Chapter 45
Forty-Five
Zach
This fucking girl .
Pulling professions of shit I’m not even sure I’m ready for out of me like some kind of sorceress.
The smile that I can taste on her lips is doing things to my heart I didn’t know it could even do anymore.
She sighs, her body melting against mine, all the tension and anxiety dissolving into nothingness. My girl is practically glowing.
She’s my own personal golden ray of sunshine.
“Better?” I ask, leaning away. Louise nods, those green eyes sparkling up at me and causing that damn swooshy sensation thing in my belly. She glances past me and then rolls her lips in between her teeth before smiling like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar.
“So, I have a confession to make… I haven’t really told my family about this, because, well…
usually by the time I tell my friends or family that I’m talking to a guy or say that I’ve met someone, a day later these guys disappear, and I have to tell them never mind, so I just stopped telling anyone anything…
” she whispers then, laughing hesitantly.
“But… They most definitely clocked that kiss… so here they come.”
It’s then that I realize that some part of Louise still expects me to disappear.
And I don’t think it’s a malicious thought or even that she doubts me specifically… just men in general. Because she’s been let down so many times before, it’s a conditioned response.
She doesn’t think anyone will stay for her, either.
That someone would actively choose her and mean it.
My chest aches, deep inside my ribcage.
This fucking girl. Guess we have more in common than I thought.
Before I can process any further though, a hoard of women descends upon us, and I’m in the thick of introductions to the entire Miller Women line.
A woman with short, gray hair wearing a black and white pinstriped suit and a fedora pushes her way to the front, blue-gray eyes on me like a hawk, but a mischievous gleam warms them just a touch.
Chloe moves to stand in front of me and I put my hands on her shoulders.
Bailey and Abigail both step between me and Lou, peering around the women who have joined us.
“Umm,” Louise starts, just a little hesitantly, looking up at me before turning back toward her family. “Everybody, this is Abigail, Bailey, and Chloe, and their dad, Zach. They’re my neighbors.”
The oldest woman of the group, the one dressed like a mobster, clears her throat, eyeing Louise shrewdly.
She blushes, looking up at me one more time, then adds, her tone lifting at the end, “And… he’s my boyfriend…?”
“Are you asking or telling?” the woman asks, her eyes bouncing from Lou’s face to mine and back.
“Uhh,” Lou stammers, her blond brows rising in uncertainty, and perhaps a touch of panic. It’s adorable.
Reaching out, I clasp her hand in mine and squeeze.
“Telling,” I say, winking at her, and I swear my heart does the Grinch grow-three-sizes thing inside my chest.
She called me her boyfriend.
Reaching around Chloe, I extend my hand first to the matriarch of the Miller family. “It’s very nice to meet you all. Louise talks about you all often.”
“I would love to say that we’ve heard all about you as well, but that would be a lie,” the woman harrumphs, but smiles as she bats my hand aside.
She steps forward, pulling me into a hug before stooping down to say hello to Chloe, who still stands in front of me.
“And who are you? My name is Judy, but you can call me Grandma Jude.”
“I’m Judy, too!” Chloe exclaims, her mouth going wide in a still-toothless grin. She points to the plastic police officer name badge attached to her chest, which reads ‘Judy Hopps’. “Well, at least I am for today!”
While Grandma Jude introduces herself to Bailey and Abigail, pointing out several different things that even Louise hadn’t shown us yet, I turn to the other women.
Rosie the Riveter steps closer, reaching out to pull me into a hug as well.
“I’m Rebecca, Lou’s mom. We had no idea Lou was even dating—”
“Yeah, last we knew, she was on a strict no-dating hiatus,” a blond woman with green iridescent fairy wings strapped to her back mutters out of the corner of her mouth, and Lou’s cheeks turn pink again.
The fairy extends her hand, saying, “I’m Tessa, one of Lou’s older sisters.
” Her eyes narrow on me then, and her eyes flick over to Lou.
“Wait… is this the neighbor that you grabbed his ju—”
“I’m going to murder you if you finish that sentence,” Louise warns through her teeth, that blush staining her cheeks a deep red as she glances up at me. “My family is feral, and I apologize in advance.”
I laugh out loud, nodding. “Sounds like my kind of people.”
As Tessa moves over to introduce herself to the girls, I hear Bailey exclaim, “Your wings are so pretty!”
A short, dark-haired woman with a feather trimmed witches’ hat and a black tulle skirt steps forward, shaking my hand next.
“I’m Darci, Lou’s oldest sister. My kids are over there—” she says, pointing toward where there’s a giant Jenga set up, along with a bean-bag tic-tac-toe board drawn onto the pavement.
“Please, make sure to check everything out before you leave for the evening. Tessa’s fresh donuts are in the barn, as well as Mom’s homemade cider.
Trick-or-Treating starts in about ten minutes. ”
“Thank you for having us. This all looks amazing,” I tell her. “Lou has been talking about this event for weeks, of course we had to come check it out. I’ve lived here my whole life and didn’t know about this.”
“Well, have so much fun, and it was nice to meet you,” she says, then heads off toward her kids.
“Dad, can we go play, too?” Bailey asks, dragging the fairy sister, Tessa with her by the hand.
“That’s fine, just stay where I can have eyes on you,” I say, and all three of my girls race over toward the games, Tessa in tow.
The last woman steps forward, a vivid blue wig on her head.
A Grecian style toga in a shimmery black material is wrapped around her body, and a serious looking camera is suspended around her neck.
She holds her hand out to me, and Lou says, “This is Sienna, another one of my older sisters. She’s the wedding photographer that got me the in with Andi. ”
“Ahh,” I murmur, shaking her hand. “I know Louise is excited to start her new job.”
“I knew she would get it if she just tried,” the second oldest Miller sister laughs. “She’s been hemming and hawing over it for months. I’m just glad she finally did it and got it before Andi filled the position. And what do you do?”
I point over to the bush rig and my coworkers. “I’m the Assistant Chief of the Petoskey Fire Department.”
“Ohhh,” her sister says appreciatively. She bobbles her eyebrows at Louise, who rolls her eyes and sighs. “Very nice, Lou.”
“Ohmygod,” she mutters, dropping her face into her hand. “Would you all go away? You’ve been nosy and got the introductions out of the way, now get.”
All of the Miller women laugh but do head off in different directions to begin prepping for the arrival of guests.
Lou and I wander closer to the firetruck and my guys, who are all wearing their turnout gear, though they’ve left the heavy jackets and helmets off.
Several big plastic tote bins are full of candy in the back of the bush rig, ready for Trick-or-Treaters.
“Louise, you remember Tommy,” I say, reintroducing her to our rehab volunteer. “And this is Nate, one of our Captains.” Nate shakes Lou’s hand. “And you know Chief.”
“Thank you so much for putting in for a spot, and for being a sponsor,” Louise says, shaking Chief’s hand. “We appreciate it so much.”
He grins down at her before crossing his arms over his chest. “Anything for the kids. Wish I’d known about this sooner. We’d have done a sponsorship years ago.”
“We’re kind of a well-kept secret,” Lou admits, laughing.
“What the hell is he wearing?” I hear Nate mutter to Tommy, and then turn around.
Oh. Hell. No.
“Hey, brother,” Joel chirps as he walks up to us, clapping his hand on my back. I glare at him, but he just grins before turning his attention to my girl.
“Okay, but this is impressive!” Louise laughs, her eyes trailing over my younger brother, a wide grin on her face.
She looks up at me, and I just know whatever comes out of her mouth next is going to earn her a punishment.
And she knows it, too, the little brat. “This whole sexy Bowser thing is… hot.”
“Glad you approve, because I’m here to steal a princess,” Joel says and the motherfucker winks.
His black motorcycle boots, tight jeans, one of his too-small t-shirts in a mustard yellow with the sleeves rolled up to show more of his muscular biceps, a black leather vest, and a green ‘turtle shell’ with white spikes is strapped to his back.
He styled his fashionably too long hair into a faux-hawk and spray painted it a deep red, and he has horns somehow magically attached to his head, and his glasses are perched on his nose.
Is premeditated murder really that bad? Because I’m very seriously considering it.
“You should have dressed up, man,” Joel chuffs, shrugging his shoulders. “Come on, Peach, show me around.”
Leaning down, I whisper in Lou’s ear for only her to hear, “Your ass is mine, Princess.”
She winks up at me before linking her arm with my pain in the ass, girlfriend stealing brother, then pecks my cheek and whispers back, “That’s what I’m hoping for.”
Fucking brat.