Page 77 of Wicked & Wildflower

I told Lou she had to wait until May before she could take any more lessons, and I’m hoping her birthday present from Leo will help her get excited for it.

Everett removes his hands from Lou’s eyes, and I watch as they go comically wide, her mouth dropping open in astonishment. “Is this for me?” she all but squeals.

“All yours, Bug,” I reply. “From Leo.”

She runs full force into him, wrapping her arms around his waist and screaming, “Thank you! Thank you!” into his stomach.

Everyone is laughing, and I feel tears stinging in the corners of my eyes as Leo pats her back and steers her toward the table. Lou slowly runs her hand over the board, taking in the way her name is sprawled along the side, multi-colored flowers dotted across it.

“So here’s the deal, kid,” he says as he steps up next to her. “You’ll get to break in the brand-new board later this spring with Everett, but only if you help me out in the meantime.”

“Help you out?” she asks him.

“Yep.” He smiles. “Every day after school, you’re going to meet me here in the garage, and I’m going to show you how to properly take care of a surfboard. I’ll teach you how to wax, check for damage, and fix your dings.”

“Dings?” she snorts.

“Dings,” Leo confirms. “Does that sound like a deal?”

She nods enthusiastically. “This is the best present ever.”

“Rude,” Everett says, though there’s a smile on his face. “You haven’t seen any of your other gifts yet.”

“Well, I already know they won’t be as good as this one.” She scrunches her nose at him.

“Guess we better go check them out, then.” My sister smiles.

Lou wraps her arms around Leo’s waist again, whispering, “I’m going to pretend I like all my presents the same amount, but I think this one will be my favorite still.”

He pats the top of her head, bending down to whisper in her ear, though it’s loud enough that we all hear it. “Your secret is safe with me.”

The eight of us filter out of the garage and back to the party. I hear August quietly wish Lou a happy birthday as we exit the back door. My heart breaks a little as he adds, “Don’t ever go out in the ocean by yourself, okay? No matter how cool your surfboard is.”

She cocks her head at him, as if considering his advice before she nods. “Okay, I won’t.”

My heart breaks a little more when Everett pats him on the back and says, “We wouldn’t let that happen, Auggie. She’ll be safe.”

August dips his chin, tossing both hands in the pockets of his dark jeans. His voice is gruff as he murmurs, “I’m going to step inside and grab something to drink.”

Everett nods, grabbing my hand and interlacing our fingers as we make our way across the yard. August parts from the crowd, heading inside the house on his own, and I wonder if he feels safest that way, keeping a distance from any connection that might hurt him if it’s lost.

Everett pauses in front of a group of parents standing around the food table, Tana leading the charge of them. “Hey, she’s going to do presents now.”

Six sets of eyes fall to the place where mine and Everett’s hands are clasped before Tana raises her head. “Okay, cool. We’ll be right over.”

We don’t miss the elevated whispers and the quiet snickers as we walk away, but Everett only squeezes my hand tighter.

I push the thoughts from my mind, gathering around the table stacked high with gifts. Lou is already tearing through wrapping paper. Patience is not her forte. She does a great job at enthusiastically thanking everyone, though.

Darby got her a bracelet-making kit and a coupon for a jewelry date, just the two of them. What Lou doesn’t know is that my sister’s gift is in tandem with mine—to make friendship bracelets for the Taylor Swift concert I bought Lou tickets for later this year—but I’ll be giving her that gift later. It definitely beats Leo’s surfboard, and I don’t want to bruise his ego.

August gets her a coloring book, but it’s filled entirely with black and white drawings he made himself. Different animals, landscapes, and some abstract designs. He included a box of colored pencils. She blushed when she thanked him. I think my daughter might have her first crush, and I’m not sure how I feel about it.

I can’t say I blame her. August has that shy, damaged boy vibe and the soft smile that makes you think you might be able to fix him. Plus, there are those dreamy green eyes and that look that says he’d destroy you in bed but take real good care of you afterward.

Though it’s nothing in comparison to the way I feel when Everett wraps his arms around my waist, nuzzling his chin into my shoulder and sighing contently as he watches my daughter open her gifts, like there is no place else he’d rather be.

When Lou finally gets to the small box in the middle of the pile, Everett shouts against my ear, “That one’s from me, Luz!”

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