Chapter 16
GRADY
“Hey, bro. Wait up.” I catch up with Zander at the bottom of the stairwell. He has bags in his hands and is about to trudge upstairs. “Let me show you which room you’re in.”
“Thanks.” He sighs, glancing into the living room and staring at his wife.
She’s huddled up with Nylah, and I have no idea what they’re talking about, but it looks kind of intense. I wonder if it’s about Zoey too. Or if there’s something else going on.
By the time we reach the top of the stairs, Carson and Wily have joined us as well, and when I point to Zander’s allocated bedroom, we all pile in there.
“Okay, dude. This weekend is gonna suck if you bring a fucking storm cloud in with you,” Carson grumbles, frowning at him. “Tell us what’s up so we can move the fuck on. You’re not just shitty over the Zoey thing. What’s going on?”
With a whiny kind of groan, Zander throws his bags onto the floor, then plunks onto the end of the bed. “I forgot about Valentine’s Day.”
“What?” Wily laughs out the word. “Are you kidding me?”
“Brah.” I wince, glancing at Carson, who’s shaking his head and trying not to laugh.
“And the worst part is, something is already off with Sienna.”
“What do you mean?” I move to take a seat beside him.
“I don’t know.” Zander shrugs. “She’s just been… distant.” He shakes his head. “Something’s not the same, and I don’t know what to do about it.”
Wily slides his hands into his pockets. “Have you talked to her?”
“I mean, I asked this morning if she was good, and she said yes, but I think she’s lying. And now I don’t know if it’s because she knows I forgot Valentine’s Day or if it’s something else. Something bigger.”
“Like what?” Carson mutters.
“I don’t know!” Zander flicks his arms up, giving him an exasperated frown.
Carson’s eyebrows buckle. “Don’t get shitty with me. I’m not the one letting down my wife.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Zander groans, flopping down onto the bed and covering his eyes with his arm.
“Okay, stop stressing.” I slap Zander’s thigh, then give Carson a shut the fuck up look. “We can solve this. One problem at a time. First… let’s deal with Valentine’s Day.” I nudge his knee with mine. “I’ve bought Blake some lingerie and a bottle of wine. I’ll give you the wine.”
Zander pops up onto his elbows with an appreciative half smile while Wily starts to gag.
“You bought my sister lingerie? It better be cotton briefs, you perverted asshole.”
My lips rise into a smirk as I gaze up at my brother-in-law. “Sexy lace, my friend. Black and red, and she is gonna look—” My words cut off with a laugh as Wily lunges at me with a growl. “Careful of your knee!” I shout just as he barrels me off the bed.
I’m laughing too hard to fight back, and Wily wraps his arm around my neck and noogies the top of my head.
“You love me, bro,” I choke out. “You know you do.”
With a rumbling growl, he releases me, then pushes me away, grunting and glaring at me.
I grin right back at him until his lips start to twitch. “Can everyone please make sure that Grady is too busy to find some quality time with my sister tomorrow?”
“No fucking way.” I point at him. “We’re working out some kind of roster or schedule. Each of us is gonna get at least an hour or two for some uninterrupted romance. I’m serious, man.”
“Zoey’s fourteen now.” Wily looks at Zander with a grin. “She can babysit everyone.”
Zander’s eyebrows pop up. “Twelve kids? Are you kidding?”
“Yeah, I am.” Wily laughs, bopping his buddy’s knee with his fist before struggling up to his feet.
“You good?” I steady him, and he pats my shoulder.
“Yep, it’s only a twinge.”
I give him a pained smile, but he shakes his head. “It’s all good, man. I’m okay with not playing anymore. In fact, I kind of like the idea of staying home more, you know? No away games, no endless practices and interviews and shit. I can just… be normal.”
“Maybe that’s what’s bugging her,” Zander mutters, then looks up at us. “Do you think it’s ’cuz I’ve been away too much? Do you think she wants me to quit football but just can’t say it?”
Carson crosses his arms, shaking his head. “I don’t think that’s it. She loves that you’re an NFL superstar, man. She’s proud of you.”
Zander sighs, his shoulders slumping, so I clap my hands together.
“Okay, back to Valentine’s Day. Do you want that bottle of wine?”
With a wince, Zander shakes his head. “She’s not a huge drinker. I’d never buy her wine.”
“How about chocolates?” Carson asks.
Zander glances at him with a hopeful smile. “What’ve you got?”
“I’ve got a tray of heart-shaped things you can have.”
“Really? That doesn’t leave you without?”
“Nope.” Carson shakes his head. “I made my little kitty cat a whole Mommy care package thing. It’s got candles and massage oil so I can give her a foot rub.
I threw a bath something-or-other in there.
The lady at the store said pregnant chicks love it.
They can soak and relax. Sienna said there’s like three bathtubs she can choose from in this house, and I’ve got a playlist of chill songs she loves all lined up.
Then after that, I purchased a ten-pack of 80s movies on my Apple account, so we can sit in bed and watch one of those, eating the popcorn I’ll make her and wearing the love-heart nightshirt I got. ”
“Dude.” Wily slaps his shoulder with an impressed grin. “Her own personal spa and movie session. Never knew you had it in you.”
“Yeah, well, I had to google ideas,” he admits.
“But I think she’s gonna love it, and she won’t even notice if the chocolates are missing.
Plus, if the movie thing doesn’t work out because the twins need us or whatever, we can just do that when we get back home.
So it’s like drawing out Valentine’s Day.
It’s gonna score me so many fucking points.
” He gives in to a smile, and I laugh at his expression.
“You’re outdoing us, man.” I lift my chin at him as Zander lets out a guilt-ridden groan.
“Thanks for the chocolates,” he mumbles, then looks at Wily.
The big guy rolls his eyes. “I wrote her a poem.”
“Seriously?” We all balk.
“Okay, fine. ChatGPT wrote her a poem, and I refined it.”
That makes us snicker.
“Shut up. It’s romantic.” He scowls at us. “Plus, I bought her this special-edition book she’s been wanting for ages. It’s got sprayed edges and everything. She’s going to fucking love it.”
“Anything else?” Zander whispers, desperately hopeful. “It’s her birthday, right? Have you plumped up the gifts because of that?”
“No.” Wily frowns. “She wants us all to pretend that her birthday is next weekend because she doesn’t want to take away from the family celebrations, so I left her birthday presents at home.”
“We can’t not acknowledge her birthday tomorrow.” Carson scowls at him.
“I know that.” Wily gives him an exasperated look. “I’ve smuggled a birthday cake in and Jane’s made her a special card. Whether she wants it or not, Satch is getting ‘Happy Birthday’ sung to her and she’s blowing out thirty-one candles.”
“Sienna bought her a gift too,” Zander murmurs.
“So did Nylah.”
“And us,” I chip in, then give him a pained smile. “She’s not gonna hate us for that, is she?”
“No.” Wily rolls his eyes. “Just don’t make too big a deal of it, okay?
She really wants this weekend to be about the family, Valentine’s Day and our Christmas.
But…” He points around us all. “I am expecting whispered Happy Birthdays from everyone in this house and I know she’s got tomorrow night all mapped out but we are somehow squeezing in a window of time to acknowledge the fact that she’s the birthday girl. ”
We all nod in agreement and then Wily lets out a gruff sigh. “Zan-Man, you can have the necklace with the love-heart pendant.”
“No, I don’t have to take that.” Zander shakes his head. “That sounds too personal.”
“It’s all good. I’ll just buy her another one as a random ‘I love you’ gift. It’ll mean more to her that way.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” Wily nods with a grin. “Can’t leave my man giftless on Valentine’s Day.”
“Thank you, guys.”
“I’ll get Jane to make her a card. Chicks love homemade shit.” Wily nods. “And Jane loves making anything artistic. She’s actually really good.”
“Yeah, I saw that pic on Insta.” I point to Wily. “Did she seriously do that painting all by herself?”
Wily’s chest puffs with pride. “Yes, she did.”
“Wow, she’s talented, man.”
He keeps nodding. “She is. And she would love to make Uncle Zander a special card. She doesn’t go anywhere without her art supplies, so I’ll go catch her now and see if she can put something together for you.”
“Just make sure she doesn’t give away the fact that I’m a forgetful loser.”
Wily snickers as he heads for the door. “Don’t worry. She’s my secret-keeper.” He winks just before disappearing back downstairs, and Zander looks at us with a grateful smile.
“Damn, I love you guys.”
Carson snorts. “Save it for Valentine’s Day, bro.”
We all start laughing, but the sound dies in my throat first, because all I can think about is poor Tyrell, stuck on a plane and in airports all day. How the fuck do you make that romantic?
And with a six-month-old too.
Damn, the poor guy.