Chapter 27: Chapter 26

I HAD a ton of nervous energy, and there was no one better to spend the day with when I felt like this than Cutler. Nash wanted to go meet the guys over at the Halseys’ ranch and get them started on building the addition off the back of the house. I’d offered to take the little dude to hit some balls to get ready for his playoff game coming up. He’d been getting better and better with each game, and most importantly, he loved it. He wanted to practice, and it was all he’d been talking about lately.

“Pops said you’ve always been good at every sport,” Cutler said, as he swung at the slow balls that were coming at him. He hit every single one of them, and I was impressed. “That’s how I want to be.”

“I did all right. And you’re already a rockstar, Beefcake. You’ve got nothing to worry about.” I chuckled as I paused the ball machine and came over to help him adjust his hand placement on the bat. “Eye on the ball, and follow all the way through.”

“Got it.” He rubbed his foot in the dirt a couple of times, which made me laugh. He was sporting an orange and white tracksuit, but he’d taken the jacket off because the sun was out in full force today.

I turned the machine back on and watched as he hit the shit out of the next few balls. He definitely had his father’s athletic ability, even though we’d wondered if he had an athletic bone in his body only a few weeks ago.

He paused and danced around in celebration when he hit the last ball so hard it slammed into the net. Nash had been working hard with him, and it showed.

He caught me off guard when he started wheezing, and I reached into my pocket for the inhaler Nash had given me for emergencies. We’d recently found out that Cutler had exercise-induced asthma, but I hadn’t seen him react like this just from hitting balls and dancing around before now.

I bent down and shook the inhaler, and he breathed in two puffs like a pro. I walked him over to the bench and insisted he sit for a few minutes.

“You all right?”

“Yeah. I’m good, Uncle King.”

I sent a quick text to Nash to let him know we used the inhaler. I knew he was concerned that it seemed to be happening more often, and he was keeping track of the number of times he used it.

“So, you want to head over to the bridal shower?”

“Demi said it’s no boys allowed, except for you and me. ‘Cause we’re cool boys. Right, Uncle King?”

“The coolest. Of course, they bent the rules for us.” He took a sip of his Gatorade after I unscrewed the top and handed it to him. “That’s why I wore this tracksuit. Orange is my girl Demi’s favorite color.”

“How many girls you got now?” I asked, as I reached for his hand, and we walked toward my truck.

“Well, I’ve got Demi and Saylor and Ruby and Peyton. And now I’ve got my own girl at school. Her name is Eloise, and she’s the smartest girl in the class.”

I helped him into his booster seat and buckled him up before making my way around to the driver’s side.

“It’s always good to surround yourself with smart people. Those are some special ladies you got right there.”

“Do you ever want to have just one girl, Uncle King?”

I chuckled and pulled down the road toward Demi’s parents’ ranch. “Yeah, I think if you find the right girl, that’s when you decide you want to just settle down with one person.”

And I’ve found the right girl. She’s always been the only girl for me.

“I think Saylor should be your girl. You’re always laughing with her, and she seems like she’d want to be your girl. And she’s the best, you know? She’s smart, and she reads lots of books, and she can ride horses, and she’s real pretty and the nicest. That’s how Eloise is.”

“Beefcake, are you trying to matchmake me?” I barked out a laugh as I put the truck in park.

“Well, I think you like her.”

For fuck’s sake. Does anyone not think I like her? We’ve clearly done a shit job of hiding it.

“I think she’s the best. But she’s Uncle Hayes’s sister, so we’ll have to see how that goes.”

His eyebrows pinched together, and he shrugged. “Uncle Hayes loves you, and he loves Saylor. He’d be real happy if you two were happy together.”

If only life were that simple. But this kid sure did have it figured out.

“You know, brothers are protective of their little sisters. I understand that. So, Saylor and I are just friends for now, okay?” I didn’t want to risk him running home and telling Nash I said differently. The first person I needed to talk to was Hayes. I’d already done things backward, and I should have gone to him from the start. I’d fucked up, and I’d eat crow and own it.

But he was the first person I needed to talk to moving forward, and he’d be home tomorrow. I’d planned to meet him at his house and pull this bandage off immediately.

Saylor agreed to let me talk to him first. I needed to have a man-to-man talk with him. Let him see my face and show him how serious I was about this.

“I don’t know about that, Uncle King.” I helped him out of the truck, and he pulled his jacket back on and asked me to grab his fedora out of the back. The dude had his own style, and he rocked it. I took his hand, and we made our way up the driveway.

“You don’t know about what, buddy?”

“You know how you tell me not to worry about things that I shouldn’t worry about?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“I think you’re doing that.”

How was this kid only six fucking years old and this wise?

“I’m good, Beefcake. I promise. Now, let’s eat some fancy sandwiches and cupcakes.”

“Yes!” He fist-pumped enthusiastically.

When we stepped inside, Demi’s mom and grandmother started fawning all over us. My gaze immediately found Saylor’s, and on instinct, it trailed up her body. She was wearing the white sundress that I’d helped her slip into after we’d gone at it like porn stars this morning, because now that we’d crossed the line, we couldn’t seem to get enough.

I looked away because we’d made a deal not to tell anyone what was happening between us until I talked to Hayes. We may not have done everything right, but we could at least get this next part right.

One more day.

We could do this.

“Hey,” Demi and Saylor said at the same time, as they came over and gave us both a hug.

“Beefcake, did you wear orange just for me?” Demi asked, bending down to get to his eye level.

“You know it. It’s your special day. I wanted to wear your favorite color for you.”

“You look amazing. And the hat just brings it all together,” she said.

While they were busy chatting, I reached for Saylor’s hand to give it a squeeze, pulling the dandelion from my shirt pocket and placing it there. “How’s the party?”

“It’s been so nice. Who knew the magic of a mimosa fountain?” She chuckled as she pulled her hand away and held the flower to her nose. “We’re having a lot of fun.”

She mouthed the words thank you, before tucking the flower behind her ear when Peyton called her over to take some pictures.

I spent the next thirty minutes working the room with Cutler, who was clearly in his happy place as all the women showered him with attention.

When the party was over, everyone said their goodbyes, and we made our way outside.

“Where are you off to, Saylor?” Cutler asked as he reached for her hand.

“I’m going to go see Pearl at Magnolia Haven.” She held up a box that she told us was filled with pastries. Apparently, my grandmother wasn’t feeling up to an outing today, so she hadn’t been able to make it to the shower.

“Oh, man. I need to go see my grandma Pearl. Can we go, too, Uncle King?”

“Sure, buddy.” I turned my attention to Saylor, knowing she’d walked there, but trying to play it cool in front of Ruby and Demi and the group of women standing nearby. “You want to hop in and ride with us?”

“Yes. That would be great. Thank you.”

And just like that, I was spending the day with the people that I loved most.

We met at Romeo’s gym for our usual meeting. We were all expecting Hayes to be back this morning, but that hadn’t happened. They’d ended up needing him for another day, so my plan was completely fucked. I wanted to talk to him before the bachelor party. Before we were all together. But now it looked like he’d be coming late to the party tomorrow, and I’d have to talk to him the following day, because I sure as hell wasn’t going to do it with an audience.

“At least he’ll make it for the last half of the bachelor party,” Nash said, wiping his mouth with his napkin after he set his sandwich down.

“Yeah. They sure stretched this out. He’s given them weeks. And now he’s going to drive straight to your house. Right, King?” Romeo asked.

“Yep. But he’ll make it. We’ve got about twenty-five guys coming, and we’ve got two food trucks booked that’ll be serving burgers and tacos outside. And then Lionel has two bartenders that will come and bartend for us, so it’ll be a good time. I’ve got some poker tables rented, and I think it’s going to be exactly what you wanted it to be.”

Saylor and Ruby had helped me get this all organized for Romeo, as I’d offered to have it at my house. Romeo didn’t want to have it at a bar. He wanted it to be casual, and we’d make it a good time for sure.

“Thanks, brother. You didn’t need to do all that. A couple of six-packs and some pizzas would have been fine.” He laughed.

“Fuck no. You’re the first one to get married in the group, and we’re doing this right,” River said.

“Sounds good. Beefcake is pissed to all hell that he can’t come. He’s going to spend the night at JT’s house with Jay and Susannah, so I won’t need to worry about getting home at a certain time.” Nash reached for his sandwich.

“Yeah, he talked to me about it the other day. Little dude hates missing out.” I couldn’t hide my smile. “Did you talk to Doc Dolby about the asthma?”

“Yeah. He said to just stay on the inhaler and keep an eye on it. But his teacher said he’s been having some breathing issues during recess. It fucking kills me, man, because he’s a kid, and he should be out there running around, you know?”

“Dude, he’s going to be fine. You trust Doc, right? I know he’s getting older. If things get worse, maybe you should consider getting a second opinion or seeing a specialist,” River said, and we all nodded in agreement.

“That’s not a bad idea. Doc didn’t seem too concerned. He said for me to just keep that inhaler nearby. But I will keep an eye on it and ask at his next appointment if he can refer me to a specialist.”

“And you know I’ll go with you if you need me,” I said.

“Thanks, brother. But one of us needs to keep an eye on our guys at work at all times. They’d love if we both took a day off.” He chuckled.

“Fair point.” I crumbled up my wrapper and air-balled it into the trash can on the first try. “Damn. I’m on my game today.”

“When are you not?” Nash teased.

“Romeo, the countdown is on. How do you feel about the wedding being in just a few days?” I asked.

“I feel fine. I just want to marry my girl. The rest is just extra, you know? But Demi seems relaxed about it, so I’ll just follow her lead.”

“Atta boy. Happy wife, happy life.” River reached for his soda and took a sip.

“And then I give River two weeks before he runs off to Vegas and ties the knot with Ruby.” Nash chuckled, and we all nodded in agreement. “And then, who will be next?”

“I’m guessing King won’t be all that far behind, once he figures his shit out.” Romeo shrugged, and my eyes widened.

“Not sure what we’re talking about, but I’ll try to figure my shit out,” I said. My voice was light and filled with humor, but I was anything but relaxed. I knew what he was insinuating.

“Not going to talk about it, but Romeo’s right. You better get this shit straight and quickly, brother. Or it’s going to blow up in your face.” River’s gaze was hard.

“Agreed. Without saying it, we see it. We support you, King, but you’ve got to make this right.” Nash shrugged.

Damn. Guilt flooded, and I nodded. I wasn’t going to argue. We’d always been able to communicate without saying much, and it was clear they knew.

Everyone fucking knew.

Except for the one person who should know.