Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
CANDY
The ring has been on my hand for a few days now, and I can’t stop admiring it. It's not about how beautiful it is. It’s about what it means. Not only has Hollis pulled me into his life with open arms, but so has everyone else around here.
It feels like I’ve been here for years and not just a short time. It’s kind of crazy how fast things are progressing, but everything has been crazy when it comes to this pregnancy and Hollis.
Kindred makes me feel like we’re old friends, and his mom is the freaking sweetest. Oh, she has a stern side to her. It peeks out here and there but never directed at me.
It had come up about her trying to set him up all the time.
I’d wondered why she would pick certain people.
I’d only met Polly, and we were night and day.
Not in a bad way; we’re just really different all around.
She told me she was trying anyone to see if she could get some reaction from Hollis. There wasn’t a rhyme or reason.
“We’re going to go from planning a Christmas party to a wedding and then a baby shower,” Mary says excitedly. “There’s so much to do!” And here I thought Hollis and I were moving crazy fast.
“She might not want a wedding.” Kindred pops a cheese ball into her mouth.
“Is that true?” Mary looks at me. Her eyes are almost begging me to tell her that it’s not.
“Oh, I don’t know.” I hadn’t thought much about the wedding. “I’m not sure. I’ll have to talk with Hollis.”
“The man is going to do whatever you want him to.” Kindred pops another cheese ball into her mouth.
“Isn’t it wild?” Mary says. “How much he’s come out of his shell.”
“Yeah, I didn’t know Hollis before his accident, but he’s being more social, and I caught him whistling a Christmas song,” Kindred says as though that’s way out of character for him.
“What do you guys mean?” I ask. I only know one Hollis, the one that welcomed me with open arms and has given me a home, a ring, and these babies in my belly.
“I mean, he’s never been the life of the party, but he was somewhat social before the accident,” Mary tells us.
She’s his mom, and I’m sure knows him better, but I get the sense that Hollis was thrust into that world after his father’s death. He had to grow up quickly, and I don’t believe he had much of a choice.
Hollis did what was expected of him. I don’t think he ever enjoyed that world, even before the accident. I would never say that to his mom because I know that even if she had told Hollis he didn’t have to take the reins, he would have either way.
“He’s good with people,” Kindred says. “Do you think that he might want to go back to the city? I mean, if he’s returning to who he was.”
“No,” I answer before Mary can. “Sorry.” The word popped right out of my mouth.
It’s silly of me to actually think I know him better, but I can’t help it. We’ve spent all of our nights talking and learning about each other. I’d like to think he tells me things he doesn’t tell anyone else.
“Don’t be sorry, honey. Hollis is your fiancé. You have the right to speak for him more than anyone else.”
“Thank you.” Mary is so different from a lot of the people I’ve met in Max’s life. I was worried about how she’d be when we met. I wasn’t one of the girls she tried to hook him up with, but now I can see she was trying anything to get Hollis to come back to life again.
It’s my understanding that while he might be the mayor, he’s not all over town. He goes into town when needed but sticks close to home. Hollis has taken me into town almost every day since I got here. Until the engagement announcement.
Now, whenever I speak of something we might need from town for the party, he has someone else handle it. I’m sure he’s just busy but I hate the recent shift.
I don’t want to worry, but I can’t help myself. I know the Max situation still has to be handled, and Hollis says he’s got it.
But what if it’s something else? Could Hollis be getting cold feet?
He went headfirst into all of this, and now with the days passing, I’m sure reality is sinking in.
He went from being an eligible bachelor to me moving in, him being told he was going to be a dad of twins, and now he’s engaged.
What if now that things have slowed down a bit and we’re falling into a rhythm, he’s decided that maybe he doesn’t want all those things or me?
“Isn’t this kind of late?” I seal another one of the envelopes with an invitation to the Christmas party. It’s almost here at this point. This might need to be a mass email to make sure everyone gets the invite that they want.
“They’re more for show. Keepsakes," Kindred tells me.
“They are really nice.” I have never felt paper this silky. I didn’t know paper could be this smooth.
“Are you bringing a date to the party, Kindred?”
Ope, is this Mary in action?
"Why would I do that?" Her face scrunches like she ate something disgusting.
"Only wondering. You think the sheriff will bring a date?" Mary pushes a stack of sealed envelopes to Kindred to use the wax seal on. She says it nonchalantly, but I can tell there is something behind it. She didn’t just randomly bring up the sheriff for no reason. I have to admit that I’m curious to see how Kindred is going to react too.
"I don't keep up with who Sheriff Hudson is dating or fucking." There is heat in her tone, and I don’t think I’ve heard her drop the F word before. Yeah, Mary is definitely on to something, and Kindred's answer all but confirms it.
Abort! I try to telepathically send Mary a message, but she doesn’t catch on. She keeps going down the sheriff path.
"Oh, so the librarian thing might be true? I thought that was the rumor mill. I was going to introduce him to Polly."
Kindred slams the wax seal down so hard on the envelope we all jump.
“Okay, I won’t introduce him to anyone.” Mary fights a smirk.
“I need to use the bathroom.” I push up from the chair at the formal dining room table. It’s been the command center for the holiday party. I don’t want to get mixed into whatever this is. Unless Kindred wants to tell me herself.
When I pass Hollis’s office, I peek inside to see him typing away on his computer while talking on the phone to someone.
“I’ll call you back.” He ends the call the second he sees me. “Did you need something?”
“No, just passing by and wanted to get a peek at you.” He’s quiet for a moment. “Are you okay?” Why do our interactions feel off all of a sudden?
“Come here, my Candy Cane.” His face softens, but when he pulls me into his lap, I can feel the tension in his body.
“You weren't in bed this morning.” I don’t know why it bothered me, but it did. Dang it. Am I being clingy? Is that why he’s acting this way?
“I’m sorry. I had things to handle.” He kisses my neck. I shift in his lap so that I can straddle him.
“Are you sure nothing is wrong?” I play with the buttons on his shirt. I can’t help but wiggle against him. I don't know if it’s pregnancy hormones or simply Hollis and the floodgate he's opened inside of me. I crave his touch constantly, but I don’t want to smother him.
He’s so sweet and kind that I don’t think he would tell me if I was. I bet he’d simply deal with it, which I would hate.
“Nothing that you need to worry over.” He tucks a piece of hair behind my ear.
“What if I want to worry over it with you? You said we are in this together, right?”
“Always together. I’ll do many things for you, but when it comes to your safety and well-being, it’s a hard limit for me."
"But—" He cuts me off with a kiss that has me melting into him. I want to push back, but his kisses get me.
"That's my precious girl," he says against my lips.
"You're distracting me with kisses," I huff.
"There are other ways I can distract you." His hands slide down my hips to my butt, where he gives a squeeze.
"If you won't let me worry over things, then maybe you'll let me distract you." When I'm feeling out of sorts, touching and connecting with him physically settles me. I want to do the same for him.
I'm just not sure that he's going to let me.