34. Everly
Breakfast was... strained, to say the least. PawPaw had come back from his night at one of the other houses. He was already aggravated from having to spend a night away from Granny. Seeing me with a strange man and three other newcomers had him pissed the fuck off, a sawed-off shotgun resting across his lap. I prayed it wasn’t loaded. It didn't help that one of the newcomers, Targen, couldn't keep his eyes off Theory. He was the guy I'd seen at Rarity with Real. I assumed they worked together, but he didn't look like he was into real estate. I wondered again about the darker side of Montréal Hamilton.
Calanthe cleared her throat. All this tension was probably too much for her sweet spirit.
"PawPaw, why you got a gun at the table just 'cause we got guests? That's not polite," she said, her adoring eyes glued to the young man Real introduced as "Juvie."
"Lanthe, stay out of grown folk business, now," PawPaw warned, his eyes surveying the table.
"It ain't like he the only one with a gun," Shep muttered, looking at Targen crazy.
PawPaw's eyes shot to Prime as his grip on the sawed-off tightened.
"I usually trust yo' judgment, son, but you let these strangers come in my house around all these women and they armed? I need some explanations."
PawPaw's huge fist slammed on the table, rattling dishes and my nerves. He started to stand, but Granny put a hand on his arm.
"Now, Lee Earnest, calm down," she chided.
He shook her hand off gently, rising to his full height.
"Naw, now, Annette! We supposed to be protectors. Can't be that with unknown men with guns up in here!"
"And this clown pulled one on me," Shep accused as he inclined his head toward Targen, adding fuel to the fire already lit in my grandfather. His shotgun was leveled on Targen in seconds. The big man didn't even blink. His eyes drilled into Shep's.
"Next time, it won't just be a warning," he said calmly before buttering another biscuit.
A low growl erupted from PawPaw as he perfected his aim. Theory threw an arm in front of Targen and leaned in front of him. My jaw dropped in surprise.
"PawPaw, no! Shep brought Kemp in here and he talked crazy to me. Targen was just defending me," she explained.
Targen reached to touch her but then stopped like he knew better.
"Don't ever put yourself in front of a gun for nobody. It ain't a person alive worth yo' life. You too fuckin' precious to lose," he said.
His voice was low, but his passion and sincerity were unmistakable. I swear all the women in my family sighed. Theory didn't say anything, but her blush was evident.
"Theory, if yo' little short ass don't climb this tall ass tree of a man immediately... whew!" Aunt Cynt fanned herself.
"Cynthia!" Granny scolded.
My aunt shrugged. "Let Daddy say something like that. You know you would excuse yourself from this table instantly," she said before picking up her forkful of eggs.
"I'm tired of telling you to watch yo' mouth, Cynthia,” PawPaw fussed at his daughter. “Told you we shoulda whooped her ass more," he said to Granny before swinging his gun on Shep. "I oughta blow a hole in yo' head but nothing would come out. I done told you that boy is a snake. He come from a line of snakes. You bring him in this house where my babies are again and I'ma beat yo' ass like I don't know you. Understand?" he spat.
"But PawPaw?—"
"You understand or you get the fuck out, Shepherd. It ain't hard."
Shep glared at Targen one last time before grumbling, "Yes, sir."
PawPaw nodded once.
"You might be all right but be careful where you aim that gun 'til I make up my mind," he said to Targen.
I froze as his light brown eyes fell on Real.
"Why you here?"
"He's Everly's boyfriend. They had a fight before she left Texas. He came to make up," Emory said slyly before Real could speak.
My sister was mad. And Lord, she was hell when she was mad. I knew she thought I'd hidden something from her, but I hadn't.
PawPaw's gaze swiveled to me where I sat, my face feeling redder than Theory’s had just been.
"Ain't no use in you sitting there, red as a pretty li’l tomater. Why you ain't said nothin' bout no left behind boyfriend?"
"Lee Earnest! She don't wanna talk to her crazy granddaddy bout her personal business," Granny fussed.
"She talk to you!" he fussed back.
Granny looked at him indignantly. "I'm a lady!"
"Don't feel bad, PawPaw. She ain't talk to nobody about this one," Emory mumbled.
I grilled her as Prime called her name softly. He'd been letting her skate all morning, so I knew that shit was about to end, and I was ready. Prime would rather take a bullet than hurt her, but he was all alpha, and even Em's ass fell in line... sometimes.
"Why?" PawPaw pressed.
I sighed. "PawPaw?—"
Real covered my hand, silencing me.
"It's my fault. I got this, Love."
He had to stop calling me that, immediately . It was different when it seemed like some random, pet name. Now that he knew my real name, I felt it everywhere when he uttered it.
"I'm sure she didn't tell y'all about me because I messed up. Got too caught up in things… people that didn't matter," Real said, sounding so... well... real .
I had to fight to keep from rolling my eyes at this nigga.
"And now?" Granny encouraged.
This lady and a lifetime of romance novels!
"I realized as soon as she left that nothing mattered as much as she did. Her presence. Her spirit. Her voice. Her silences. Her laughter. I missed it all, had to get it all back."
I stared down at my plate, dragging a fork through my grits. He was good. Very good. It almost made me believe him, and I knew better! I had to get myself together before I could look up, though.
"Is this how they growing' em in Texas? These boys got my head gassed up, hell. Hyacinth, we gon' have to pack a bag and fly out?—"
"Unless you want me taking planes down like I'm representing some terrorist cell, be quiet, Cynthia," Hyland's deep voice rumbled out of his barrel chest.
Aunt Cynt blinked innocently.
"Baby, I'm just tryna find our daughter a good man?—"
"I'on need yo' help, Mama," Hy whispered.
"I can't tell," Aunt Cynt mumbled before shutting up under Hyland's glare.
"You acting all impressed, Auntie. Sounds like a case of a no-good bum not missing his water until the well ran dry," Em said, giving Real a vicious smile before stabbing a piece of sausage.
"Mm-hmm," PawPaw said. "Probably too late, anyway. Ev, you 'posed to go out with that McKinley boy again, ain't you? Thought maybe y’all were getting serious."
Look at God! My PawPaw was giving me an out! I dabbed at my mouth before opening it to speak?—
And being cut off.
"Nah, she's not going out with the McKinley 'boy' now that her man is here," Real said, his eyes spitting fire at me. “So, you dating now, huh?” he muttered to me.
But I was stuck on him calling himself my man . Okay, this was too much. I let out a deep breath.
"Now, Real?—"
"Hmm. You sure?" PawPaw interrupted, eyes glued to Real.
"I gotta pull a gun on somebody, too, to get yo' blessing?" Real asked my grandfather.
"You pulling it on that McKinley boy?"
Real lifted his shoulders. "Sounds like it."
PawPaw nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Weaker than a new foal. I'on know what Ev be thinking."
I gasped as Real grinned and then spoke.
"She thinks she likes men she can dominate. But she don't. Not anymore, anyway."
My head whipped around to face him.
"You'on know what I like, Montréal!"
"Oh, he knows something you like," Emory said under her breath.
I whirled on her ass, too. "Heffa, you wanna fight?"
"Em, that's enough," Prime's voice was low but deadly. "Ev, you can't kick my baby's butt while she's pregnant."
"Why you make it sound like she gon' beat me up?" Em whined at her husband.
Aunt Cynt rolled her eyes. " Girlllla! There's a reason Daddy taught you to shoot early."
"Exactly!" I snapped.
"You threatening pregnant women now?" Real mocked me.
"Why are you in my business, Real?"
"Now, you don't want him in your 'business?'"
My sister literally put air quotes around the word. My jaw dropped. Hy shook her head.
"Snitching, Em? That ain't the move," she said.
"Shut up, Hy!"
"Why? Didn't we just establish that it ain't like you can whoop my ass?” Hy taunted, chuckling.
The table suddenly dissolved into one loud argument among us. Only PawPaw's banging and scary roar silenced the room.
"Too many damn women! And y'all upsetting my baby!"
Our eyes flew to Granny. Her little, short self was steaming.
"Y'all know I don't play all that cussing and arguing in my house, especially at the table where we just offered God thanks! And in front of company? I'm ‘bout to knock all ya blocks off! Sitcho butts down, shut up, and eat. Emory Leigh and Everly Love, y'all better straighten it out after breakfast. Love, you take yo' fast ass on up to the Stone House wit' ya boyfriend, cuz ain't nobody having relations in this house but me and ya granddaddy."
"Oh, my God," I moaned, mortified.
"Take Theory and this boy with ya. Let them figure something out," Granny continued, gesturing toward Theory and Targen.
"Granny! No! There's nothing to figure out," Theory objected.
"There's so much to figure out, Sis. The Stone House got five bedrooms. You'll be all right," Epiphany said.
Granny nodded, settling it.
"You two can stay on the homestead, too," she said, pointing at Juvie and Markel.
"Granny, I'm sure Real rented hotel rooms—" I tried to argue.
"Ain't no use in wasting good money! How y'all gone work it out if he in another town? And the hotel and bed and breakfasts here booked up 'cause of the reunion."
"But Granny?—"
She gave me a look that had been silencing me for more than two decades.
"Everly. Love. Miller!"
I sighed. "Yes, ma'am."
Beside me, Real chuckled. I picked up my knife, thinking about driving it into his heart.
"Way that man had you hoopin' and hollerin' when I walked by there, you sure you wanna kill him?" Granny asked calmly, like she was asking how I liked my eggs or something.
My knife clattered to the table as I died, a victim of soul-crushing embarrassment at age twenty-six.