“Oh. Who are you?”
I bent down to her level and saw the dog watching me with crazy eyes—one blue and one brown. “I’m Katie. Who’s your friend?”
“Big Teddy.” She grinned, throwing her arms around the strange animal.
“Nice to meet you, Big Teddy.” I reached a hand in his direction, but he leaned away.
“Go slow with him.” Lucky bent down next to us. “He’s a rescue and doesn’t take to everyone. I think he had a hard life before here. He was found in a sewer drain.”
“You pulled him from a sewer drain?”
“No.” He grinned as the dog let him scratch his head. “I was walking past this rescue setup in town. Red Dirt Critters or Claws or something. And I saw him. Had a sign on the crate that said Gator. For some reason, I couldn’t leave the big guy there. So I brought a dog called Gator home for Mia and Zach. Smart move, right?”
“His name is Big Teddy. He doesn’t like it when you call him that other name.” She looked back at me. “Daddy was really mad at Uncle Wucky about Big Teddy.”
Uncle Wucky. I smiled, hearing her little voice mush the words into the sweetest sound.
“Yeah. Colt wasn’t exactly happy with me. But he got over it the first time he walked into Mia’s room and she had Big Teddy wearing a dress. He sleeps in her bed now too. Don’t you, big boy? You ain’t no Gator.”
I looked between him and the girl with the dog. His face had many grins. The one he gave the audience. The one he gave me. But I had never seen this version. The happiness consumed everything. His eyes and lips. The way his voice sounded as he laughed.
“I came to get you, Uncle Wucky. You’re late.”
“I’m late for . . .”
“Tea. I got it all set up.” She grabbed his hand and tugged.
The smile grew even bigger. “Well, Katie. Looks like I’m gonna need a raincheck on our dance. The Mad Hatter has a date with Alice and the White Rabbit.”
“Okay?” I was intrigued by this bit of information. The idea of him having tea as the Mad Hatter was funny. Like, really funny.
Mia pulled him toward the door and Big Teddy followed. Lucky motioned for me to come with them. “Come to the house. You can meet the rest of them.”
I nodded with a hesitant smile. I was going to see his family. This was a big step that seemed so casual with him. I wasn’t planning to meet them until Christmas.
His niece pulled Lucky a good five steps in front of me around the pool. She turned around once to make sure I was still coming. Reaching for the door, Lucky held it open for me and whispered in my ear. “Don’t freak out. They’re really nice.”
“I’m not freaking out.”
“That petrified look in your eyes is not very convincing.” He put a hand on my waist as we stepped into the kitchen. A curvy blonde woman was at the stove cooking what smelled like chili.
“Hey, Callie.”
She smiled at us before turning her eyes to Mia. “Did you go to the pool house after I told you not to bother him?”
“But Wucky said he would come to tea. And he wasn’t busy. He was just dancing.”
Callie’s glare shot to Lucky next. “You better keep that door locked. Or I’ll make you be the one who explains things to them. Do you really want to have that conversation?”
He raised his hands in surrender as he laughed. “Now, Callie, I promise. There’s nothing that needs to be explained. Katie and I were just dancing. Right, Mia?”
“Yeah, but not the fun kind. The stupid slow kind. Yuck.”
Callie looked between Mia and Lucky. Her lips quivered as she tried not to smile at him. She looked back over to me, shaking her head with a laugh. “Sorry, Katie. I’m a terrible host. Welcome to our house. Having three kids can be challenging. So are y’all staying for dinner?”
His gaze flickered to me, waiting for my reaction. He was right. They seemed really nice. Just like him. I gave a quick nod.
Lucky’s eyes lit up at my response. I knew this was a big step whether he wanted to admit it or not. “Yeah, we can stay for dinner.”
“Come on, Uncle Wucky. We have to go.”
He kissed me on the cheek. “I’ll be back soon. You wanna hang here or go with me?”
“I’ll just stay here.” I glanced back over to Callie. “You need some help?”
“I always need help. Here’s the cheese.” She pulled open a drawer, grabbing the metal grater, and handed it to me. “I’ll get you some wine. White or red?”
“White? I guess?” Being a college student, I hadn’t been much of a wine drinker. I honestly wasn’t sure if I liked either of them. I glanced up as she pulled two delicate glasses from where they had been sitting on a towel. She stared at them like she couldn’t figure out if they were clean or dirty.
I used the soap and washed my hands over the pile of dirty dishes in the sink. Opening the cheese package, I searched the countertop for any sign of a bowl. The kitchen was a bit of a disaster. My skin pricked up, seeing the obvious lack of organization. “Do you um . . . have something for me to put this in or on?”
“Oh, pull a plate down from the cabinet in front of you. That should work.”
Callie set the glass down next to me. She took a long drink before returning to the stove. “Sorry. It’s just been a long day. Mia’s in ballet now. And Zach had soccer practice, and I was trying to be in two places at once today while somehow working because I’m behind at work. I’m a graphic designer. But I wasn’t going to miss his game. Thank goodness my laptop works in the bleachers.”
“Wow. I can’t imagine.”
“Yeah, and when Lucky’s here, the kids want him to spend every moment in their room like he’s some toy.” She smiled. “You should go upstairs when you get that done.”
“Okay. Why?” I lifted the glass up to my lips, smelling the strong scent of the wine. I guess it would kill anything in my glass if it had been dirty instead of clean.
“You’ll see.” She glanced over toward the staircase. “If you haven’t fallen head over heels in love with him yet. Then you will after you see that.”
I almost spit my wine all over the cheese grater. Coughing, I turned my back toward Callie, trying to gain some composure.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine.” I turned back around. “So your house is really beautiful.”
“I’m not so good with all of the house stuff. It’s all Colt. He’s all about the details.”
I continued to grate the cheese as she told me more about the little things he had added that made the house more unique.
“So, Katie. Lucky said you are in school to be a teacher?”
“Yeah, elementary ed. I want to teach kindergarten, I think.”
“Ahh, they are still cute then. Just want to hug their teacher. And they don’t back talk. Well, at least, most of the time.”
I laughed. “That’s exactly what I thought.”
I finished up with the cheese and placed the grater on top of the pile of dirty dishes in the sink. “Would you like me to help clean some of this up?”
“Oh hell no. Guests can touch cheese, but there’s no way I’m letting you touch last night’s meatloaf on those plates. Go on upstairs.”
“Okay.” I washed my hands again, doing my best not to look down in the sink.
Walking up the soft carpet stairs, my feet didn’t make a sound as I reached the landing. I went toward the little round room located at the end of the hall. I heard his voice, coming from the doorway.
And then I saw him.
Lucky was seated in a small chair at a tiny table, wearing a top hat and a giant bow around his neck. His hair stuck out in pieces around the edge of the hat. Mia had a yellow wig over her brown pigtails. And Big Teddy sat next to her with a set of white rabbit ears on top of his fuzzy hair.
Flipping the pages, Lucky read a storybook version of Alice in Wonderland. The words rolled off his lips as his voice changed for each character. And Mia giggled after almost ever
y sentence.
I think my heart literally melted.
He glanced over to where I was in the doorway and motioned for me to come into the round princess room.
“Katie!” Mia squealed. “Hold it right there, Uncle Wucky. Freeze.”
He stopped in mid-motion for her, holding a crazy pose with a goofy grin on his face.
Mia came over and grabbed my hand, pulling me to the open chair. I really did feel like I was in Wonderland—big girl, tiny seat.
Alice returned with a crown and a red paper heart. After some fussing, she had the gold and red plastic tiara situated in my hair. I glanced over at Lucky who was still frozen in that ridiculous pose. I couldn’t help but laugh. This was all too much.
“You’re the Queen of Hearts.” She placed the cut-out paper in my fingers. Going back to her seat, she clapped her hands. “Unfreeze.”
Lucky leaned over and pressed his lips softly over mine, which prompted Mia to cover her eyes dramatically with her hand. “No, the Mad Hatter doesn’t kiss the Queen.”
He grinned and then picked back up with the story. I just sat there, watching the scene in utter wonder as it played out in front of me. I wanted to laugh. I wanted to cry. The emotions twisted through my heart as I hid it all behind a smile.
This family. This kid. Lucky. It was a completely different childhood than the one I had experienced. I don’t remember my parents ever taking the time to sit down and play with me. Let alone, conduct high tea with the Mad Hatter.
This is what I had dreamed about growing up.
This was the life I had always wanted.
I went to the pool house several more times after that night. I met Lucky’s nephew Zach and his brother Colt. They were different from each other. Not that I expected the two brothers to look the same since they weren’t blood. But I guess I expected personality traits to have been similar. Nurture versus Nature.
Colt was more serious. But Lucky could make him laugh. He picked and teased at his older brother until he would get a smile of annoyance and love out of Colt. That seemed to be the underlying current in this family. They may not be blood or always see eye to eye, but they had a love for each other that transcended anything biological.
Lucky had wanted me to meet his mama, but I refused to see her. I needed more time before I met the legend behind this family. It was scary to be getting this close to him. But I didn’t want to stop the closeness. I just needed to slow it down a bit. He agreed not to introduce me to his mama until Christmas.
As the final days of Thanksgiving approached, Lucky took me bowling again. I was getting better. And every time I knocked pins down, he kissed me until I was breathless. I never knew what that term truly meant until I met Lucky. But when his lips touched mine, I got lost in a hazy swirl. I got breathless.
It was an addictive feeling.
One night he took me back to Shortcakes and afterward, we made out like high schoolers in my driveway. Yeah, I really loved kissing him.
Lucky came over when Skylar tried to make baked vegan ziti for dinner. The food was disgusting like most healthy things she tried to cook. Yet Peyton and I ate it while Dylan and Lucky washed it down with beer. College students had a tendency to eat anything not in a trashcan and even that might be debatable if a guy was drunk enough.
And on our last Friday night together before break, he took me to another show in Oklahoma City at a dive bar called Red Wagon. I think every time I saw Lucky play, I still managed to be surprised by his raw natural talent and the way he shined while on stage. He was born to do this. Lucky may not know where he came from, but there was no doubt the guy had been born a star. Anyone who watched him perform had to be crazy not to think the same thing.
That night we came back and parked in my driveway and talked until five in the morning. We might have stayed longer if it wasn’t for Peyton. She came home drunk from some guy’s apartment with her skirt inside out, carrying a half-eaten burrito in a sack, which I hoped didn’t come from a Dumpster.
I spent the rest of the morning sitting on the bathroom floor with my roommate, making sure she didn’t choke on her own vomit.
He loved his family. I loved mine.
And then those beautiful days came to an end. Peyton and I were leaving for Bedford for Thanksgiving. Lucky and I spent our final evening together. We had coffee after his long day working for Colt. And three cups later, the night was over. He pulled into my driveway, killing the motor.
“I guess this is it.” He smiled sadly at me.
“I guess so.”
The familiar pain of leaving flickered up. It was only for a few days, but I knew Lucky wouldn’t be here when I got back. He would be in Nashville.
He reached for my hand, pulling me in his direction as he scooted out from behind the steering wheel. We met in the middle of the faded blue seat.
“I’m going to miss you,” he whispered.
“Me too.”
“I’ll be back before you know it. And then we have until New Year’s.”
I nodded. “Yeah.”
I wanted to be brave and optimistic. But it hurt. And this wasn’t even a long break. I tried not to think about what would happen after the first of the year. It was over a month away. A blink of the eye or an entire lifetime could happen in a month. And I knew this because I had met Lucky less than a month ago.
He leaned over and kissed me. I knew his mouth very intimately at this point. The softness of his lips. The way his stubble grazed my chin. The way his tongue brushed my bottom lip before slipping inside my mouth. The throaty sound that happened when our kisses got deeper.
His hands moved to my waist, running over my side and then under my shirt. It didn’t take much for him to unhook my bra. Slipping a hand under the lace fabric, his fingers ran over my breasts. The contact sent tiny waves rolling through my stomach. It was amazing that something so little could cause such a strong reaction.
Lucky placed kisses down the V-neck of my sweater until his lips found my breast. My fingers gripped his shoulders as his warm breath flowed over my skin. I felt my head touch the truck seat as he laid me down on my back. He shifted around to being slightly on top of me. It wasn’t comfortable. But I didn’t care as his lips continued to touch my body.
“This would be so much easier if I just took your clothes off,” he whispered.
“Maybe.” I smiled at him, trying to catch my breath. The windows were fogged up behind us.
“One day. You and me. In this truck.” The mischievous glint in his eyes was bright in the moonlight.
I ran my hand through his hair as I grinned back at him. “Like in the driveway of my house?”
“If you want, but I was thinking someplace out in the country. Under the stars.”
It was a crazy idea. Sex in his truck. We ate food in here. People rode in here. Other people. Little people. Kids. And his mama. I bet his mama rode in this very spot.
But I found myself whispering, “Okay.”
“I am going to be thinking about that all Thanksgiving break.”
I laughed, but the nervous flutters went through me. I wasn’t sure on his timeline for this planned escape in his truck. But he kissed me softly, bringing all of my thoughts back to his lips.
He pulled back. “I want to tell you something.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
“I like this, you know. I have to earn your trust. Earn the right to touch you. It means more than I realized it could with someone.” He placed a soft kiss on my neck, holding his lips there for a second before releasing them. “So this is a pause until next time.”
I smiled. “Like a freeze button?”
“Yes. And when you get back, we can unfreeze from right here.” His nose went down in the top of my cleavage as his fingers tickled my sides.
I squealed, trying to squirm away. But I couldn’t stop laughing.
And neither could he.
Taking a plate from the stack by the dessert table, I eyed the colorful creation
s filled with chocolate and pumpkin and fruits. And that cheesecake. I might trade my favorite pair of jeans for that cheesecake, which might become a real possibility if I didn’t stop eating.
I cut a large slice of apple pie. It was more of a cobbler with a gooey cake layer on top. Wiping my finger off with a napkin, I reached for a fork.
“Katie, pop that in the microwave and put some of that ice cream on it.”
I glanced up and smiled at Peyton’s aunt Shelby. And I assumed the creator of the apple pie. I nodded in her direction. “Good idea.”
Stepping into the kitchen, I noticed the table was full of men playing cards. Poker, I think. I put my plate in the microwave, watching the little kids running in circles in the living room. Before leaving the kitchen, I added a large scoop of ice cream on top of my pie.
I ran up the stairs to Peyton’s room, shutting the noise and people away behind the door. I sat down on her full-sized bed, which took up most of her room, which was the size of some people’s linen closet. It was small, overwhelmed, crowded, and not very tidy. This should have made the hairs stand up on my arms. But for some reason, it didn’t. I loved this room. It smelled of sunshine and pie just like the rest of their house.
I picked up my phone from the comforter. “I’m back. You there?”
“Yep. So what kind did you get?”
I took a deep whiff of my bowl. Lucky and I were having a “pie date” for Thanksgiving. His idea since we were spending it apart. A little moment of the busy day, carved out just for us.
“Apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream. You?”
“Do I seem like someone who would have just one kind of pie?”
I laughed. “I didn’t know we could get more than one kind?”
“You didn’t ask.”
“I think you cheated.” I took a bite of mine. This might be the best apple pie I had ever eaten. “So what did the rule-breaker put on his plate?”
“There has to be rules in order for them to be broken.”
“So Pie Date has no rules then.” I took another bite, tasting the little morsel of heaven as it literally melted in my mouth.
“Are you eating yours already?”
My Lucky Days: A Novel Page 10
