CHAPTER SIX

Arts and crafts.

Carter

Vale seems to have no idea what she does to me every time she touches me.

The way her hand casually brushes against mine.

The swell of her breast against my arm when she leans in to murmur in my ear.

I understand why we have to look close. In my brain, I know it.

The rest of me is another story. She has no idea how I’m struggling against the flood of memories when her body presses against mine.

We are sitting in a circle with all the other guests. Lakelyn and AJ are in the middle, opening shower gifts.

“I love it!” Lakelyn squeals, holding up a blender. “Thank you so much!”

“What are you doing?” I ask Vale, noticing how she writes something down in a notebook every time her sister unwraps a gift.

“I have to keep track of who gave what,” she explains, “so she can write thank-you cards. It’s the maid of honor’s duty.”

“What other duties do you have?” I can’t help but wonder.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” she confesses out of the corner of her mouth. “I’m only doing what I’m told.”

Meanwhile, Brooke and Raine are taping the many ribbons and bows from each gift onto a paper plate.

There’s a reason men don’t usually come to these things.

AJ seems to be taking it all in stride. He wears a goofy grin, which I can only attribute to being deeply in love with his girl. He’s happy to see her happy.

I just wish watching it didn’t make me imagine myself in his shoes. About to marry the girl of my dreams.

Now, all that’s left of those fantasies are bruised pride and the ring now shining on Vale’s hand.

“Oh, it’s a pasta maker!” Lakelyn is beside herself. She seems like a genuinely good person, truly thrilled with each gift. “Thank you so much for getting this, Aunt Helen!”

“Dinner at Lakelyn’s!” Blake grins from his side of the room, where most of the men are gathered.

I decide to take a stroll over there and get away from the estrogen for a while.

Blake immediately hands me a beer. “This’ll be you soon enough.” He winks. “Looking forward to it?”

“Oh, it’s always been my dream to have bits of glitter all over me for days after unwrapping gifts,” I say as AJ brushes more glitter from his pants.

Blake laughs. “Then, you’ll have a great time with us tonight. From what BTO and I have planned, we’ll all be covered in glitter by the time the night’s over, if you catch my drift.”

I have a sneaking suspicion I know what he’s talking about but decide to play innocent. “Arts and crafts?”

“Strip club, my man. We have a stretch limo all set to pick us up at nine. It’s an hour drive. We pregame in the limo and then settle in for the real party once we arrive.”

“Sounds like fun.” Really, it sounds like the most boring, generic bachelor party imaginable, but we’re in the middle of Iowa. I guess there are only so many options.

“You’re in then? Come on,” he insists when I pull a face. “You’ve got to come. Consider it your initiation into the family.”

How am I supposed to say no to that?

“I’ll have to check with Vale first, make sure she’s okay with it.”

“She got you wrapped around her finger, huh? Like she’s never raised a little hell of her own.” He snorts.

I make a mental note to ask later just what sort of hell she raised.

“What else is planned for this weekend?” I ask, taking a sip from the longneck bottle in my hand while keeping an eye on Vale. I can’t help it. She’s a beacon, constantly drawing me in.

When she showed up at my door this morning, she looked gorgeous as always, but now that she’s changed into jeans and pulled her hair into a messy braid, she looks wholesome. The smoking-hot farm girl who lives next door. And I like it. A lot.

“Tonight’s the bachelor party, and then tomorrow, we’re doing all kinds of games and such.”

“Games?”

He waves a hand. “Mom’s idea. We did it for Brooke and Raine, too, when they got married. You know, hay-baling. Cornhole. Football.”

“The women play football?”

“Nah, they cheer us on. This is men stuff. The girls throw a big picnic together and make sure there’s enough cold drinks.” Blake looks me up and down. “You think you could handle a game of football?”

“I think I can manage.”

If he doesn’t know about my college career, that’s fine. Let him think I’m some California surfer boy who has never held a football.

This might actually end up being fun.

“We’ll have the rehearsal tomorrow evening, followed by the best barbecue you’ll ever have in your life. Saturday’s the wedding, and then Sunday, we’ll have a big breakfast and wish we hadn’t drunk so much the night before.”

“Some traditions don’t change, no matter where you happen to live,” I muse while Raine places a crown of ribbons on Lakelyn’s head.

The women coo and take photos.

Vale’s not laughing though. And when our eyes meet across the room, I wish I knew what she was thinking about.

A troublemaker

Vale

“So, have you set a date yet?”

My aunt Helen has always been the gossip of the family. I was hoping to avoid her, but the second she saw my ring, she started grilling me for information.

I shrug and give her a little smile. “We’re not sure yet. It’s still very recent—the engagement. Sort of a whirlwind, you know?”

She nods. “Where will you be living?”

“I—”

“And where will the wedding be? Will you come home for it?”

I wish I knew how to tell her I haven’t considered this my home in years. At the same time, I wish I understood why it feels so natural, being here again. Like falling right back into old patterns, old routines.

“We’re not sure yet.” I nod toward Lakelyn. “Besides, this weekend is all about my sister and AJ.”

That seems to placate her—for now.

“Vale, sweetheart.” No sooner am I free of Helen than my grandmother comes over, looking frailer than I remember.

The thing about being away from home for years is holding the image of the way things and people used to be in your mind. You forget—or at least I did—that everyone gets older along with you.

Grandma’s mind is still as sharp as a tack though, and her blue eyes sparkle as she waves for me to bend down a little. It’s loud in here, and she wants to make sure I hear her.

“What a hunk of a man you managed to land for yourself,” she whispers, elbowing me.

“Grandma!” I almost choke on my laughter.

“If only I were younger,” she sighs, looking across the room.

Carter is chatting with Blake, and I can only imagine the stories Blake is telling him.

“Hey, I landed myself a hunk of a man as well when I was young. Your grandfather was considered the catch of the county. I hope the two of you are as compatible as we were. In and out of the bedroom.”

Oh my God. “Uh, thank you.”

“Just let me know if you need any pointers, my dear.” She pats my hand. “Though if you manage to keep a man like him happy enough that he asks you to marry him with a ring like that to seal the deal, it seems you’re doing just fine without my help. Must run in the family.”

I honestly don’t know what to do with this woman. “Now, Grandma, you know I’m a good girl.”

“Mmhmm.” She smirks. “I’ll bet you’re good.”

“Shh!” I can’t help but giggle. “I don’t want Mom to hear.”

“Don’t let yourself be fooled,” she warns me. “Have you ever done the math between your parents’ anniversary and your eldest sister’s birthday, my dear?”

“Uh, no. They were married in May, right?”

She nods. “And Brooke was born in …”

“October.”

“October of the same year.” She winks. “Your sister wasn’t born premature either. Thought you might find that interesting.” She starts off toward the other side of the barn.

Well, I’ll be damned. Mom was pregnant when they got married.

I don’t know if I want to laugh or cry that I never put it together.

“You’re a troublemaker,” I call out after her.

“What else is there to do when you get to be my age but stir up a little trouble?” she asks over her shoulder.