Chapter Six
“See you next week, Esme!” Jamie, the bookstore owner, says as I walk away.
“See you then!” I say as I leave the store, the bell jingling behind me.
Stepping onto the street, I sigh. I love this time of year. The leaves have turned yellow, gold, and red, letting us know winter is fast approaching.
As I start to walk down the street, I take everything in. Some of the shops have decorated for Halloween, while others have taken more of a fall approach with hay bales. It’s adorably festive and another reason why I love this place.
“Esme!” someone hollers.
Turning, I scan the street. My frown soon changes into a smile when I spot Hudson. My heart races when I see him. I scan the street next to him but don’t see Levi or Walker. The disappointment over them being missing only lasts seconds, though.
“Be careful!” I laugh as Hudson crosses the street, coming toward me.
As soon as I’m within reach, he pulls me into a hug, which I gladly return.
“Hi,” I murmur against his chest.
Jesus, he smells good. Like a mixture of expensive bourbon and fire. Two things I’ve never been drawn to but am now. When he pulls back, he kisses my cheek, right on the corner of my mouth.
“What are you doing?” he asks.
“Oh, I’m just on my way home.”
“Stopped at the bookshop?” he asks, looking down at my bag.
“I did.”
“Tell me, did you get something sensible like a self-help book, or did you get one of those dirty romance books I’ve heard so much about?” he teases.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I quip, making him laugh.
“Where did you park? I’ll walk you to your car.”
“I’m actually walking home.”
For a second he scowls before his face smooths out. “That’s not very safe.”
“This place is low on crime,” I tell him gently.
“Still, if you’re cool with it, I’d like to walk you home.”
I bite the corner of my lip to stop myself from smiling. “Are you sure? I don’t want to keep you from anything…”
“I’m sure. Now come on.”
He grabs the bag from my hand and then holds his arm out for me. I place my hand in the crook of his elbow and bump into him lightly.
“Such a gentleman.”
He tips his head back and laughs as we begin to walk. “Trust me, Esme, the things I would like to do with you aren’t very gentlemanly.”
He says it so playfully, bouncing his eyebrows up and down, making me laugh.
“So how have you been since I saw you last?” he asks me.
“Pretty good. Busy with work.”
“Zoologist, right?”
My heart skips over the fact that he remembers. Most of the time, I have to remind people a time or two where it’s not a job most people have.
“Yes.”
“Play with anything cool?”
“Play, no, but we have been closely monitoring a giraffe that’s due to give birth at any time.” I smile thinking about the mama.
“That’s fucking awesome.”
“It is, right? It will be the first baby giraffe born at our zoo. It has everyone in a buzz.”
He smiles down at me. “Didn’t that happen somewhere a couple years back and it became popular on the internet?”
“Yeah, they set up a camera in her stall for viewers and everything. We didn’t do that, though. Apparently the board thought it would be too invasive for the giraffe despite the revenue it could bring in.”
“How do you feel about that decision?”
I shrug my shoulders. “I get it. Would the possible influx of money go a long way? Absolutely, but I don’t know if it would be worth the criticism that always follows when the internet is involved. Besides, I’m all about the animals. I’ll always side with what is best for them.”
“I can see that.”
Hugging his arm closer, I ask, “What about you? What have you been up to?”
“Just the usual. Wake up, eat, work, eat again, and sleep.”
“And Walker and Levi?” I ask hesitantly.
Is it wrong to bring his friends up? I don’t know the exact protocol for a situation like this.
Hudson washes my fears away when he smiles. “They are good. Busy but good. Missing you, of course.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that,” I say, feeling my cheeks heat.
“Trust me, you left an imprint on all of us.”
“Feeling is mutual,” I admit softly.
“So are you ever going to tell me what you bought?”
Smiling, I shake my head. “Why should I when you already guessed?”
He hums. “So you bought a romance book?”
“I did.”
I duck my head to hide my smile. The last thing he needs to know is that I bought a book about a social media influencer who hooks up with four men, two of whom are dating each other, and they all fall in love.
I’ve read plenty of why-choose books in the past, but they’ve always had a paranormal element to them.
“Are you going to tell me about it?”
“I can’t exactly do that when I haven’t read it yet, now can I?”
“Well then, I can’t wait to hear the full report on it once you finish.”
We start to slow down as we approach my house.
“Are you busy?” I ask, hating the idea of him walking away so soon.
“No.”
Stopping on my porch steps, I turn toward him. “Would you like to come inside and hang out for a while? I could put on some tea or make you some hot chocolate. Whatever you would prefer.”
A beautiful smile crosses his face. “I’d like that.”
“Great,” I say a little too loudly.
Unlocking my front door, I let us in.
“Please, make yourself comfortable,” I tell him as I set my purse and books down on the entry table.
Hudson whistles. “You must like Halloween.”
I flinch and smile weakly. “I do.”
He reaches out and touches my shoulder. “Hey, I wasn’t meaning that in a bad way at all. It was just an observation. I think it’s cool. Do you decorate for other holidays too?”
Something about the gentle yet firm way he says it heals a part of me that Troy broke. He hated that I would go all out for holidays. He thought it was dumb and that once you decorate a place, it should stay the same year-round. He didn’t understand that I liked changing things up.
“I do,” I tell him softly.
“I can’t wait to see what you do for Thanksgiving then.” He smiles.
Thanksgiving. He’s already thinking about seeing what my place will look like in a month. Maybe I’m not crazy, and this isn’t one-sided at all.
Clearing my throat, I nod toward the couch. “Make yourself comfortable. I’m going to make us some tea. Or did you want hot chocolate?”
“I’ll have whatever you are.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.”
Leaving him in my living room, I try to get myself under control. The last thing he needs is me throwing myself at him.
Will Levi kill me if I come home empty-handed when I was supposed to grab supplies for the clubhouse? Probably, but hanging out with Esme alone, without having to fight for her attention, is much more appealing than grabbing toilet paper.
As I make myself comfortable on her couch, I look around.
I never would have pictured her living in a place like this, but now that I’ve seen it, it makes sense.
Her place is so fucking cute. She’s got a skeleton lamp in the corner next to a reading chair, a black mirror with some crazy scrollwork, and all sorts of other knickknacks spread out.
It’s so much more than just Halloween, and it’s badass.
What’s not badass is the way she flinched when I asked. Someone at some point demeaned her into thinking what she liked was stupid. They belittled her and her interests. If I had to guess, it was probably her ex. If I could go back to the night we met, it would be me who laid him out.
Walker should have hit him harder.
I look over at her side table and see a stack of books. Picking one up, I smile. It’s got three guys on the cover, surrounding a woman. One dude’s got a mermaid’s tail, one’s got horns, and one’s got vampire teeth.
Interesting.
Smiling, I set the book down.
If she likes to read about it, maybe we do stand a chance.
Esme has had us wrapped around her finger since she first approached us. We all like her and want to be with her. Am I scared? Absolutely, but she’s worth the risk. I have to believe it.
“Okay, I made you some hibiscus and peppermint tea. I hope that’s okay. If you don’t like it, I can make you something else,” she says as she walks into the room.
“I’m sure it’s great. Thank you,” I tell her as I take the cup from her. I smile as I look at the black cup with a skeleton hand on it that’s slightly raised.
“I thought that cup would fit you better than this one,” she says quietly.
I look over and see that hers is pink with a ghost on it that’s also slightly raised.
“You’re too cute for your own good.”
She shrugs, but I can tell that my comment hits her just right by the way her cheeks turn slightly pink.
Esme has been deprived of compliments, and I hate it. Someone as good as her should always hear how amazing and beautiful they are.
“Go out with us,” I blurt out with zero finesse.
Her eyes widen. “U-us? As in…”
“As in Walker, Levi, and me.”
She blinks slowly. “I don’t even know what that would look like.”
I look over at the stack of books next to me before looking back at her with a raised brow.
Her cheeks get darker. “Okay, so I know how it works in theory, but…are you sure? You guys wouldn’t, like, get jealous or anything?”
I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from smiling.
Jealous.
If only she knew. I guess she will find out soon enough.
“Look, all I’m asking is you go out with us once. We can discuss what it could look like then because that’s a conversation we all need to have together. Unless you aren’t interested, and if that’s the case, no hard feelings. We can all be friends.”
The word friends tastes bitter on my tongue. I would rather chew my own arm off than be just friends with the woman in front of me.
By the way her face scrunches up, I can tell she doesn’t like the thought of us being only friends either.
“I, I would like that. To go out with the three of you. Hear what you have to say,” she says quietly as she looks down at her mug.
Leaning over, I lightly touch her chin until she meets my eye. “You won’t regret it. I promise.”
“So it will be like a date?”
“Oh, darlin’, it will definitely be a date.” I wink, making her laugh.
“Are you always this smooth?”
“If you think I’m smooth, you haven’t seen anything yet,” I tease.
“What am I going to do with you?” she asks, sounding slightly exasperated.
“I have so many ideas,” I say as my phone rings.
Her eyes drop down to my pocket. “You should probably answer that.”
I set my cup down and pull my phone out of my pocket. I silence Levi’s call.
He immediately sends a text message.
Levi: Where are you? Are you on your way back yet?
Me: I’ll be on my way soon. I got a little hung up. Everything’s good.
“You need to go?” she asks softly.
“Yeah, but before I do, how about we exchange numbers?”
“I’d like that.”
She rattles off her number, and I quickly add it to my contacts and send her a text.
“My phone is in my purse.”
“Cool. I sent you my number. Are you good with me adding you to a group chat with Walker and Levi?”
“Group chats usually aren’t my thing, but that sounds like one I could get behind.”
“Done.”
Esme sets her cup down and stands. I follow her to the door.
“Well then, I guess I’ll talk to you soon.”
“You will.” I lean forward and kiss her cheek.
She sucks in a breath as I do it, making me smile.
“Lock the door behind me.”
“Always,” she says breathlessly.
I open the door and slip out.
“Bye.” She shuts the door softly.
I wait for the sound of the lock turning before I leave.
As I walk away, I fight the urge to turn back around. I would love nothing more than to hang out with her for the rest of the night. To see her smile and truly get to know her, but I can’t. Responsibilities call.
Soon, though. Soon I’ll get to spend as much time with her as I want. With my brothers.