Chapter 10
CROW
“Are you okay? Are you seeing spots or shadows?”
I tore my eyes away from the vision in front of me long enough to look at Spruce, and my disgust at his interruption must have been evident because my sister’s boyfriend burst out laughing.
When I glared at Bax, he put his hands up and said, “I’m an innocent bystander!”
“Are you having big feelings? Tell Uncle Sprucey about it.”
My mom’s brother wasn’t even ten years older than me and knew it irritated all of us when he pretended to be wiser, but I couldn’t help but take the bait.
“I hope that for the next eleven days you have an itchy spot in the middle of your back that can’t be reached.
” When Spruce frowned, I asked, “It itches right now, doesn’t it? ”
“Fuck you,” Spruce muttered as he leaned back in his chair and started moving side to side.
I smiled at Bax before I said, “He should know better than to start with me because he’s too easy to fuck with.”
I set eyes on Darcy just as she used her hands to push herself up onto the edge of the pool. As she twisted around to sit with her feet in the water, Bax and Spruce started chuckling.
“He’s got it bad,” Bax said.
“Who is that gorgeous woman, and why hasn’t anyone introduced me yet?” my cousin Wild asked as he sat down next to Bax. “I think I just fell in love.” Bax and Spruce started laughing again, so Wild asked, “What’s so funny?”
“Did you not hear that sound?”
“What sound?” Wild asked.
“The sound of Crow growling like a caged animal while he forcibly stopped himself from ripping your spine out of your body,” Spruce answered.
“What’d I say?” Wild asked. “Is that your girl, Crow?”
“We aren’t dating yet, but I’m working my way up to it,” I explained calmly enough to be proud of myself. Of course, that dissipated when I added, “And ripping out your spine is the least of what I’m gonna do to you if you get in the way of that.”
“It’s like that, huh?” Wild asked.
“Don’t do it, Wilder,” Spruce warned.
“You know how hard it is for me to resist a challenge,” Wild whined.
“That’s one of the things I still don’t understand about the people in this family.
That was an outright warning, but you took it as a challenge.
You know full well that if you take up that mantle and run with it, there will be bodily harm in your future, yet your first instinct was to poke the obviously cranky and rabid bear. ”
Wild pretended he was confused and looked over at Spruce before he asked, “What did he say? I zoned out after the first few minutes.”
“He asked why you’re such a dumbass,” I answered, simplifying the matter.
“It’s not just him; it’s all of you. It’s like there’s a short in the wiring somewhere that makes you believe up is down even after someone gives you visible proof that it’s not.”
“Stop using big words, Bax. He’s gonna start drooling any second now,” Spruce warned.
Wild made a show of wiping his mouth with the back of his hand before he said, “His sermonizing isn’t what’s making me drool. It’s that gorgeous stranger.”
I moved so quickly that my cousin didn’t even have a chance to defend himself before he was flying through the air. He let out a loud yelp right before he splashed down, soaking Darcy and a few of my cousins who were sitting with her on the edge of the pool.
“Good throw,” Spruce said as I sat back down.
“Sometimes, when Lark is being sweet and quiet, I forget that she was raised feral and hasn’t completely grown out of that yet, but then something like that happens, and I’m reminded that it’s probably not ever going to completely go away.”
Spruce grinned before he asked, “Have you not seen their father do the same sort of thing to Wild’s dad? It happens all the time. Clem will start running his mouth until Bird’s had enough and picks him up and tosses him around like a rag doll.”
“I’ve seen Bird try, but Clem puts up a pretty good fight,” Bax argued.
“And yet you still wonder when Lark’s gonna grow out of it,” Spruce ended with air quotes.
“I’m not sure if it’s wonder as much as it is hope,” Bax muttered.
“Now, tell us about the beauty and why you’re so —”
“So what?” I snapped.
“Unusually volatile?” Spruce leaned forward so he could see around me and asked Bax, “Of course, it’s not exactly unnatural for any of them, but in this instance, I believe it’s a bit over the top, don’t you?”
“Do you want to take a swim?” I asked.
“As one of the elders, as you and the others have so lovingly labeled us, I’m here for you, Crow. I just want to help.”
“And he says we’re the dumb ones?” I asked Bax. He just shrugged, so I turned to Spruce and explained, “She’s adamant that she’s not going to date for the next year, so I’m not worried about Wild having a chance. It was just fun to listen to him scream.”
“I see,” Spruce said as he slowly shook his head. “You’ve got a medical condition that’s causing this extra volatility.”
“I’m gonna give you a medical condition,” I threatened.
“I know I should shut up while I’m ahead, but I have to ask which medical condition you think could be causing this,” Bax asked.
“Blue balls,” Spruce answered. “He’s suffering, and it’s exacerbated because he knows that if she doesn’t succumb to his charm, he’s going to have them for the next twelve —”
“I think it’s down to ten months, but I’m not totally sure,” I interrupted.
“Okay. For the next ten months, he’s going to be suffering, which means that anyone around him will suffer too.”
“And on that note, I’m gonna find a new place to sit,” Bax said as he stood up and walked away.
“I wasn’t sure that man would ever really fit in at first, but it seems like he’s found his groove,” Spruce mused as we watched him walk inside. “I still think he’s certifiable for falling in love with a woman like Lark, but then again, there’s no accounting for taste.”
“She’s your niece, Spruce. You do realize that you share some of the same genetics, right?”
Spruce shook his head before he replied, “Unfortunately, she’s the only one I can legally get a pass on.”
Spruce was right. Lark was the only one of my siblings who didn’t share his DNA.
I heard a man shout and looked back over at the pool in time to see my cousin Roar windmilling his arms to catch his balance.
He didn’t have a chance once the back of his legs hit Darcy, who was on all fours behind him, which caused him to fall backwards into the deep end of the pool.
Before he could even come up for air, Darcy was on her feet, getting a high five from my sister Ava, who had pushed him so that he’d lose his balance when he backed into her.
“Well, it looks like she fits right in,” Spruce said with a straight-faced delivery as Roar started splashing Darcy and Ava who were taunting him from just out of reach. “And, just FYI, no one has ever actually died from blue balls.”
“Thanks for your insight and support, Dr. Parker.”
“I do what I can.”
◆◆◆
DARCY
“I’m going back outside,” Ava said.
“I’ll only be a minute, and then I’ll join you,” I assured her. “I need to put on some more sunscreen and send my sisters a text to tell them I’m not going to make it over tonight.”
Once I was alone in the bathroom I started a group video call with my sisters.
I had sent them a text earlier, letting them know where I’d be this afternoon, but I had assumed I’d be home in time for the dinner we had planned.
Now I knew there was no way I’d be home until well after the sun had set.
I had never enjoyed myself as much as I had already today and didn’t mind the thought of staying indefinitely.
As a matter of fact, I was considering asking around to see if Crow’s family might like to adopt us.
The family of Crow’s that I had met so far was even better than the one I’d always dreamed about.
Tansy was the first to pick up, and Clancy connected just seconds later.
“Where are you?” Clancy asked.
“I’m still with Crow,” I explained.
“No, I mean where exactly are you? I love that paint color on the wall behind you.”
“Of course that’s why you want to know,” Tansy teased.
“I’m in the bathroom at Crow’s parents,” I told them as I dug through my bag to find my sunscreen. “The cookout is in the backyard of his grandparents’, who are the most adorable couple I’ve ever met, by the way, but they live next door to Crow’s parents, so now we’re over here using the pool.”
“You realize that he’s seen you more this week than I have, right?” Clancy asked.
“As if you miss me now that you’ve got your hot cop around all the time,” I teased.
“Yeah, just ignore the fact that I’m all alone now that both of you spend all of your time with the hotties and their dogs,” Tansy whined.
“As if your social calendar has any availability,” Clancy retorted. “Besides, you get to spend all day with her.”
“It’s so sweet when you fight over me.”
“I like that swimsuit,” Tansy said, abruptly changing the subject.
Clancy and I were used to that. We were also used to Tansy hijacking our clothes and shoes when she felt the urge, so I said, “You can’t have it.”
“I didn’t say I wanted it. I was just complimenting you.”
Clancy rolled her eyes before she said, “Yeah, sure.”
“I just wanted to let you know that I’m not sure when I’ll be home, so don’t hold dinner for me,” I explained. “As if I could eat anything else today anyway. You wouldn’t believe the amount of food they have here, and everything I had was delicious.”
“I’ve heard that food made by a grandmother tastes better than anything else,” Tansy said seriously. She frowned before she asked, “Did Grandma ever cook?”
“Not often,” Clancy said with a burst of laughter.
“I have tested that theory, and it holds up. I had some delicious things here, and from what I understand, Crow’s grandmother cooked almost all of it. Did you know she’s the Martha from Martha’s Diner?”
“Oh, I love that place!” Clancy exclaimed.