Chapter 29
Wrath
M illie’s biological mom is a piece of work. In my opinion, that makes my woman even more special. She didn’t let that hate take seed in her heart. Our server comes to take our order. I turn my attention back to Millie to see what she’s in the mood for.
She indicated us and her two brothers seated across from us.
“I’m ordering for the four of us. We’ll take Australian apple walnut crepes, wild blueberry pancakes, morning star, bacon waffles with an extra waffle, two orders of sausage, two orders of bacon, and one order of hash.”
“That should fuel us for an hour or two,” I say after the server leaves.
“Are you going to tell me what’s next?”
“No, and I’m blindfolding you as soon as we leave.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
She laughs. Easy chatter flows as we wait for our food. It only pauses long enough for everyone to dig in. The food is delicious, and I enjoy getting to know Millie’s brothers better as we faux fight over our shared plates.
After we finish eating our delicious meal, we head out outside, where I blindfold Millie again. Mayhem pulls around the SUV. I help her into the back and get in beside her, fastening both our seatbelts before we take off.
It takes about twenty-five minutes to make our way to Dollywood and get parked. Mayhem drops us at the entrance.
“Nightingale. Can you wait until your family arrives until I take off the blindfold?”
She nods her head. “Yes, I can.”
I massage her neck and shoulders while we wait for everyone to park and gather. Most of them pull up and drop off their passengers. A few of my brothers are on sleds. Pregnant women in cages. No one wants to take the chance of getting into an accident and causing a miscarriage. Too many people don’t pay attention to bikes and cause accidents. While many are minor, I’d never take the chance with my unborn child.
I think waiting a year or two to start is a good idea. Millie is applying for the nurse’s position at Artemis Outreach. With Nay expecting mid-September, the Outreach will need to hire a fill in nurse as it is.
Since we’re opening later this year, she didn’t want two nurses to be out at the same time.
When she said it, I fell more in love with her. Millie is incredibly thoughtful.
“Have I told you I love you today?”
“Not in the last five minutes.”
“I’m slacking.”
“You are.”
“I’m about to make up for it.”
I look around to see our family and friends holding in their laughter at our exchange. The people who milled past us laughed as they went by. I feel her tense.
“No worries, Nightingale. You’re surrounded by love.”
“So, we’re in a public place?”
“We are,” I say as I take off the blindfold.
She gasps. “Dollywood! Oh my god, I hope you don’t hate our honeymoon.”
I laugh. Hard and long. Our family and friends join in.
“No, baby. I don’t hate it. I love it. And seeing the joy on your face makes me love it more. Now, let’s go make this the best birthday ever.”
“Where should we go first?” she asks.
“To Eagle’s Flight Outfitters to get matching outfits,” Roman says.
We stop at the gate long enough to give our tickets before Roman leads us to the store. We choose denim shorts and red shirts. The store has a variety to choose from, making the ladies happy they got to choose their own style.
From there, we split up into groups. Our group heads to the rides. We make it through the Barnstormer, Big Bear Mountain and Daredevil Falls before walking through the old schoolroom, and Dolly’s Tennessee Mountain home.
It’s tiny compared to modern homes, but you know her home had a lot of love. She’s such a caring, giving person. In addition to her foundation, she gives books to children and donated portions of her royalties from Whitney Houston’s cover of I Will Always Love You to a historic black neighborhood in Nashville.
“I’d love to get some cast iron cookware, and those granite dishes are so cute.”
“Whatever you want, Nightingale. I have a few cast iron pieces already.”
“Me too. After we pool our resources, we can start adding pieces. Have you ever been to a chuck wagon cook off?”
“Can’t say that I have,” Wrath chuckles.
A few hours later, we meet everyone for lunch at Aunt Granny’s. They serve food family style. Bellies full, we walk off the food browsing shops, viewing shows, and perusing Craftsman’s Alley. Millie found a beautiful hand-blown piece of glass for our place. Although we haven’t talked about our living situations. Hell, she hasn’t even been to the compound. She’s in for a whole new world. I only hope her transition is easy.
The evening ended with dinner and a show at the Hatfield and McCoy dinner feud. It was cute and funny. Food wasn’t bad either. I laughed hard enough my sides hurt.