Chapter 8
Rowan
Ipark in Lana and Christian’s expansive driveway beside Christian’s new “more realistic” car. His McLaren was one hell of a car, sure, but so is this new Audi. And beside the Audi is the brand new Jeep he bought for Lana.
Behind me comes Nico’s car, then Luca’s.
Natalia never parks in the driveway. She’s never admitted it aloud before, but I know it’s for when she wants to leave early.
I wait for everyone else to trickle in first, watching as they walk to the front door dressed in their costumes for Lana’s birthday party through the rearview mirror.
Natalia seems to be doing the same, waiting everyone else out.
Using this opportunity, I grab her Halloween gift and the appetizers I made, and get out of my car.
Through the window of the passenger side, I can see her adjusting her beautiful mane of curls in the visor’s mirror, and fixing the wings strapped around her shoulders.
Holding on to the pumpkin, I round the hood of her car and make my way to her driver’s side.
She catches my eyes quickly and finally slides out of her car, standing between the car and the open door.
“Hey.”
She blinks. “Hey, um…Happy Halloween.”
“Happy Halloween, sweetheart.” I smile when the pink in her cheeks deepens. As usual, she’s bare-faced, save for mascara and a light shade of gloss. “I brought you something,” I say and hold out the medium-sized pumpkin. “A Halloween gift.”
“You meant treat?”A small smile tugs at her dark painted lips. “No tricks?”
“No tricks.” I chuckle and hold it out toward her. “Just a treat.”
Natalia’s eyes finally flit down to the pumpkin I made just for her, finally accepting it in her hands. “You got me a pumpkin,” she says in a breath, examining the pumpkin, twisting it left and right, up and down. “With…”
“I can’t carve, so I had it made,” I tell her and admire the handiwork myself. “It’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. The scene where he—”
“I know the scene,” she says, her eyes stuck on the pumpkin. “He sings on the hill with Zero—‘Jack’s Lament.’”
The carving is Jack Skellington, his boney body standing at the edge of the hill with the moon behind him, Zero carved beside him.
“The pumpkin king,” I whisper.
Natalia holds it in her delicate hands, her nails painted a soft pink today, and traces the outlines with her finger tip. “It’s…really beautiful, Rowan.” She tilts her head back, eyes snapping right onto mine. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I say, fighting against my desire to seal this moment with one kiss—even if it’s just her cheek or hair or nose. “I like your costume.”
Natalie smiles and sets the pumpkin down on the driver’s seat before reaching over for the Halloween cupcakes she brought with her.
Her Winx fairy costume is a chromatic lavender corset on top of a dark purple, off-the-shoulder top with loose sleeves and a frilly, dark purple skirt over metallic pink fishnet stockings, purple and green sparkling wings, and lavender, open-toe pumps.
I have to say, she makes one, very hot fairy—beautiful and glowing with the glitter scattered across her chest and up her cheekbones.
“You’d make a good fairy.”
She dips her chin. “It’s a Winx fairy. I’m supposed to be Tecna. We picked our most favorite colors. I’ve got all the purples.”
Research Winx Fairy, I make a mental note. “And Lana and Isabelle?”
“Lana is supposed to be Stella, and Isa is Flora, obviously—very pink.”
“I have no idea who those are but…I’ll look into it.”
Natalia sniffs a laugh and closes the driver’s side door. “You don’t look terrible,” she says. “Very original.”
I waggle my brows and look down at my Fred costume. “At least you didn’t call me ugly.”
Natalia’s brow arches and she purses her lips as she inspects my costume from head to toe. She finally cocks her hip and crosses her arms. “I guess you’re pulling it off. Did you touch up your roots?”
I push my tongue into my cheek and snort. Natalia winks. “Come on, Scooby-Doo. They’re waiting for us.”
“I’m Fred.”
She arches a brow. “Should have been the dog.”
“Woof.”
She rolls her eyes and I laugh. The sound echoes down the street, clustered with children and their trick-or-treat bags, as I follow behind Natalia to the house.
#
We are all out back, standing or sitting around the fire pit while we drink and pick at snacks before the meals. Except, I’ve hidden the extra mozzarella sticks I brought with me for Natalia, with ketchup and parmesan cheese sprinkled on top just how she likes them
“Can you imagine this when we’re old?” Christian asks beside me, grilling the ribs with his eyes on Lana. “With kids, even.”
“I work with kids every day.” Nico groans. “I can wait a couple of years.”
I snort and grab a nacho. “You’re already planning on having kids?”
Christian shrugs and it’s followed by a smile. “I want them if she wants them. It could be the two of us until we die and I’d be perfectly happy.”
“Right, yeah,” I mutter. “And the ring?”
He grins. “I ordered it last week.”
“You and your custom-made things, I swear,” I mutter, shaking my head.
Christian laughs. “It’s worth it—you’ll see in a few months.” He takes a sip of his iced tea.
“Where’s Julian?”
Nico munches on the cheese ball bites I brought. “Trick-or-treating with Gracie. They should be here soon.”
Right on cue I hear, “Uncle RoRo!”
“Gracie!” I grin wide, seeing the beautiful three-year-old running toward me in her Pebbles Flintstone costume—her blonde hair up in a high ponytail I trust Julian learned how to do on his own. I squat just in time to catch her in my arms and pick her up.
“Do you like my costume, Uncle RoRo?”
I kiss her head. “You are the cutest little Flintstone ever.”
She giggles and her little arms wrap around my neck for a hug. “Look at Daddy!”
I find Julian walking toward us after greeting the ladies by the fire pit. I break into laughter, all the other guys snickering. “Well, hello, Fred Flintsone,” Christian teases.
Julian growls faintly before he jerks his chin at me. “Fred.”
I do the same. “Hey, Fred.”
His dark hair is styled down with gel or whatever product to look like Fred Flintstone, adding his own twist with his exposed sleeve tattoos. The guys keep snickering. “Shut up, LuLu,” Julian snaps.
Luca holds up his hands. “It’s cute.”
Julian glares. “Shut up.”
Luca snickers again behind his beer, wearing his firefighting gear like an ass. “Real original,” I mutter.
He shrugs. “I was working.”
“Put me down! Put me down!” Grace wiggles around. “Auntie Lana!”
I crouch down, and as soon as Grace is on her feet, she’s sprinting and making my heart race with the fear she might trip and get hurt.
I scoff and take a sip of my beer. Christian chuckles and I wave my finger at his shirt. “And what the hell is this?”
He smiles and looks down to admire his white T-shirt that says, My Girlfriend is Hot. “You like it?”
“That isn’t a fucking costume,” Julian says in his Fred Flintstone costume. “It’s a T-shirt.”
Christian shrugs. “I like it.”
“Does Lana like it?” Luca asks.
“She’s learning to love it.” Christian laughs with a shrug.
“No I’m not!” Lana shouts from somewhere.
Christian shrugs and drinks from the glass bottle of Coca-Cola. “Well, I like it.” He grins proudly. “And it’s true.”
“You’re so in love it’s disgusting,” Nico says in his Fransisco Lindor baseball uniform costume. “I’m jealous.”
Luca rolls his eyes and walks away from us.
“He’s still on that then,” I mutter.
Nicolas shrugs, swirling his beer around. “I let him be.”
“You know you’re both adults, right,” Julian says. “And just because she’s his sister doesn’t mean—”
“I know that.” Nico groans. “He just…”
“Speaking of adults,” Christian says, changing the touchy subject. “How’s Natalia?”
I groan and chug the rest of my drink, tossing the bottle into the recycling bin. “You’re such a gossip.”
“Lana tells me everything.” Christian shrugs. “It’s not like you’re very subtle, RoRo.”
“I hate you.”
“You haven’t been subtle since high school.” Nico laughs and leaves, hurrying toward Isabelle as she struggles to set up a tripod for a group photo.
“And he talks about subtlety,” Julian grumbles, making Christian laugh beside me as he closes the grill top.
“Pictures!” Isabelle shouts.
“Baby!” Lana calls out for Christian who promptly sprints to her side with a polaroid camera and phone, ready to take the girls’ pictures.
“Come on, kids,” Christian says over his shoulder. “Picture time.”
Julian and I toss our empty bottles in the recycling bin and head toward the rest of the group for our photos. We start with our usual group photo then move on to individual ones. The girls take their trio pictures then more with Grace while making silly faces.
Lana insists that Julian and Grace take a photo together, so they do. Then it’s Christian and Lana posing, smiling and kissing.
“Do you, um, wanna take a picture with me?”
I snap out of it and stop watching everyone take pictures. My head turns and looks down, following the voice. Even in her pumps I tower over her. Nat is the shortest out of all of us—not including Grace, of course.
“Are you asking if I want a picture with you?” I arch a brow, both amused and slightly confused.
“Never mind,” Natalia grumbles and turns on her heels.
“No, wait.” I catch her hand in mine and she stops. “Yes. Yeah, let’s take a picture.”
“It’s fine.” She blinks, tossing her curls to the side. “I’ll—”
“Come on.” I wrap my hand around hers. “Let’s take a picture.”
She follows me behind the cameras and I don’t miss the way the girls wiggle their eyebrows at her. I smirk as she steps next to me.
Did she pull back because she thought I was regretting her?
The thought plagues me as I put my hand around her waist and pull her into my side. I don’t think I’d ever have the willpower to reject Natalia.
Her arms remain at her sides for a moment, her eyes staring down at her hands like she’s trying to figure out what to do with them. “Um…”
“Just put them around me, Natalia,” I say in her ear.