15. Austin
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Austin
Evelyn bounds out of the truck, running into Kingston Hardware as the twins and I follow behind her. Why all of us had to come along for this little supply mission, I have no idea.
That’s a lie. I’m pretty sure it has to do with a certain brunette who works at the animal shelter across the street from this very store.
When I said I was going to stop by and pick up our supply order after getting Evelyn from school, Conrad and Brooks both eagerly said they were tagging along.
The building has barely changed since I was a kid. It’s a barn that the Kingston family converted into a hardware store generations ago, and it’s currently run by this generation of Kingston brothers: Will, Owen, and Miles.
Stepping inside, I take in the wooden beams that crisscross overhead. Evelyn skips over to the front counter, which is lined with corrugated metal siding.
“Hey, kiddo,” Miles, the youngest of the brothers, smiles down at Evelyn.
Evelyn crosses her arms, glaring at him. Oh no. What’s going to come out of her mouth?
“Your team beat my softball team,” she says, gesturing back to the three of us, “a few weeks ago.”
He chuckles. “Yeah, we did, but they’ve beaten us plenty of times, too.”
She holds her fingers up to her eyes, then turns them toward him. Save me now. The feistiness on this one.
I step in behind her, resting my hands on her small shoulders. “Okay, firecracker. That’s enough of that. Do you want to go look in the greenhouse?”
She spins around so fast I think she’s going to have whiplash. “Yes!”
“Okay, go ahead, but be good. We’ll come get you when we’re done.”
She sprints to the corner of the store where it opens into the greenhouse.
“Sorry about her,” I tell Miles, shaking my head.
“I love that kid. I never know what’s going to come out of her mouth.”
“You and I both,” I mutter. Miles directs us to the outdoor lumber section next to the store, where they always leave all the things we order from them.
With all three of us there, we get everything loaded up in record time.
Brooks walks out of the store hand-in-hand with Evelyn. They both have mischievous looks on their faces.
“Why do you both look like that?” Conrad asks, from my side.
“Is something wrong with our faces?” Brooks asks, dramatically running his free hand over his face and then Evelyn’s.
She giggles, then quickly straightens her features. “We have a plan,” she states.
“These are always good,” Conrad mumbles to me.
“We’re going to go say hi to Hadley,” she says, one hand going to her hip that she has cocked to the side. Give me strength for when she’s a teenager.
“We don’t even know if she’s working,” I tell her.
“Oh, but we do,” Brooks speaks up. “She’s wearing a dark blue shirt with ripped jeans, and her hair is up in a bun. I saw her through the front window.”
“Stalker,” Conrad coughs under his breath, like he hadn’t been staring over in that direction the entire time we were loading up the supplies.
Like you weren’t, either.
Fighting them is pointless, and in all reality, why would I? I want to see her, and if I can use Evelyn as the excuse to do so, so be it.
“Fine.” I hold my hand up to the shelter.
“You caved quickly,” Conrad says quietly beside me as we start to walk in that direction.
“Like you’re complaining about seeing her.” I side-eye him.
“Hell no, I’m not,” he says, stepping through the door Brooks is holding open for all of us.
“Hadley,” Evelyn shouts, peeking her head around the front desk. I guess she’s bound and determined to make me look like a terrible parent today.
Even if I wanted to do the very same thing as soon as we walked in.
“That’s my girl,” Brooks says, giving Evelyn a thumbs up. Who knows if his influence on her will pan out to be a good thing or a bad one?
“Yeah?” Hadley says, popping around the corner. “Oh… hi, all of you.”
“We came to say hi,” Evelyn says a little too loudly for indoors.
“Well, hi,” Hadley says, laughing.
“Can I see Cash?”
“Sure, come on.” She holds her hand out for Evelyn. “You three can come too,” she tells us.
Of course, we follow them into the back like little puppies.
Evelyn and Hadley kneel in front of a kennel with the same dog from the dog park the other day. He really is cute, even if he’s kind of a doofus.
The dog happily barks at Evelyn, licking her hands through the grate.
“Who’s this guy?” Conrad says, crouching behind the girls.
He holds one of his hands out for Cash to sniff, while his other gently squeezes Hadley’s shoulder. She gives him a small smile.
“This is Cash,” Evelyn says. He presses his head against the wall of the kennel, trying to get closer to her.
Hadley’s voice comes out in a conspiratorial whisper. “Don’t tell the other animals, but he’s my favorite.”
“Why don’t you adopt him then?” Brooks asks.
She looks at him over her shoulder, her eyes sad. “I can’t bring a dog to my mom’s right now.” She cringes. “I just can’t.”
Brooks nods, understanding that a dog, especially a young one, being around her mom right now could be dangerous.
“Maybe he’ll still be here when you get your own place,” I say, realizing I don’t know what she’s planning on doing after her mom’s surgery.
I know she doesn’t have a job or a man to go back to in New York, but does she still want to live there? Does she want to build a life for herself here?
Why would a girl like her stay here? For what? Me? Conrad? Brooks? All of us?
I shake my head, not wanting to listen to my own depressing thoughts anymore.
“Maybe,” she says with a shrug.
Evelyn, being the emotionally intelligent kid she is, senses Hadley’s mood and wraps her in a hug.
“It’s okay,” she tells her. Hadley welcomes the hug, holding her close. “Come have dinner at our house tonight.”
“Oh, I don’t want to impose, honey. I’m sure you all have plans with your family.”
“We were just going to make spaghetti,” Conrad tells her.
“Please,” Evelyn pleads with her.
Hadley looks at Brooks and then at me. “As long as you’re all okay with it, I’ll come.”
“Yeah, you will,” Brooks says from beside me. I smack his chest, while Hadley gives him a ‘not the time or place’ look.
Now I can’t seem to get the thought of all the ways I would love to make her come out of my damn head.
“I just need to close everything up for the night, then I can meet you guys there,” she says.
Evelyn gives Cash a kiss before skipping to the front of the building.
I guess Hadley’s coming to our house for dinner. Perfect timing with all of these fantasies of making her scream in pleasure flashing through my mind.