Chapter 31
THIRTY-ONE
When we get home from Killington, everything and absolutely nothing at all changes.
Hallie and I are, for the most part, out in the open and actually dating, and most nights, she sleeps in my bed.
Sometimes, I fuck her at night with her face in the pillow to muffle her moans, but more often than not, we opt for a midday quickie when Emma’s at school.
A perk of working for ourselves, I suppose.
The main thing that doesn’t change is the fact that we don’t tell Emma about our change in relationship status.
Both Hallie and I agreed to let things settle a bit longer before telling my daughter, though I mostly agreed so as not to scare Hallie off.
Her throwing her fears to the wind and telling all of our friends and, on Monday morning, after Emma went off to school, my parents about us was a big step for her.
This means, for the most part, I keep my hands to myself when my daughter is around, and we still set an early morning alarm for Hallie to head home, change, and shower before coming back over for coffee.
I’m sure to outsiders it seems silly, her still having her place and us pretending we’re anything but fully committed to each other, but if there’s anything I’ve learned over the past year, it’s that when it comes to Hallie, patience is always worth it.
Today, two weeks after that trip, I’m looking forward to an easy Friday night.
While the worst of the winter weather has passed with spring coming up quickly, today’s slushy rain was somehow colder than any typical winter storm.
After a full day out in it, all I want to do is eat the dinner I’m sure Hal and Emma made and spend the night on the couch with Hallie.
It’s strange, looking forward to long, boring nights, but I covet them now.
I didn’t realize how lonely my life had become until Hallie started spending more time at my place.
Most of my nights were spent doom-scrolling and watching shit TV alone before I moved to bed, then I’d be up at six, get Emma ready, and start it all over.
More often than not, we were scrambling to make a simple meal or heading to the main house for dinner, but these days, I come home to my girls waiting for me, both of them excited to share whatever new culinary masterpiece they’ve created.
When I walk into my front door and spot Hallie’s shoes lined up next to Emma’s, the ones I brought her two weeks ago, I smile.
But it fades when I hear my younger brother’s groan filter into the mudroom.
Sliding off my jacket and hanging it up on a hook beside Emma’s backpack, I flip my hat around and head to the living room.
“Hey, brother. Do you think I look beautiful?” Madden asks, a pair of yellow clip-on earrings hanging from his ears. Emma is wearing similar ones in pink, plus a necklace, and Hallie has just one purple one on, plus a crown.
“Uh, no,” I say. “What are you doing?”
“We’re playing Pretty Pretty Princess,” Madden explains as if I’m a moron. I bought that game for Emma on her fifth birthday, and she hasn’t played in years, but somehow, she convinced her uncle to play.
I glance at Hallie, who is fighting back a full-blown laugh, before I turn to my brother.
“Why are you here?” I ask. “What are you doing here, in my house?”
“Hallie wanted to hang out with me. I am her favorite, after all,” he says, and despite knowing it’s my bed she’s sleeping in every night, a flash of jealousy flares. My brother knows it, a smirk spreading on his lips.
“She’s busy babysitting Emma. She doesn’t need to be babysitting you, too.”
My brother throws up his hands, offended. “Excuse me, she was my employee first.”
Hallie throws one of the plastic rings at his head. “I work for your parents, Madden. Not you.”
“You do marketing, and that’s my side of the business, so you work for me.”
Hallie reaches for her phone, unlocking it while lifting a challenging eyebrow at Madden. “Want me to call your mom again? I’m sure she could iron out that small confusion real nice.”
Hallie gives him a look that both entertains me and, strangely enough, turns me on. Granted, everything she does turns me on these days, but that’s neither here nor there.
“Jesus, Hallie, why do you always resort to calling my mom?” Madden whines.
“Because you’re a little bitch who always folds once I do.”
Emma lets out a laugh, and I narrow my gaze on both of my girls.
”Hallie—“ I start, but she turns to Emma with a stern look.
“Remember what I said.”
Emma nods before filling in. “I can’t curse until I’m eighteen and I’m out of my dad’s house, even if it seems stupid and totally misogynistic that the world thinks it’s okay for boys to curse but not girls,” she says, and Hallie smiles wide before nodding.
When she turns to look at me, I can’t do anything but grin and shake my head at her.
“Anyway, we’re all going to The Mill tonight. Colton threatened to kidnap me since he can’t check on me next door anymore, and he whines about it to Adam, who whines about it to Wren, who told me she needed me to come. And when your sister calls, I come.”
“What does that have to do with me?” I ask, crossing my arms on my chest, even though I know anywhere Hallie goes, I’ll be going.
Hallie stands, looping an arm on my shoulder and leaning her head on me. I fight the urge to pull her in close and press my lips to hers, but just barely.
“You have to come, or else I’m going to be stuck with Madden and Nat arguing all night and Adam and Wren making out and Colton doting on me like I’m five.
” I look down at her and know that what she’s saying is the truth: all of those will, in fact, happen.
“Please? I’ll do anything,” she says, and my mind goes places that she clearly can follow.
A grin spreads on her lips, and she winks at me.
“Emma’s going to have a sleepover with your parents tonight, so you’ll have a night of peace if you agree. ”
I know she doesn’t actually mean a night of peace, and the true promise she’s dangling before me is what has me nodding.
“Okay, fine,” I say, stepping back to get much-needed space. We’re in mixed company after all. “Are you okay with that?” I ask Emma.
“Yeah!” she says excitedly, nodding. “Grandma said we could watch movies and bake a cake.”
“We covered all the bases, so you can’t bail,” Madden says.
I look to Hallie for confirmation, and she shrugs.
“It’ll be fun.”
I kiss my peaceful night goodbye, but I don’t think I’ll miss it too much.
“All right. The Mill it is.”
Three hours later, we’re at The Mill when Hallie sidles up next to me while I sit at a table with Adam and Madden.
The girls have been off, being social butterflies and dancing, occasionally stopping for a drink or to chat before heading back off.
It’s fun to watch, especially now knowing she’s completely mine.
“You’re not drinking,” she says, and I shake my head.
“I’ve gotta get us home one way or another.”
She bites her lip, pushing her drink away. “I’ll stop—”
I grab it and pull it closer. “Hell no. I want a drunk and wild Hallie on my hands tonight.”
There’s a moment of hesitation before heat flares bright in her eyes. Then she grabs the drink from my hands and downs it before dancing off back to Wren and Nat.
I find out an hour after that, when Hallie is drunk, and we’re not hiding out, that Hallie is handsy.
So very handsy.
Every time she passes me, her fingers graze my arms, and her lips brush my cheek, or my temple, or my lips.
When she spends longer at the table, she sits in my lap even though there’s an empty chair for her.
She holds my hand and leans her head on my shoulder.
It makes me both want to stay here indefinitely, enjoying being out in the open like this with her, and take her home to show her exactly how much I appreciate it and her.
I choose staying, if only that every time I turn, she’s laughing loud, dancing, and chatting, and I get to not only see the version of Hallie I loved from afar for years but also to claim her. It’s fucking heaven.
I’m chatting with Madden and Adam at the table when Hallie comes back from dancing on the small, makeshift dance floor. She’s panting and reaching for her drink when I pull her into my lap and slide a glass of water before her. “Drink this.”
“No fun.”
“Neither is a hangover or passing out before I get my fill of you tonight. No Emma means no muffling.”
She looks at me with a pout, but drinks the water all the same.
Once she’s done, she reaches for her drink again, and I laugh, shaking my head and pulling her into my lap before pressing a kiss to her neck.
She sighs and melts back into me for a moment, and I could sit like this for the rest of my life, happily.
“Gross,” Wren says with a grimace.
“This is what you asked for, Wren,” Hallie reminds her.
“I did not ask for this.”
“All according to my plan, were your exact words,” Hallie counters, and my sister narrows her eyes at Hallie.
“And then I specifically told you I don’t want any of the details.”
“This is not me giving you details. This is me literally sitting on my boyfriend’s lap,” Hallie says, and when I look over Wren’s shoulder, Adam is watching them and fighting back a laugh. It seems he knows better than to laugh out loud at them.
I decide I should step in and end things before they go sour. My hands tighten on Hallie’s hips, and I press a kiss to her neck. The distraction works as planned, and she turns her head to look at me, a soft smile on her lips.
“Let’s dance,” she says, sliding out of my lap, grabbing my hand, and tugging it. “Come on.”
I let out a chuckle and shake my head. From beside me, Madden laughs as well. In his many attempts to get me to go out with him as a wingman, he’s seen the fact that I cannot dance proven time and time again.