Fourth of July with Fury #2
With that, they both disappeared outside, leaving me with a smile on my face. My kids might’ve been grown, they might’ve been independent and had lives of their own, but they still needed me. And that meant more to me than they would ever know.
I was just about to go check on things outside when Wren walked in with one of her casserole dishes. Cassidy and Henley followed close behind, each balancing enough food to feed everyone in town. Cassidy headed straight for the oven, quickly shoving one of her dishes inside.
There was a time when this kitchen had only held beer, bad coffee, and men too stubborn to do anything about it. Now, it smelled like casseroles, baked beans, and home. Our ol’ ladies were the true heart of this place. They kept the family fed and happy, and that was a big deal around here.
Henley placed hers on the counter as she said, “I swear every year that I’m not going to go overboard, and here I am. There’s no way we’re going to eat all this food.”
“We’ll eat it,” I assured her. “Gotta remember who you’re feeding. These guys can’t get enough.”
“He’s right,” Henley giggled. “They cleaned us out at Easter.”
“Yeah, they even ate your green beans, and that’s saying something.”
“Don’t even start with me,” Henley huffed. “We’re not all Martha Stewarts.”
“No, we’re not,” Cass teased.
Henley nudged her in the side with her elbow. “I’ll remember that.”
“The guys will, too. The aching bellies won’t let them forget.”
“Okay, ladies,” I interrupted. “Play nice. We’ve had enough fussing around here for one day.”
“Wyatt and Mia?” Wren asked with concern.
“They had words.” I shrugged. “They want us to keep the grans this weekend. I told them we’d be glad to, so all is good now.”
“We’re keeping them all?”
“Afraid so.”
“We might need to call in reinforcements.”
“We’ll be fine.” I gave her a wink. “I have a plan.”
“Oh, God help us.”
“Have a little trust, babe.”
“I know you too well for that.” Once she’d finished putting the rest of the food in the stove, Wren turned to me and asked, “How long before the burgers are done?”
“No clue.” She gave me a look, and I immediately nodded. “I’ll go check.”
“Thank you.”
“Sure thing.”
I walked out of the kitchen and out the back door into a world of chaos.
Kids were running through the yard screaming at the top of their lungs, a baby was crying, smoke was billowing from the grill, and a football was flying through the air.
It looked less like a Fourth of July celebration and more like pure mayhem.
Off in the back, Guardrail stood with Clutch and Smokey, and they were sorting all the fireworks.
There was enough there to violate several city ordinances, but they didn’t seem concerned.
Clutch pointed at one of the bigger boxes, and Guardrail nodded.
Smokey looked concerned, which probably meant whatever they were planning was a terrible idea.
I made a mental note to steer clear and turned my attention to the grill. Cotton and Big were discussing something that had Cotton all out of sorts. I figured they were either talking about his girls or politics. Both seemed to raise the man’s blood pressure.
I watched them for a moment, and it just didn’t feel right.
Truth was, that spot belonged to Maverick.
Over the years, he’d taken over manning the grill at our gatherings.
He’d stand over it with a beer in one hand and a spatula in the other, watching over the meat like it could only be tamed by him.
Henley would always sit nearby, pretending she wasn’t keeping an eye on him.
It was one of those things you’d come to expect, but it wasn’t in the cards for him this year. A set of faulty brakes had put him in the hospital with a broken hip and elbow. It scared the hell out of all of us, so much so that we’d talked about canceling today’s cookout.
Maverick wouldn’t hear of it.
He knew the kids had been looking forward to it, and he didn’t want to ruin it because his bike decided to give out on him. I wasn’t surprised. The man had a bad habit of putting everyone before himself and today was no different.
The cookout was loud, crowded, and completely out of control, exactly the way he would’ve wanted it. That didn’t mean he wasn’t missed.
As I started over to the grill, I spotted our younger generation.
Savage, Torch, and Rooster were leaning back in their lawn chairs, talking to Diesel and Wrath, while they enjoyed a cold beer.
Not a single ounce of actual work was being accomplished.
The lucky bastards were just sitting there, watching Dalton and Ava toss a football back and forth, and shooting the shit like they didn’t have a care in the world.
Savage laughed at something Torch said, and I just glared at them.
Back in the day, I would’ve told them to get off their asses and help, but now, I was feeling a little jealous that I wasn’t sitting right there alongside them.
They were in the good chairs, drinking a cold beer, and having a hell of a time.
I, on the other hand, was in charge of making sure this cookout didn’t go to hell in a handbasket. That didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy a refreshment or two, so I walked over to their cooler and grabbed a couple of beers. Torch frowned. “Hey, what the hell, brother?”
I cocked a brow. “Collecting my retirement benefits.”
Savaged laughed as he watched me twist off the cap. “Enjoy, ol’ timer.”
“You boys suck.”
“Love you too, Stitch.”
“Can’t believe you jerkoffs are sitting here while the rest of us are bustin’ our asses.”
“Sounds like a personal issue to me,” Rooster teased.
“Sounds like I’m about to kick your ass out of that chair.”
“Easy killer. We’re working.” He motioned his hand over to Ava, watching as she tossed the ball. “We’re supervising.”
I looked at the kids and then back at him. “That’s all you got?”
“That jealousy talking?” Savage snickered.
“Ah, hell, that one’s gonna cost ya.”
I gave him a look, and the four of them laughed.
They were smartasses, every damn one of them, but when Ava tripped over the football, Rooster was out of his chair before I even moved.
That said everything. These were good men who never failed to be there when you really needed them.
I tried to keep that in mind as I left them to their so-called supervising and headed over to the grill.
Cotton was flipping the burgers while Big poked at a row of hot dogs, and neither of them looked particularly happy about it. As soon as I approached, Cotton looked up at me and grumbled, “About time.”
“I got caught up in the kitchen.”
“Something wrong?”
“Wyatt and Mia were at it again.”
“What this time?”
“Same ol’, same ol’.” I leaned in, giving the burgers a look as I asked, “How much longer?”
“You asking or Wren?”
“Believe you already know the answer to that.”
“Should be ready in ten.”
“Gonna tell her fifteen.”
“Smart man.”
“Need anything from inside?”
“We’re good for now.”
I nodded. “I’ll be back.”
I started back across the yard, and it felt good to see everyone gathered around and having a good time. This was what it was all about. This is why we did what we did.
For family.
I soaked it up for a moment before making my way inside. The second I stepped into the kitchen, Wren stopped what she was doing and asked, “Well?”
“Fifteen minutes. Twenty tops.”
“The beans are going to get cold.”
“We can warm them up.”
“Griffin.”
“Yeah?”
“The food. We have…”
“It will be fine.” I stepped closer and lowered my voice. “Besides, it buys us some time.”
The corners of her mouth twitched with a smile. “Time for what?”
I took her hand in mine, and she laughed when I led her out of the kitchen and into the family room. Usually, the place was packed with brothers, ol’ ladies, and kids. But thankfully, everyone was outside, which meant the place was empty. I turned to face her, and Wren’s eyes immediately softened.
Twenty-eight years later, and she still looked at me the same way she had from the beginning. Like I was worth loving. God only knows how I got so lucky. I slipped my arm around her waist and pulled her closer. Her smile widened as she whispered, “There you are.”
“There who is?”
“My unbelievably hot husband.”
“Been here the whole time.”
“Debatable.” She looked as beautiful as the first day I met her, and I couldn’t take my eyes off her. “What are you doing?”
“Admiring the view.”
She rolled her eyes and muttered, “You’re ridiculous.”
“Maybe, but it doesn’t change the fact that your skirt looks damn good on you.”
“I’ve worn it a hundred times.”
“And it still looks hot.”
“I’m too old for it.”
“Not even close.”
“Griffin...”
Before she could say anything more, I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers, silencing her with a kiss.
She made a soft moan against my mouth and melted into me with her hands clinging to my chest. It was something she did every time I kissed her, and I gotta tell you.
After twenty-eight years together, that does something to a man.
But then again, everything about her got to me.
She stood by me through thick and thin, and somehow, she still looked at me like I was the man she’d fallen in love with all those years ago.
The thought hit harder than it used to. Maybe it was because I was older and time moved faster than it once had, or maybe it was because I understood just how rare a love like ours really is.
Either way, I wasn’t taking it for granted.
When I finally pulled back, Wren’s cheeks were flushed, and her eyes sparkled with amusement. I brushed my thumb across her cheek as I promised, “We’ll finish this when we get home.”
A slow smile slipped across her beautiful face. “I’m going to hold you to that.”
The words had barely left her mouth when there was a loud commotion outside, followed by Big shouting something about the wood pile. Wren sighed, “We’d better go see what that’s about.”
“Probably so.”