Chapter 2 – Cove
Chapter Two
Cove
Do all families have the same goals in life? I’m sure they don’t. I mean, who would want to emotionally scar their children? Okay, that’s dramatic.
How about embarrass the hell out of them? My family has no problem tormenting me and my siblings.
Finn, one of my dads, always jokes they want to screw us up a smidgen—just enough so we end up as interesting people because he can’t be related to someone who’s boring.
Who says something like that?
My family.
Granted, today is not nearly as traumatizing as when I started dating. Jasper and Finn looked up old videos of Kiki fighting. I came down for my date to find Killian had been watching replays of his favorite knockouts with my seventeen-year-old boyfriend.
It was no great surprise when James brought me home by nine p.m. then randomly stopped answering my calls.
Cannon thought it was hysterical.
“Aww, kiddo,” he’d said when I was so mad I wouldn’t talk to any of them for a week. “Trust me, you’ll be thanking us one day. That boy is going to peak as prom king. I guarantee it.”
I still refuse to admit he was right.
James got some chick from another school pregnant senior year, and the last I heard, he was working on one of the fishing boats.
My family toes the line of being completely supportive and totally stifling. I swear it’s a dance they’ve perfected. Whenever they cross the line and get too intrusive, they always pull back and respect boundaries…for like five minutes.
It’s hard to hold a grudge because I do love them to pieces, but here I am, having to apologize for my family again. They’re mortifying.
“I’m so embarrassed,” I say to Lyric Sinclair and Love McKinley. “I swear they’re not bad kids…”
Love snorts. “We subscribe to the survival-of-the-fittest philosophy in my house. They’ll be fine.”
Lyric frowns. “Riot’s nose is still bleeding.”
Love calls out, “You got beat to shit by two preteens. How does that feel?”
“They’re actually thirteen,” I mumble, blushing up a storm.
My family really is the gift that keeps giving.
Creed flips his mom off, and she laughs. Yeah, they definitely aren’t a normal family either.
“Don’t do that shit,” Dexter Clark growls, slapping Creed in the back of the head. “Fuck around, and I’ll get the smack-down twins back out here to beat your ass again. Except this time, I won’t let Killian pull them off you.”
“Sorry,” Creed grumbles at one of his dads.
“You will be,” Vince Riggs growls. He’s another of Love’s pack. He steps over and starts checking out Riot’s nose.
“She flips me off all the time,” Creed says, pointing at Love. “Mom? A little backup? Your husbands are getting violent again.”
Lyric continues frowning while Love cackles.
“I think that little bastard broke my nose,” Riot says, turning to his twin. “Does it look broken?”
“No, you’re fine. Let’s be clear. It wasn’t a fair fight,” Creed complains. “We couldn’t hit back. They’re underage.”
“Exactly,” Riot agrees. “They had us at a disadvantage.”
“I’d say they were giving you fair warning,” Bellamy says, walking up. Their older sister is beautiful and looks just like their mom. “You do something their sister doesn’t like, and she’s perfectly capable of kicking your asses.”
Bells holds up a fist, and I bump it.
“Do they know we had sex?” Riot asks.
My jaw falls, but honestly, I shouldn’t be surprised. Neither Riot nor Creed has any boundaries.
“Is that why they singled us out?” Creed adds.
I glare at both of them.
Love snorts.
Lyric tosses her hand over Love’s mouth.
“Nothing. We heard nothing. The kids absolutely do not want to know what life was like before they existed,” Lyric says.
“I’m pretty sure you traumatized them worse than anything I was going to say.” Love laughs, shoulder checking Lyric.
“Jesus Christ,” Riot says, swiping his hand over his face. “For the love of God, do not start talking about orgies again. I literally can’t take it right now.”
“Being a parent to boys is an adventure,” Love says, smirking at her sons. “It takes a lot to embarrass them, so you’ve got to get creative.”
“Pssh,” Creed says. “That was walking into the kitchen at the wrong time and hearing shit no ear bleach could erase.”
Dexter Clark shrugs. “You little fuckers were always around. Wear headphones.”
“That’s literally how life goes once you have kids,” Riot grumbles. “You guys suck at parenting.”
“I don’t know,” Love says. “You’re still alive. I’m counting that as a parenting win.”
“Damn right.” Dexter tosses an arm around Love’s neck and pulls her face to his. They full-on start tonguing each other, and the twins fake gag.
It’s actually kinda sweet.
It’s nice to see that they’re still in love after all these years. Although, it reminds me a little too much of my parents, so I look away.
“You can ride with me,” Lyric says, offering me an arm and guiding us toward the cars. “Are you sure this is what you want out of life? It’s not too late to change your mind.”
“We signed a contract,” I choke out.
“No, I know,” Lyric agrees, patting my arm. “But if you change your mind, for any reason, I’d be happy to eat the penalties.”
“Would your husband really fine his kids?” I ask.
“Not actual money,” Love calls from behind us. “She’ll pay him in sexual favors.”
Lyric frowns, whipping around to glare at Love. “You’re going to scare her away. You can’t do that. I’ve already got my heart set on her being my daughter-in-law.”
“Oh my god,” Riot groans. “You guys are seriously traumatic.”