Page 22 of Forged

“That’s barbaric. Separating kids from their dad?”

“Who does something like that?”

They all spoke over top of each other.

“I told her no,” Nick said, raising his hands like he had to settle everyone. “I’m not giving my kids away.”

“Why would she even ask?” Rebecca demanded.

Nick sighed and glanced at Bax. It was like he was either asking Bax for help or searching for forgiveness from him for something that hadn’t happened yet.

Bax replied with an encouraging smile and rested his hand over Nick’s, which he’d put on the table.

More than one set of Hawthorne eyes noticed the gesture.

“Honestly, I think she doesn’t approve of you all,” Nick said. He didn’t move his hand away from Bax’s. If anything, he swayed slightly closer. “She’s very conservative, and she thinks you lot are a bunch of bohemians.”

“Well, we are a bunch of bohemians,” Rhys said.

Bax smirked. Rhys was the least bohemian of the Hawthorne, aside from him, but he had a point.

“She can’t do anything legally, can she?” Early asked, looking nervous.

“No, no,” Nick insisted, waving the idea away. “The worst she can do is make a lot of noise.”

That seemed to satisfy most of the family, but Bax knew Nick better than that now. Making a lot of noise would upset him, especially if she was persistent about it.

Nick cleared his throat and said, “Let’s not worry about all that for now. The pheasant is probably done by now, since it’s been cooking for over an hour.”

“Pheasant?” Blaine whipped to face the Dutch oven tucked into the coal of the old forge. “Why on earth are we having pheasant?”

“I don’t think I’ve ever had pheasant in my life,” Rafe laughed.

Nick shrugged and sent Bax the most adorable, bashful look. “It felt like the most Pagan sort of bird I could find on short notice.”

Bax laughed. He wanted to throw his arms around Nick and hug him forever in thanks for everything he was doing. He wanted to do a hell of a lot more than that. But not with the combined force of the Hawthorne family right there to watch.

Instead, he went with Nick to check on the pheasant while everyone else spread out again, nibbling at the charcuterie board or helping themselves to soup.

“This really is perfect,” Bax told Nick as they stood beside the forge, checking the contents of the Dutch oven as heat radiated around them. There was something about the heat of a forge that had been in use for hundreds of years that felt primal and magical. Perfect for rituals of all kinds. Bax made a mental note to figure out other ways to use the forge in the future.

Assuming he would still be at Hawthorne House when other important celebrations rolled around.

Not that he was in a hurry to go anywhere.

“I don’t actually know what I’m doing,” Nick said.

There was a tightness and desperation in his expression as he said that, even though the words seemed casual on the surface.The way Nick gazed at him, like he was searching for the answer to an important question, filled Bax with the need to give Nick everything he could and more.

“You’re doing fine,” he said quietly, resting a hand on Nick’s arm. “I know this is all new to you, but really, you’re doing great. Just follow your instincts.”

He absolutely meant something other than orchestrating an Imbolc celebration. For a second, he was certain Nick knew what he meant, too. Nick leaned closer, but when Rebecca called from the other table, “Do you have the spoons for this soup over there?” Nick jerked away from Bax.

“I’ve got them,” Nick said, stepping back and reaching for a rustic basket on a stool beside the forge. He picked the basket up and grinned at Bax. “I made all these spoons. I went through a cutlery phase a few years ago.”

Bax had to take a deep breath to shift out of the intimate gear he’d been about to throw himself into. He made himself look at the basket of spoons. The spoons had his immediate attention once he saw how pretty they were.

As soon as the feast part of the evening truly got underway, it was easier for Bax to put aside his expectations and his disappointments. The Hawthornes really were a fun bunch. Growing up, they’d gotten into more trouble, and grown closer together while doing it, than most families ever were.

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