Chapter Twenty-Five
Amiya
W e pull up to Wade’s house, and Lennon stops the car.
“Eden brought Leia home with her to swim after her morning dance class. Sebastian planned to pick her up after work,” he explains, and then his eyes come to me. “Is this okay?”
“Yeah, I could go for a cocktail by the pool. I bet Eden has spare swimsuits for us,” I say, turning to Avie.
You sure? She mouths the question.
I nod.
“Sounds good to me,” she agrees.
Lennon locks the car, leads us up the steps to the front door, and walks right in without bothering to knock. We follow him through the kitchen to a set of French doors that open to a massive pool deck.
Wade, Eden, and Kenton are seated in loungers, watching as his son, Dillon, picks a squealing Leia up by the waist and tosses her into the opposite side of the pool.
A second later, her head of wet curls bobs to the top of the water, and she raises her arms as she kicks her way back to him.
Dillon promptly grasps her and repeats the stunt.
Lennon walks out on to the deck, bends, and clasps Wade’s shoulder, and both he and Eden look up to where we are standing. Eden hops to her feet and sprints over to wrap her arms around my neck.
She doesn’t say a word, but her embrace is filled with empathy and comfort.
I squeeze her in return.
“I’m glad you guys made it back safe and sound. Can I get you anything? A snack? Drinks?” she asks as she releases me.
“A drink sounds amazing. And swimsuits, if you have any we can borrow?” I say.
Wade stands. “I can play bartender. What do you girls want? Wine? Whiskey? Something fruity?”
“Something fruity,” I reply.
Eden ushers us upstairs and supplies Avie with an aqua-blue one-piece and me a hunter-green tankini.
We change quickly and head back outdoors.
It’s a sweltering afternoon.
Wade hands us a sweet frozen concoction—God bless him—and we take a seat on the ledge of the pool. Leia doggy-paddles over and clutches the edge between us.
“Did you see me swim in the deep end?” she asks. Her bright eyes are covered by a pair of hot-pink goggles with a matching nose clip.
“We sure did. You’re turning into a fish. I bet your feet are growing gills,” I praise.
Her mouth goes round, and she tries to kick her leg up to see the bottom of her foot.
“She’s kidding, baby. You don’t have gills,” Avie assures her.
Dillon and another teenager dive into the water, drawing Leia’s attention, and she swims off after them.
“Already chasing after boys,” I note. “She gets that from me.”
Eden carries a tray of grapes, strawberries, and shortbread cookies and places it on the table situated between the loungers Wade and Lennon are lying back in. Then, she joins us, sitting to my right and dropping her feet into the water.
I plant my hands on the warm concrete behind me and lean back, lifting my face to the sky.
“God, you guys are so lucky. This is heaven,” I mutter.
“I’m not sure heaven is this hot,” Eden grumbles.
“Hot? No, Atlanta is hot. This is a different kind of summer heat,” I say.
I close my eyes and bask in the rays, letting the healing power of the sun penetrate my bones and try to shake loose from the worry and sadness that has a grip on me.
Seeing Grandma was jarring. She used to be a powerhouse, and I wasn’t prepared for how small and frail she looked in that hospital bed.
The back door swings open, and Sebastian walks out, followed by Anson and Parker.
“Woo, it’s hotter than the fork in the Devil’s tongue today,” Anson yells as he rips his shirt off and takes off running, tucking his legs and cannonballing into the pool.
“See,” Eden says.
Water sails over the edge and drenches us as Anson surfaces with a sputtering Leia in his arms.
“That wasn’t very nice, Uncle Anson,” she chides between coughs.
“Sorry, kiddo. I didn’t see you till it was too late,” he apologizes as he hands her off to Sebastian.
“You okay?” Sebastian asks her, tapping her back as he carries her to the outdoor sofa.
Avie hops to her feet, grabs a towel from a basket by the door, and wraps it around the protesting child.
“Let’s just take a rest. You can get back in after a few minutes.”
“But I gotta get him back,” she whines.
“She gets that from me too,” I call behind me.
Parker, who has settled on an inner tube, uses his hands as paddles and floats over to tap my foot. I drop my chin to look at him.
“I’m real sorry to hear about your grandmother,” he says.
“It’s okay. She’s being taken care of.”
He shakes his head. “No. It’s not okay. It fucking sucks, and I hate it for you.”
That’s all he says as he squeezes my knee. No flowery words to try to comfort me or make me feel better. Just truth, and I kind of love that.
It fucking sucks.
I shimmy my way down into the water after making Anson promise to behave and talking Avie into letting Leia out of protective custody so that I can teach her a proper backstroke. Which the little bugger picks up quickly.
This child was born to live by the water.
Wade and Sebastian disappear around five o’clock and return shortly after with dinner supplies. Wade and Kenton cook franks and flip patties on the grills while Lennon toasts buns on the Blackstone griddle.
Look across the expanse of the deck at this motley crew of humans. People I met barely over a year ago who have become the family I never knew I needed. My heart swells with overwhelming love for them. All of them. I’m not sure when it happened but every single one has wiggled their way in. I used to think all I needed was Grandma and Avie but I’m beginning to see the value of having a tribe. One that will throw together an impromptu pool party, on a random evening, in the middle of a work week, just to distract you,
We all enjoy our lazy meal of hot dogs, burgers, and potato chips on the deck. Then, all the adults join the teenagers in a cutthroat game of Marco Polo.
By the time the sun is setting, turning the sky into a kaleidoscope of colors, everyone is saying their goodbyes and heading home for the night. I wrap a towel around my waist, lean against the railing, and gaze at the heavens.
I feel his heat at my back before he speaks.
“I love how you get lost in sunsets,” Lennon whispers in my ear.
I sigh. “What’s not to love?”
I will forever be the girl who gets giddy when the sky turns pretty colors.
“Are you ready to go once the show’s over?”
I nod. “Yeah. Five minutes.”
He presses a kiss to the side of my forehead. “Five minutes.”
The ride home is filled with loaded silence as Lennon keeps one hand on my knee. I know it’s meant to be comforting, but it just makes me anxious, so once we are shut inside the cabana, I pounce.
Backing him against the island, I go up on my tiptoes, seeking his mouth as I tug on the drawstring on my palazzo pants, causing them to slide down my legs. I didn’t bother putting my bra and panties back on when I returned my bathing suit to Eden, so now, the only thing separating my skin from his touch is a thin white T-shirt.
I kiss him furiously as I reach to the hem of his tee and pull it up. He helps me pull it over his head but stills my hand when it goes to the button of his jeans.
“Hey, look at me,” he demands.
I flit my eyes to his.
“Where’s your head at?” he asks as he caresses my face.
“Don’t,” I bite out. “Don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
“Treat me with kid gloves. I’m not a porcelain doll. I’m not going to shatter.”
I return my attention to his jeans as he leans back and lets me make quick work of the button and zipper. I slide a hand inside and find he, too, chose to go commando after our dip in the pool.
He grows hard under my touch. Taking my face back into his hands, he brings his mouth to mine once again.
This kiss is different. It’s gentle and reverent.
And that just won’t do.
Not tonight.