Chapter 27
LEXI
I shut the window and turn to Easton. My eyes slide up and down his body. He looks like a daydream, a wild fantasy of mine.
He sighs heavily, pulls me toward him, and rests his hand around my waist. “I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault.” I slide my lips across his because it feels so right.
“I blame you for this.” He chuckles.
“Why?” I pull away.
“Because your timing is always shit ,” he says.
My head falls back on my shoulders and I can’t hide the laughter. “That’s true. But it’s about the chase, isn’t it? Guess you’ll have to be patient.”
He leans forward, capturing my earlobe in his mouth. Then he whispers, “I’d wait a lifetime for you.”
“Are you even real?” I ask.
My fingers thread through his hair as his teeth nibble against my skin, and goose bumps trail over my body as he kisses me.
Butterflies swarm inside my belly and I desperately gasp. I can’t believe this man could be mine.
“As far as I know,” he says. “Do I feel real?”
“Yes.”
I’m not sure if my heart is ready for this. It’s still shattered and not fully repaired, and I’m afraid Easton will be the one to break it, especially with that smile.
My stomach growls and he tilts his head. “Are you hungry?”
“Starving.” I laugh. “Lost track of time, I guess.”
“Seems to happen a lot. First food … then dessert .”
Before he walks away, I grab his hand, pulling him back to me, my eyes trailing over his tattoos. I reach forward, tracing the outlines of the clouds on his shoulder. “Easton, wait. Did you draw these?”
His blue eyes sparkle. “You noticed?”
“It’s your specific style,” I say, walking around him, gazing at his left shoulder, noticing his ink tells a story across his chest and down his arms and back. “It’s the big life-changing moments.”
“Yes,” he says breathlessly.
I steal a glance, my eyes trailing over him like he’s living artwork, a gorgeous canvas of a man. As I study him, he doesn’t take his gaze from me.
I move in front of him. “You’re hiding your talent in plain sight.”
“You’re the only person who knows.”
I paint my lips across his. “All your secrets are safe with me. Now, let’s go eat some biscuits and gravy.”
“Pass,” he says. “Do they deliver?”
Laughter bursts out of me. “You’re not in the city anymore, Dorothy.”
“You’ll learn everything is deliverable for the right price, my little heartbreaker.”
“I guess. So, why is Weston here?” I ask curiously as I slide on my shoes.
“As a distraction. For us.”
I smirk. “So, he’ll pretend to be you?”
“No, but people will assume. And he won’t let them think otherwise.”
“He’s your decoy?”
Easton nods. “When necessary.”
I wake to an empty bed. For a brief moment, disappointment covers me like a warm blanket. I grab my phone and check the time. When I see it’s nine a.m., I realize I slept in and missed breakfast.
I pull a pair of faded jeans with ripped knees and a Nirvana T-shirt from my suitcase, then slide on my Converse. After I brush my teeth and get dressed, I go downstairs.
I immediately run into Summer.
“Good morning,” she says, pulling me into a tight hug. We’re the same age, and we graduated high school together. “It’s so good to see you. You’re glowing.”
“You too! Congrats on the pregnancy, ma’am. Remi told me. I’m happy for you.”
She smiles. “Thank you. We’re excited about it. Just praying it’s not twins.”
“Oh goodness, for your sake, I hope so too,” I say, looking around, seeing if Easton is anywhere inside.
She lifts a brow. “He’s on the back porch. Oh, and I think they ate all the pancakes, but I can make more if you’d like.”
“No, no, it’s fine. Thank you for everything.”
She smiles. “I was relieved when Remi texted me yesterday and told me you were staying. I thought I would be dealing with an asshole through the weekend,” she admits.
“Ah, yeah. You still are,” I tell her with a laugh. “But he’s calmed down. I think.”
“Okay, well, I’ll let you get to it.” She shoos me away.
I open the back door and see the Calloway brothers sitting in rocking chairs next to one another. I move in front of them, crossing my arms over my chest, looking between them. They’re wearing the same thing. Both of them smirking, mirror images of one another.
I take a step forward.
“Ah. Are you choosing correctly?” he asks with a clenched jaw.
“Don’t want to embarrass anyone,” the other says, sipping from a mug with a brow raised.
The fact that they are each wearing jeans, a black T-shirt, and a light-blue jacket that makes their eyes look like the sky doesn’t help me any.
“Did you plan the twin thing today?”
Neither says a word, and this feels like a test, one I don’t want to fail. Maybe I’m too confident in my decision, but I take a step forward, lean over, and place my lips inches from who I believe is Easton.
The real one wouldn’t be able to handle this if I got it wrong, and when I don’t hear any protest, I kiss him. Immediately, he kisses me back. His hand threads into my hair as he pulls me onto his lap.
“Please tell me I guessed right, or this is going to be embarrassing,” I whisper with a laugh.
“You did,” he says, brushing his fingers through my strands. “Did you sleep okay?”
I nod, knowing he held me until I fell asleep last night. By the time we ate, we were too tired to do anything but sleep. I felt safe with his strong arms wrapped around me.
Weston bursts into laughter. “Oh, so you know, for future reference, I’d stick my tongue in your mouth.”
Easton’s jaw clenches. “No, he wouldn’t.”
“He has no idea what I’d do.” Weston sips his coffee, grinning as he stares forward at the pasture, where a few training horses are grazing.
I can tell he enjoys pushing Easton’s buttons, but I know he has his brother’s best interests in mind.
Always. That’s indisputable.
I focus back on Easton. “How were your pancakes this morning?”
“I was polite,” he tells me, grumbling. “ For you. ”
“Thank you,” I say. “It’s called Southern hospitality. You accept food, eat it, and say thank you with a smile.”
“This will take some adjusting,” he admits. “I’m accustomed to saying no and meaning it.”
“Not while you’re here,” I say.
“Not when I’m with you ,” he corrects.
“I like seeing you two like this,” Weston says. “Don’t even have to pretend.”
Our heads snap toward him.
“So, when is the wedding?” he asks casually, rocking back and forth.
“Sometime within the next thirty-one days,” Easton confirms. “Don’t ask me again. I know you’re keeping count.”
Brody comes from around the house, steps onto the porch, and stretches. Sweat covers his shirt, and he’s wearing athletic gear and running shoes. His muscles bulge out of his clothes, and I can’t help but notice that his legs are covered in tattoos too.
“Okay, you’re scary as hell,” I say. “I think I do like having you as my bulky shadow.”
I turn my focus back to Easton. “If we want to visit my mother today, we should probably get going. I believe she has a book club meeting tonight at five. Also, can we go alone?”
Easton tucks loose strands of hair behind my ear. “If that’s what you want.”
Weston snickers, and we ignore him.
“Brody, have fun hanging out with that one today,” I say, pointing at Weston.
He shrugs, then grabs the handle of the screen door. “I’ll be upstairs, showering.”
I stand and pull Easton with me. “I’d like to take you around town first. Grab a mocha. Maybe we can visit the bookstore?”
“If it will make you happy.”
“ Very much.”
“Consider it done. When would you like to leave?” He checks his watch.
“Now,” I say. “I’d love to get the family stuff over with right after lunch.”
“Let’s do it,” he tells me.
“Remember, the world is watching,” Weston reminds us.
Easton shakes his head as we walk through the B I look both ways, and we take off down the winding mountain road. The smell of fresh air fills the car, and Easton’s messy hair blows in the wind.
“Woohoo!” I scream out the window to nothing. No buildings. Just open land. And cows. And us.