Waking Up Wed

by Christy Jeffries

  She must’ve misinterpreted his earlier mood, because things only got better as the week went on. It was probably impossible for him to become any more perfect, but seemingly he had. And if his passion grew any hotter, she would need to start wearing a flame-resistant suit to bed. Or at least not expensive lingerie. He’d now ripped several pairs of her underwear and two of her favorite bras. Not that she was complaining.

  Since he had the weekend off, they’d taken the boys out and about to explore Sugar Falls. They went hiking up to the waterfall and Drew carried a picnic lunch he’d packed for them before they hit Noodie’s Ice Cream Shoppe after dinner on Saturday night. On Sunday, they rented mountain bikes from Russell’s Sports and hauled them up to the lifts at Snow Creek Lodge so they could teach the twins how to navigate down the kid-friendly bike paths.

  It was almost as if they were the perfect little family.

  “Why are you smiling like that?” Aiden asked, bringing her back to the task she was supposed to be performing—which was opening up a new box of Honey Smacks. These kids had their uncle’s appetite.

  “Like what?”

  “Like Jake Marconi’s little sister smiles at Caden right before she paddles after him in her little pink canoe.”

  Caden shoved his brother. “She doesn’t chase me as much as she chases you.”

  “She does not.”

  “Does so.”

  Kylie sighed. “Okay, boys. Eat your cereal. We have some important stuff to do today.”

  Cessy Walker had talked to her ex-husband, who owned a luxury car dealership in Boise, and arranged for Kylie to get a great deal on a slightly used SUV. She wasn’t quite ready to trade in her convertible yet, but after the way her relationship with Drew was progressing, she was feeling confident that a more modern-looking family vehicle was in keeping with the direction her life was heading.

  Summer camp was closed for the week before its upcoming Fourth of July camping trip, and Kylie had to take the boys with her to the dealership. They were bundles of energy when they arrived. As she spoke with the dealer, she told the twins they could look at some of the new models on display. Unfortunately, when she wasn’t paying attention, they sneaked into the service department and tried to do a tire rotation on another customer’s car. She couldn’t fault them for being such bright and inquisitive children—especially when their abundance of curiosity led to the salesman’s exasperation and acceptance of her lowball offer just to get her out the door and the eight-year-olds off the property.

  After lunch, she knew they needed a physical outlet since they’d been cooped up in the car and doing errands with her most of the day. She thought about taking them swimming at the rec center, then remembered Mia was doing a free cheer clinic for children at the Snowflake Dance Academy this week.

  She didn’t want to ask Drew’s permission, because she didn’t know how he would feel about his nephews engaging in a female-dominated sport. But Hunter had gone once and, although he’d complained the entire time, Kylie thought it was good for children to experience all types of activities in order to make an educated decision about which extracurriculars were the best fit.

  After all, where would she be if her own dad hadn’t begrudgingly allowed her to go to the cheerleading rehearsal tryouts in high school when he clearly would’ve preferred to see her spending her afternoons at the batting cages with her brothers?

  She parked along Snowflake Boulevard, careful not to pull too close to Scooter and Jonesy, the volunteer firefighters, who were dismounting near the hitching post in front of the Cowgirl Up Café.

  “Hey Mr. Scooter and Jonesy,” Caden yelled out the window. “Check out my Aunt Kylie’s new car.”

  Her heart flipped. She definitely wasn’t getting tired of being called aunt. Just then, she saw Kane coming out of the hardware store a few doors down, his right arm still in a sling.

  She waved at her brother, and he walked over to them. He’d met Drew and the twins a handful of times, but he’d been trying to keep a low profile since arriving in town, hoping not to draw too much attention to the recent scandal that sidelined his baseball career. He smiled at the boys as they pet the nearby horses. “Your face looks kinda funny, Uncle Kane.”

  “Oh, my gosh.” Kylie pulled off her sunglasses. “You shaved off your beard!” She had never gotten used to the extreme facial hair he’d grown when he started his major-league career. She would always see him as her baby-faced brother.

  “Yep. Figured it was time for a change.” Kane pulled his hat lower on his head as a car drove down the street. Kylie understood her brother’s need to hide his identity.

  “How’s the shoulder?”

  “Team doctor says I’m out for the season, and possibly the next one, as well. Dad wanted me to see a specialist, but I have a feeling they’re gonna tell me I’ve done way too much damage over the years.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “Stick around Sugar Falls, I guess. Most of the townspeople leave me alone, and I can avoid the tourists when I need to. Since I have some downtime, I figure I might try my hand at building renovation. I picked up that old property out by Sprinkle Creek pretty cheap and plan to move out there to fix the old barn up.”

  “Hey, Uncle Kane, you wanna go camping with us this weekend?” The boys finally came over to join them. It touched Kylie that Drew’s nephews had latched on to her own family, as well.

  The twins talked about the big wilderness camping trip as Kylie reached for her purse and the gym bag on the passenger side floor. The two-day trip was an opportunity for Alex Russell and his staff to reinforce all the wilderness skills the kids had learned.

  She worried for Aiden’s and Caden’s safety, and for the leaders’ ability to keep a close eye on the mischievous boys. But she was also looking forward to a whole weekend alone with Drew.

  “I might come out if you promise to bait my fishing hooks for me, seeing as how I’m one-handed right now.”

  “Deal!” Both boys jumped up and down, and Kylie shook her head. Now she had to add the possibility of the twins getting hooks through their eye to her ever-growing list of camping-trip worries. Sometimes she didn’t know what she would do with all these maternal feelings manifesting inside her once Drew said goodbye at the end of summer and she was no longer their aunt.

  Other times, she refused to let the idea cross her mind.

  The sound of hip-hop music blasted out of Mia’s dance studio across the street. “All right, boys, we’d better get to class before we’re late.”

  She hugged her brother, then took one of the boys’ hands in each of her own as they made their way across the crosswalk.

  Normally, when the class started, Kylie would’ve allowed herself to forget about the outside world and just get lost in the music. But today, she had promised to assist Mia, which was really better than being forced to sit on the sidelines and make small talk to the stage parents who thought their kids were going to be the next big stars.

  It wasn’t until the last routine of the day that Kylie was finally able to get her mind back onto a more positive train of thought. She’d been wrong about Drew being tense the Sunday before last. Things were going so well between them. She just needed to bite the bullet and have a real conversation with him about where they stood.

  When the twins went on their camping trip, it would be the perfect opportunity—as long as she and Drew could keep their clothes on long enough to actually talk.

  * * *

  When Kylie and the boys pulled up to the cabin, Drew was sitting on the porch. Wait, that wasn’t Drew. She was so crazy about the guy and so anxious to see him, she was now imagining him—like a mirage. She turned off the engine, trying to figure out who the strange man was before letting the boys out. The man stood up, and Kylie realized his resemblance to her husband was uncanny.

  That was weird. Drew only had one brother and he was away...

  “Daddy!” both of the boys screamed before flinging open the doors
of her new SUV.

  It couldn’t be. What was Luke Gregson doing back so soon?

  This wasn’t how she’d expected to meet her new in-laws. She took a deep breath and got out of the car. She could do this.

  Her legs were a little shaky as she made her way across the driveway, and she doubted it was due to the intense class she’d just taught.

  “This is Aunt Kylie,” Caden said, and Kylie sent up a silent thanks that the boys were there to help neutralize this awkward moment. “She was a cheerleader and we got to go to dance class with her and Miss Mia and even boys are allowed to be on cheer teams if we want to.”

  Maybe she needed to rethink her thankfulness.

  “So Drew’s wife is a cheerleader.” Luke smiled and held out his hand to shake hers. “I should’ve seen that one coming. My brother has had a thing for girls with pom-poms ever since a squad of them rescued him one time in the mall.”

  Well, there was a fun fact she’d have to ask her husband about later. But right now, she was dying to know how Luke knew about her in the first place. And why Drew hadn’t told her that he’d been in contact with his brother or that they should be expecting him sooner.

  “Was. I was a cheerleader.” He glanced down at her bright orange Cheer 4 BSU tank top, and she wished she had packed something else in her gym bag. Something that didn’t make her appear as if she was trying desperately to cling to the glory days like a fifty-year-old former high school quarterback. “It’s nice to meet you, but forgive me for not being more prepared. I thought you weren’t coming until the end of summer.”

  “Yeah, Dad, I thought you were on another top secret mission,” Aiden said as he and Caden cuddled side by side with their father.

  “Didn’t Uncle Drew tell you?” Luke kept one arm around both his sons but was hugging the other close to his side, as though he were protecting something. And that was when Kylie noticed the outline of a large bandage under her brother-in-law’s shirt. “My unit had to cut the operation short, and I’ve been reassigned to a new unit closer to town. Closer to my boys.”

  “Does that mean you’re gonna live with us all the time now?” Caden’s face showed nothing but excitement and wonder.

  “That’s exactly what I mean. We’re going to be a real family. And this time, I’m going to be a better dad than ever before.”

  The boys whooped it up, and Kylie tried to paste her best pageant smile on her face. But she wanted to shout that no, Uncle Drew hadn’t told any of them a damn thing. But she couldn’t begrudge the kids their excitement or enthusiasm.

  “Did you bring us any surprises?” one of the boys asked as they ran for the large canvas duffel bag propped up against the door.

  She swiped at a small tear as it threatened to overflow from her eye. Her heart was tied in knots and her emotions were bouncing out of control. She was excited for the twins, who were ecstatic that their dad was home. Although she’d never met him before, she could only imagine what Luke must be feeling, getting to see his children again.

  But at the same time, she couldn’t help the growing premonition that Luke’s arrival was going to change everything.

  “Let’s get settled, and I’ll see if I can find something in this ol’ bag that might interest you two.” He rubbed the boys’ curls as they walked inside.

  Wait—was he staying here at the cabin with them? That earlier premonition grew to a dark cloud that threatened to rain on the brief happiness she’d so recently found with Drew. Aiden and Caden deserved to have their family back together again.

  Even if it meant she was going to lose her temporary one. Because if Luke was home for good, then Drew no longer had to take care of the twins. And if he didn’t need her to help out with his nephews...

  Then he wouldn’t need her at all.

  Chapter Eleven

  Drew pulled up to the cabin after work and didn’t see Kylie’s new SUV. That was weird. She should’ve been home by now. He got out of the Jeep and heard squeals of laughter coming from inside the cabin.

  Something was off. If the kids were here, where was his wife? He took the steps two at a time and then felt that weird tingle along his rib cage again.

  Luke.

  He knew his brother was there before he even saw the military-issue rucksack lying open on the living room floor. He made his way to the boys’ bedroom and found all three of them wrestling on the floor.

  “Have you been cleared for active duty?” Drew asked his impulsive brother, who should have known better than to roll around on the floor with a couple of eight-year-olds jumping on top of him. He was just a little over a week out of surgery.

  “Saint Drew, I’m under fire down here, waiting for reinforcements, and you want to stand there and give me a medical evaluation?”

  “I’d prefer to give you a psych exam, but I fear I already know what the results would be. Where’s Kylie?”

  “She said she was going to Patrelli’s to pick up some dinner for us. Should be back any minute. Now, are you gonna stand there worrying about that pretty cheerleader of yours or are you gonna rescue your twin brother from enemy attack?”

  Drew smiled, relieved. She hadn’t left him. At least, not yet. He took his glasses off and set them on the top bunk before making the sound of the cavalry charge and jumping into the fray.

  It was only a few minutes later when he saw her standing in the doorway of the bunk room, holding a pizza box in one hand and her chest in the other. “Jeez, you guys scared the heck out of me. I heard all the screaming from outside and thought someone had the children tied up, torturing them.”

  She looked beautiful, but wary.

  “More like the other way around,” Luke said, slowly rising to his feet and rubbing his side. “When did you two kiddos get so tough?”

  Drew followed suit, straightening his uniform. He should’ve known better than to encourage this kind of behavior. His brother had probably torn his stitches and could’ve done even more long-term damage.

  “Here, can I help you with that?” he asked, walking toward her to take the pizza.

  “Nope, I’ve got it.”

  She was doing that thing where she acted all poised and in control, but he could tell by her false smile that something was definitely off.

  “Okay, boys, let’s go wash up for dinner,” Drew said, then caught himself as he looked at his brother.

  “You guys heard your uncle,” Luke said, giving no indication that Drew had overstepped any boundaries.

  The twins’ real father was home now. Drew was no longer their parental figure. Nor was he the one cooking the meal. It didn’t escape his notice that, as glad as he was to see Luke home safely, everything was slowly shifting. This must be what the Jenga tower sensed when it was just a couple wooden blocks shy of a possible collapse.

  Everyone sat down at the table with its matching place settings, and the boys were quick to put their linen napkins in their laps.

  They’d been married less than a month and already Kylie’d left her mark on the cabin, as well as on him and his nephews.

  There was so much to say and yet, Drew and Kylie remained absurdly quiet.

  Finally, Luke started off the dinner conversation. “Did your Uncle Drew tell you about the one time I had to save him?”

  Drew flinched before looking at Kylie. The last thing he needed her thinking was that he was a hotheaded young punk who hadn’t spent years in graduate school and countless hours practicing yoga to get his temper under lock and key. “Please don’t tell this story right now.”

  “We want to hear!” the boys yelled at the same time.

  He shot his brother a look, but Luke kept right on talking. “So I had just married your mom and you two were still in her tummy. Drew was on a ship that was temporarily docked in Ventura and he had a forty-eight hour leave. We decided to go to a Lakers game and had those great floor seats. Remember that, Drew? Anyway, there were a couple of young dudes sitting next to us, and they’d had way too much to drink. Drew was ge
tting pretty annoyed with them—”

  “Wait,” Drew interrupted. “That’s not exactly how I remember it. I believe you were the one getting annoyed with them, and I was being the calm voice of reason.”

  “Maybe. Anyway, they started making comments about Drew’s uniform and how he looked like the Good Humor Man and trying to order a couple of cones from him.” When Luke got to the part about ice cream, Kylie sat up straighter in her chair. “We were ignoring them for the most part, until they started doing the kissing cam up on the Jumbotron—you know, where they put the camera on couples and everyone cheers them on while they kiss?

  “Well, the drunk guy grabbed one of the team dancers—see, I told you my brother likes pom-poms—and Drew didn’t take too kindly to someone putting his hands on a female like that.”

  “So I stepped in and got him to release the lady. End of story.” Drew passed out plates.

  “Wait. Then how did Dad save you?”

  “Your uncle neglected to mention that the way he got the guy to let go of the cheerleader was that he punched the guy so hard Drew broke his pinkie finger.”

  Kylie looked at him, and Drew couldn’t tell if it was in surprise or disgust.

  “So you fixed his finger?” Aiden asked.

  “No. Uncle Drew’s finger actually never healed right after that. The part where I came in to save the day was when they actually showed the fight on the Jumbotron. Drew was worried that his superior officers would find out and throw him the brig. So I called his commander and told him it was me on the Jumbotron.”

  Oh, of course when Drew looked like a raging maniac during the story, his brother was completely fine with looking like the hero riding in to save the day.

  “So, boys,” Drew said, “the moral of the story is, don’t lose your temper and get in a fight with someone, or it might get broadcast on ESPN later, and your brother could get in big trouble with his boss.”

  “But you were saving the cheerleader,” Caden said.