Chapter Twenty Eight #2
“Don’t put Allison on the spot, please.”
“I hate to point this out,” Leo said, “but you kind of did. What the hell, man? Should have found a dark corner of the house or something.”
That had the effect of breaking the ice, so to speak. Allison started to laugh. At least she was relaxing a bit. Leo and I began laughing too. The rest of the family was just murmuring, but I knew they weren’t going to push. We were all close and nosy, but we respected one another’s boundaries.
Once everyone settled down, Granddad said, “Let’s change topics. No one needs us to meddle.” He was looking sternly at Gran, who, to my astonishment, nodded.
“Of course, of course,” she said.
But as everyone dispersed around the garden, Gran made a beeline for us.
“I will only say one thing on the topic. I know that you two started this for noble reasons, but I was certain there was something between the two of you long before you walked down that aisle.”
“Really?” Allison asked.
“Don’t encourage her,” I warned.
“Nick, I’m speaking from my heart,” Gran admonished.
“The way Nick worried about you and wanted to make things easier for you, dear, it spoke volumes. And then at the wedding, you two… Well, there was something, and it was very obvious to me. I think for some of the others in the family too. I’m glad you two saw it as well. ”
With that, Gran turned around and headed to the porch, where the catering team had already brought out food.
Allison was completely silent, and that kind of put me on edge.
“Allison? What are you thinking?” I asked.
She glanced up at me. “Your gran is adorable. But her spin on this is very… romantic.”
Shit. Does she not feel the same way I do? Figures that I’d fall for someone who doesn’t reciprocate.
“Don’t worry about her, okay?”
“I just don’t want to get her hopes up.”
Damn. Maybe all I’d get was a marriage with benefits after all…
“Let’s go enjoy the food. Don’t worry about getting anyone’s hopes up. If they do, it’s entirely their fault.”
“And yours, mister, for kissing me right here in this yard.”
I growled, leaning closer. Now that everyone had seen us, I didn’t really care what else they saw. And besides, I’d already used up all my self-restraint for the day.
“Nick! The food is here.” She took a step back before adding, “I’m going to bring out Annie and Jack.”
There was no need for that because Spencer came out with them and Ben. Penny was right behind them. Gran immediately went to her and whispered something in her ear. Her eyes went comically wide as she glanced at me. I tilted my head, shaking it, and she smiled sheepishly.
Why was everyone getting their hopes up? They were acting as if we’d just announced that we were inviting them to a real wedding.
Penny immediately pulled Allison to one side.
l said loudly for everyone to hear, “Allison, if you need rescuing from Penny or anyone else, just holler and I’ll come get you.”
She gave me a thumbs-up as everyone laughed. I kept an eye on the twins, who were running around the yard without looking at any of the adults or Ben.
While I ate a hot dog, Maddox and Leo both came up to me. “You’re about thirty seconds too late,” I informed them.
“For what?” Leo asked, confused.
“For a moment, I thought you’d come to corner me.”
“Told you he’d see this coming,” Maddox remarked.
“Dude, explain yourself,” Leo demanded.
I shook my head. “I specifically said no questions today.”
“Yeah, that was in regard to Allison, which we’ll respect. We don’t want to scare her away already. But I sure as hell won’t be quiet around you.”
“Since when are you so curious? I thought that was Gran’s territory.”
Leo pressed a hand on his left eye and then the right one, shaking his head. “Since you went from repeating that you’d never settle down to marrying someone and now apparently dating her.”
“Exactly that,” Maddox agreed.
“Listen, we don’t want to intrude,” Leo went on. “We just want to make sure that you have a solid plan and know what you’re doing.”
I swallowed hard as I took another bite of the hot dog. “I don’t,” I admitted.
“Fuck, I knew it,” Leo said. “I told you this laissez-faire attitude would eventually bite you in the ass.”
“Look, the original plan still stands. We’ll stay married until she gets custody.”
“And then what?” Maddox asked. “You’ll just move out and go on with your old life?”
“Probably.” But that sounded fucking awful. I didn’t want to move back to the penthouse unless Allison and the twins came with me.
None of this made sense anymore.
“I hope it works out the way you want it to, without things getting messy,” Leo offered.
“It will. Allison and I are both adults. We know what’s at stake here. We know what we’re doing.” Not.
“You just said a few seconds ago that you don’t,” Maddox pointed out.
“I’m just not thinking that far ahead. We’ve barely heard from Hugo. The custody battle is ongoing. He’s doing the brunt of the work, so Allison doesn’t have to do anything, not even talk to Sophie and Bob. We’ll see what happens.”
“So, there’s a possibility that you won’t just pack up your life and move back to the penthouse as soon as she gets custody?”
“Everything’s up in the air,” I told my brothers. “Both Allison and I are fine with the way things are.”
“As long you’re both on the same page, that’s perfect. It’s all that matters. Forget all the excitement in the family,” Leo said. “We have your back no matter what. You know that, right? In case Hugo needs any sort of character references or something.”
“He didn’t say anything about that. It probably wouldn’t count much, though, coming from family.”
Maddox weighed in. “It was just an example. You can count on us for anything you need. Same goes for Allison.”
“Thanks.” I liked that they had her back too.
“By the way… we have some news on Dad. I actually talked to him—told him we’re not cool with him using the Whitley name,” Maddox explained.
“I take it he wasn’t happy?”
Maddox snorted. “He actually had the guts to ask for money in exchange for not using the name.”
I rolled my eyes. “He’s trying to extort us? He’ll never change. I personally don’t want to give him a dime.”
Leo nodded. “That’s the general consensus.”
“You already spoke to everyone?” I was impressed.
“Yes,” he said proudly.
“He probably did this on purpose to provoke us. So I’ll just tell him he can fuck off. If he wants to use the name, it’s on him,” Maddox added.
“And to think Mom believed that he was sorry for everything. He sold her a sob story when they met in Indonesia a while ago.” Leo shook his head. “Whatever. He’s far enough away not to cause any real trouble.”
I nodded. “I agree.”
“Then we’ll let you enjoy your hot dog,” Maddox said.
“Thank you for your magnanimity,” I said sardonically. “It was good catching up.”
“That’s not catching up. That’s us finding out the bare minimum. Do us a favor: next time you want to throw a bomb like that, give us a heads-up so we can brace ourselves.”
“Duly noted,” I said before focusing on my hot dog.
After finishing it, I glanced around the garden.
Allison was now chatting with Meredith, Natalie, and Zoey, laughing with them.
I looked at her intently, trying to decipher her body language.
She didn’t seem cornered or in need of being rescued.
At least I could count on my brothers’ women to keep to their word and not overwhelm my girl.