Lilly, smiles at me. “Happy Thanksgiving!”
“You too.” I smile, opening the door wider. “Come on in.”
Paige is next to enter, thanking me as she walks by—and, my Lord, that woman is gorgeous.
Her blonde hair is in a cute bob just below her chin, and she’s so stylish.
And when her husband walks past me, nodding politely, I kind of want to laugh because he and Beau look like they would hit it off.
Both are covered in tattoos, and both kind of look terrifying, even though they aren’t.
Closing the door before Bampie can scold me, I stand next to Hendrix as everyone chats for a few minutes before heading toward the living room.
We let everyone else go before us, and Hendrix leans down, bringing his lips closer to my ear. “To be honest, I thought your dad was scary, but I think his dad might be worse.”
“Just wait until Papa talks to you,” I mutter, glancing over as his eyes grow wide. “It’ll be fine.” I wink. “Probably.”
Saint comes trotting down the stairs, instantly giving Hendrix a head nod like he’s hot shit, and I shove my brother’s chest as I walk by.
“Nice of you to finally join us, Sainty,” I tease him, knowing he was probably upstairs, talking to some girl.
The kid can’t keep the women away from him—and he knows it too.
“I had to come down and watch Hendrix deal with Uncle B, Papa, Bampie, and Dad.” He starts laughing. “Good luck, dude. You’re gonna need it.”
He’s right. My grandfathers know no bounds. Let’s just hope someone will do something stupid tonight, and that will take the pressure off me and Hendrix.
HENDRIX
“Did you ever think we’d be sitting in a room full of rich people?” Lilly utters to me. “I mean, for real. I kind of feel like if you pinched me, I’d wake up in my old bed at our old house, freezing and hungry.”
Reaching for her leg, I squeeze it, and she fights back a yelp—I’m sure not wanting to bring attention to herself.
“Yeah … no,” I mumble, subtly gazing around the table. “Didn’t see this in my cards—that’s for damn sure.”
“Do you think we’ll ever, like, get used to this?” she whispers quietly. “This whole family and holidays thing?”
I look around the room again, taking in the sounds of all the laughter and different conversations happening at just one table, and I shrug. “I don’t really know.”
“Yeah, me neither,” she says lowly. “But it’s better than the alternative, isn’t it?”
Pulling my eyes from everyone, I look at my sister and give her a small grin. “Yeah, Lil, it sure is.”
She smiles at me because we both know that’s the truth. We may be feeling out of sorts at this table, but we also know that we’re in a much better place than we used to be.
Paige whispers something to Lilly before they smile at each other, and I can tell right away that my sister is comfortable around her and Kolt.
Kolt taught my sister how to drive so that she could get her license.
He helped her get her first car, though she wouldn’t let him get anything too extravagant because she said it wasn’t needed.
Kolt is the dad she never got to have, and even though I long for that, I’m so glad she has it.
When Paige says something else to Lilly, I glance over, and my eyes meet hers.
I’ve always heard you can tell a lot from a person’s eyes, like what kind of person they are, and there’s just something inside Paige’s eyes that confirms she’s good.
I can’t explain it, but I know she loves my sister—I can feel it.
Beau and Mila’s kids showed up about ten minutes ago, adding to the chaos, but honestly, I don’t really mind. It’s a little overwhelming, but that’s all right.
“Hey,” Isla whispers next to me, leaning her body closer to mine. “You okay? I know this is probably a lot to take in.”
She isn’t joking; it sure is. But it’s all good because I’m here with her and her family. And my sister gets to be here too.
“Yeah, babe.” I nod. “I’m good.”
My hand finds hers under the table, and I lace our fingers together. It may be loud in here. So loud that I can barely form a thought. But I think I know what this noise is …
I think it’s what a family sounds like. And to be honest, I like it. A lot.