Chapter 22
August
The scent of surf ‘n turn hit my nose while I was still blindfolded, but between it and the feel of the sand beneath my feet, I had a good idea of where I was.
Gregor’s big surprise had better not be to show me more new shelves and the carvings he had ready to go on them when the space was finished.
While I loved the changes he was making to the shop, including the expanded showroom with its tall, wide windows and additional plugs that would allow the lamps and chandeliers to be plugged in for the last night of the evening, I was eager for a day that didn’t involve either of us working
He'd already had the same features installed in the working part of the showroom, and sold three to people who’d been walking along the boardwalk and been drawn in by the light and shadows they’d cast.
As he always did, whenever one of the ideas I’d given him successfully went over, he’d come home with a little treat for me, as well as praise.
I’d fallen in love with the chocolate-dipped bananas he’d found at a food truck a few blocks from his shop.
They even dipped some in a layer of melted peanut butter and then a layer of melted chocolate before freezing them.
Those were my all-time favorites, a fact that I was certain Gregor’s wallet could attest to, since he brought them for me constantly now that the weather had gone past warm straight to hot.
Midsummer would be here at the end of the week, and there was still so much to do in the shop before our handfasting, that I was slightly miffed at him for bringing me down here, even with the scent of seafood filling the air.
Ohhh goddess, was that a whiff of sizzling beef I’d just detected?
No longer miffed, I sniffed as he led me along the sand, no longer interested in why he’d brought me out here, since every step was carrying me closer to those delicious aromas.
This better not be one of those times when I’d have to stand around waiting for it to be done, either.
I’d already found myself having to nibble every few hours just to keep up with my body’s demands.
Three days ago, at our first ultrasound, we’d discovered why.
After leaving the doctor’s office in a daze, a state that was becoming far too common after every visit, we’d wandered with no true direction, eventually pausing at the food truck I loved for a pair of my beloved bananas.
When Gregor spotted a street taco truck beside it, he’d insisted on getting a batch of carne asada ones for us to share, in addition to Camarones Tacos that were served with Spanish rice and a creamy cheese sauce.
Those, holy shit, when I’d accidentally bit his finger while trying to eat the last bite of his, he’d bought me a double batch of my own to take back to the shop with me, and promised to learn how to make that sauce, because now that I’d had it, I wanted it on everything.
To be fair, I’d been the same way the week before, with the whiskey cream sauce he’d made with shallots and garlic to go over our steaks.
Talk about decadent.
I’d fight anyone who ever tried to say that sauces didn’t make a meal.
It sure the hell did when he’d been pouring it over my meat and stovies.
Yes, he’d introduced me to a new favorite way of having potatoes, and he’d even gotten me to eat my roasted cauliflower that way after I’d complained that him steaming them had made them taste like mush.
When he turned me, and pressed on my shoulder, I allowed him to guide me into what proved to be a rather comfortable chair, for being on the beach.
Now that we were here, I expected him to take the blindfold off, shocked when he left it on me and seemed to move away.
“Leave it right where it is.”
His words crashed over me like one of the nearby waves, and I scrunched my nose at him as best as I could with a big heavy scarf resting on it, sticking my tongue out at him for good measure.
“Awe, now don’t be like that, August, he’s just trying to make sure everything’s ready for you before you see what we’ve been up to.”
See what…?
“Aunty Eunice? You’re here, too?”
“Oops. Cat’s out of the bag I guess.”
“Now can I take this off me?”
I pleaded, shoving halfheartedly at the heavy material that covered my eyes.
I was waiting for Gregor, but not patiently as I shoved at it again.
“Not yet,”
Gregor called out like he was several feet away.
Groaning, I crossed my arms and pouted.
“Come on, bro, I didn’t drive all this way to see you for you to act like this.”
Ohhh.
What?
“Ever?”
“Yes, he’s here,”
Gregor said, his voice, suddenly right by me ear, startling me as I hadn’t heard him move. “And before you ask, no, you can still not remove the blindfold yet.”
“Goddammit!”
“August!!!”
Okay, a lot of people were here it seemed. Now I was anxious to take the blindfold off and squirmed as my face heated up ‘cause I was sure I’d heard my Gram-Gram’s voice among the ones admonishing me.
“Sorry,”
I muttered, as Gregor nudged me with his body until I scooched and made room for him in a chair I wouldn’t have expected to be built for two.
We fit it comfortably, though, and dammit, now there was something else I wanted to investigate.
The anticipation was making me irritable, right along with the feel of his arm coming to rest across my back.
Didn’t he know it was fuckin’ hot out here? Even in a tank top I was gonna be sweating in just a few minutes.
For as much as I loved his hugs, I preferred to enjoy them in the air-conditioned comfort of our home where his skin or the water in the pool would be the only thing touching mine.
Thank the goddess for that pool, too.
I loved floating in it in the evenings, and not on a hunk of blown-up plastic, either.
I loved getting in naked and floating, but what I loved more was the way he’d started shifting in the evenings, and getting into the pool in fur.
Who knew wolverines could float on their backs and use their tails like a rudder?
His fluffy wolverine belly was the perfect spot for me to plant my pregnant hedgehog body, roll on my back, and watch the stars drift past without having to do anything at all.
At first, I’d been afraid that my prickles were uncomfortable for him, until I’d run my fingers through the thickness of his pelt and felt the same soft padding around his middle as was around his abs when he was human, and everything was perfect again.
“Wiggle all you want,”
he whispered in my mind one night. “I’ve been needing a good scratch.”
I’d grown up in a wonderfully affirming family, and even my short-term boyfriends had made me feel alluring at times, some while also complaining that I could be too much.
Nothing I’d ever experienced was more powerful than the feel of my mate’s body tensing when I accidentally rolled past his hips, and my prickly bristles brushed over his cock.
Mortified, I’d floundered, trying to crawl off him while thinking I’d hurt him, only for him to curl his body around mine, preventing me from slipping into the water as he grunted and deliberately rubbed me over his cock again.
His wolverine had used my hedgehog prickles to get off on and neither of us had felt a bit of shame after he’d come all over me and let me track his release up his belly on my little feet as I crept back into prime floating position.
Yup, getting hot already.
Grunting, I shrugged my shoulder until he got the hint and moved his arm, pausing the retreat to slide his hand beneath my hair so he could squeeze the base of my neck briefly before turning me loose completely.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on now?”
I hissed, “And let me take the stupid scarf off, my head’s getting hot.”
I made sure he couldn’t miss the whiny tone in my voice when I said it, because that was the last warning he was going to get. Hot hedgehog was grumpy hedgehog, especially when I also happened to be hot pregnant hedgehog.
Very, very pregnant hedgehog.
Remembering the blurred images and heartbeats of our rapidly growing hoglets made me giggle at the image of my hedgehog in my head, already looking round when we floated on our mate.
At least in my human form I’d been able to keep the rounding of my middle from showing beneath flowy tops.
Beach gear, my cousins had taken to calling the tops I wore, but dammit, the thin colorful material was also perfect for the warmth in my kitchen.
“You know how we’ve been struggling with the best way to tell our family our news without anyone getting upset about being the first to know?”
he said, still perched on the chair beside me, but with enough space between us that the wind was still able to wrap around me and keep me cool.
“Yeah.”
“Welcome to our Secrets Revealed party, where they get to play games for our amusement and learn what we’ve been hiding from them along the way.”
Surprise flooded me as his words sank in. He’d gotten everyone here, including Ever and our grandparents, and still managed not to reveal anything to them?
Holy shit.
Squeeing, I wiggled in my seat until he finally took pity on me and unwound the scarf from around my eyes.
They needed a moment to adjust to the bright blue sky and wispy clouds overhead, as well as the colorful array of sundresses, swimsuits and boardshorts worn by the family members surrounding us.
It looked like an equal mix, too, of his side and mine, including a few people I knew I’d hadn’t been introduced to yet since they went out on the long line ships.
I saw a wide target set up with an area roped off in front of it with brightly colored plastic.
There was also a big wheel in the sand, with a bunch of arrows painted inside of it, three layers bordered by lines that didn’t overlap.
Studying it more, as well as the contraption it was mounted to, I realized it was a spinner, though I couldn’t see what was written on it.
“The wheel is officially open!”
Gregor declared.
“Wait, wait, wait!”
I screeched before sticking my fingers in my mouth and letting out an ear screeching whistle that echoed down the beach even after everyone had stopped talking.
“The wheel is not open until I get food and someone explains what the hell the game is!”
The faintest hint of a blush darkened Gregor’s nose as he passed me a steaming plate heaping with boiled seafood and a steak smothered in the garlic cream sauce I loved.
Now I understood why he’d stepped away after getting me seated.
He knew I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the festivities until someone fed me.
“It’s a wheel of possibilities,”
Gregor explained.
“Since I couldn’t put anything on the invitations, my brain decided to go into overdrive thinking about all of the assumptions people were going to make when they got it.
I started making a running tally of them, which morphed into the idea for the wheel.
Figured it might be fun to make people spin it until it landed on the reason they were here and it lit up.
I even put together a gift basket from both of our shops for the winner.”
Turning, I placed my hand against his soft beard and pressed until I could surge up and kiss him fully, pouring my appreciation and adoration into the kiss, much to the delight of our family, who assailed us with whistles and catcalls before demanding that we get a room if we were going to keep it up.
My cheeks felt heated when we broke apart, and the little blush that had been on his nose had spread across his cheeks.
“Now the wheel is open!”
I declared, promoting another round of cheers.
Gregor kissed the tip of my nose before going to get a plate for himself, leaving me to dig into the succulent seafood and steak.
“Who the hell throws a party to reveal a new kitchen remodel!”
someone asked, their voice carrying across the sand to where a small crowd had gathered around the wheel.
“That’s a better idea than a garage warming.”
“Hey now, in the kid’s defense, that new garage add on is pretty sweet.”
“You’re just saying that cause you built it.”
“And you’re just bitter you landed on kitchen remodel.”
Though it hadn’t been part of the announcement of the game’s rules, people just seemed to know that standing around the wheel spinning it over and over wasn’t in the spirit of the game.
Those who’d already spun drifted toward the line for food, while others set up a game of horseshoes in the sand, to fill the time with while they waited for the line to thin out.
A few rushed to help with plates for the children in attendance, as the stretch of sand beside Gregor’s shop was transformed into a beach party.
“I can’t believe no one let slip what was going on,”
I said when Gregor rejoined me in the chair. “Where the hell did you find this massive thing? I love it.”
“I made it,”
he replied as he put a couple scallops on my plate. The ones he’d put on mine had been the first things I’d eaten.
These I was going to savior with bites of steak, but only after swirling both in whiskey cream sauce.
“Now I love it even more,”
I replied. “Is this the only one like it?”
“Would you like some for the patio at home?”
“Please?”
“Absolutely.”
“Squeee!”
I did a happy wiggle dance and bounced my plate a little, but I didn’t lose anything.
I’d have been super sad if I’d lost one of my scallops.
I watched a few people head over with their plates, but none was able to make the wheel light up. A game of horseshoes broke out and someone started playing classic rock so a few people started singing along, including Uncle Lane, who butchered the words to everything, but had an awesome voice.
“How many possibilities did you put on that wheel?” I asked.
“Fifty-three.”
“Are you fuckin’ kidding me?”
Uncle Lane sputtered as he turned to glare at him.
“Give or take one or two, yeah, I’d say there were about fifty-three on there.”
“You’re a sadist.”
“Not the first time I’ve been told that.”
Gregor’s words, coming at the exact time as the pause between songs, reached the maximum number of ears to get the absolute best reaction. Gasps, guffaws, giggles, snickers, snorts, and one, Go Gregor, were the reactions to his words, while he sputtered and tried to divert attention away from the fact that his whole face was red now.
“A sadist, huh?”
I murmured as I leaned to claim his lips.
A cheer went up when we kissed, but the celebration wasn’t for us, well it wasn’t because I’d crawled into his lap to tongue fuck him and needed his fingers tangling in my hair, gripping until I could focus on the sound of the buzzer.
Oh.
Ohhh.
Someone had landed on our secret.
“Pregnant?”
Aunty Eunice screeched.
“Pregnant?”
Pops said, while across the sand, Gregor’s dad and uncle chuckled.
“I knew you had ulterior motives when you had me make all those last-minute additions to the renovations,”
Uncle Atlas grumbled before shooting a look at Gregor’s dad. “Planning ahead my ass, you owe me twenty!”
“Get it from Storm, she bet me twenty that they were unveiling another business, I told her there was no way when we were out of Ollys to manage Gregor’s for him.”
Though they gave one another shit, it was never mean spirited, or inaccurate, they just poked at each other’s weak spots a little, probably because they had so many strengths that they never minded a bit of ribbing when they messed things up.
I knew Gregor would be the first to say that he had no interest in dealing with the people part of a business and would likely have no customers at all if it wasn’t for Olly.
“So now what’s the second game all about?”
Uncle Lane asked.
Everyone’s attention turned back to us, or more specifically, Gregor, who smirked and inclined his head toward the target and the table filled with colorful balloons several feet away from it.
“Easy,”
Gregor replied.
“Everyone is going to form a single file line.
When you get to the table, pick up a ballon, throw it at the target, and see if the sand that splats out is regular colored or a neon shade.
I won’t tell you how many neon bags are up there, you’ll only know the answer to that after the last bag has been thrown.
Keep track of the neon colors, those will be important later.”
“Keep track of the neon?”
Uncle Lane muttered.
“What are you two up to now?”
Aunty Eunice asked with a shake of her head as she headed off to join the line.
Giggling, I stole another kiss before letting him help me up so we could go watch the sand toss unfold.
I had a pretty good idea of what those neon colors represented.
We got there just in time to see the first sand balloon splatter against the red and white target’s surface, nothing but plain sand erupting from the yellow balloon when it connected with the wood.
It took several tries before the sand that hit the target was a neon hue, the bright turquoise impossible to miss against bullseye.
“Turquoise!”
someone shouted.
“Is someone writing this down?”
“Who’s keeping track?”
A couple of the people who’d already gone pulled their phones out, so now we had several people keeping track as the next few balloons were thrown.
All plain sand.
A little disappointing. Then neon yellow splattered against the target and a cheer went up as the ones with phones made a note of the new color.
It only took one plain sand balloon before the next neon one erupted in a brilliant shower of lime sand.
Half the crowd had already gone through a line that was moving faster now that people had gotten excited to see how many colors were left as well as learn what the colors meant.
A splat of bright, brilliant lavender added to the colorful mound of sand beneath the target with just a few balloons left on the table.
“Guess it’s down to me, huh?”
my dad asked a few minutes later, grinning at me as he hefted the final balloon in his hand. With pinpoint accuracy, he hurled it against the center of the target, where it exploded in a shower of pink.
“That’s it, that’s all of them,”
Uncle Lane declared.
“Pink, lavender, lime, yellow and aqua,”
someone read back while two others with phones nodded in confirmation.
“Five colors,”
Uncle Lane muttered, “now what the hell do the colors mean?”
“Lane, language,”
Granny cautioned, as several others side-eyed him.
“Sorry.”
“Uh huh, you are always sorry then you slip up two seconds later and let an f-bomb,”
Aunty Eunice said. “Don’t let it happen again.”
“I won’t,”
Uncle Lane replied, and remained between them, looking sufficiently chastised.
“Each color represents a whelplet,”
Gregor said once the intermission show was over. “As in how many little ones August is knocked up with.”
His announcement was met with stunned silence, until someone sputtered while a few others stammered and one person let out a long, low whistle.
“F-five!”
Aunty Eunice squealed. “You’re having five?”
“Five Gregors?”
Uncle Atlas groaned and sank down onto a bench like his legs couldn’t hold him anymore. “The renovations will never end.”
“Five?”
Mom said as she leaned in to hug me. “Oh my dear, sweet boy, this is going to be delightful.”