Page 39 of Somehow You Knew

“I get it. She’s your little sister,” I interrupt. “But trust me when I say we knew what we were getting into. This is just temporary and we’ll go our separate ways when the time comes. I respect her and the life she has here, which is why she wanted to be honest with you guys. You don’t need to worry about me, though. I have every intention of returning to Florida when this is all over.”

Willow clears her throat, a tight-lipped smile on her face showcasing her frustration even though she’s trying to keep the peace. “Well, now that the introductions have been made, would you all mind if we got back to the reason we’re here, please? To celebrate Michael turning one, yeah?”

Hazel turns back to her sister-in-law. “Yes, please.”

Catherine bounces the birthday boy in her arms. “Yes, let’s do it! Maybe all of the men need to take a turn in the bounce house to let out some of their aggressive energy,” she suggests as Penn, Dallas, and Parker grumble.

Hazel’s brothers follow their mother outside, but not before shooting more warning looks at me over their shoulders.

“Well, that went well,” I say sarcastically.

Hazel huffs out a laugh. “Sure. Yeah. We’ll go with that.”

I look down at her. “Was that as bad as you thought it was going to be?”

“Honestly, I thought there would be more yelling. But I think we put them in their place before they could start.” Peering up at me, she says, “Thanks for having my back.”

“I told you I would.” Our eyes remain locked as a wave of determination rolls through me. “Why don’t you go get that drink you were after?”

Hazel blinks, then nods. “Yes. Alcohol. I definitely need some of that.”

Leaning down, I whisper in her ear, “Don’t get too tipsy, Spitfire. I’d hate for the alcohol to give you the courage to tell me what youreallythink of me.”

Her eyes darken when I lean back, but I don’t wait for a reaction before I head toward the front door.

“What…where are you going?” she asks, stumbling over her words.

Glancing back at her, I say, “To show your brothers that I’m not the bad guy.”

With that, I head outside and make my way toward the bounce house, feeling this innate need to ease the tension with Hazel’s brothers. And I don’t dare let myself question why I care so damn much.

Chapter seven

Hazel

“You all right?”

Astrid comes up behind me as I fill my wine glass to the rim, resting my hip against the counter in the kitchen. Thank God my brother and his wife decided to serve alcohol at their one-year-old’s birthday party.

I take a large drink from my glass, smacking my lips together before sighing. “Now I am.”

“That was intense,” Cashlynn says, joining us. Like clockwork, Willow darts around the corner a second later and reaches for my hand.

Before she can say anything, words spill from my lips. “Oh my God, Willow. I’m so sorry we—”

“Nonsense. You have nothing to apologize for. Your brother is the one who will be dealing with the heat of my wrath later,” she says, her jaw clenching. But then her proud, motherly smile is back in a flash. “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

My hands are still shaking from the interaction with my brothers, but at least the hard part is over. They all know the truth now.

And Gage sure had your back during that whole debacle, didn’t he, Hazel?

Why was that so hot?

“I’m fine,” I mutter around my wine glass, taking another large drink.

Cashlynn scoffs. “Yeah, you seem justfine.”

“Well now everyone in my family thinks I’ve lost it…”

---