Page 30 of Surviving in Everton

“Fine, but I still think that’s the best way to do this,” Nate grumbles.

I’m just sitting here flicking my eyes between the two of them, wondering how bad of an idea this actually is.

“Don’t worry,A Stor, we won’t let him do anything stupid. We’ll get answers one way or another, andafterwe have those answers, if he deserves the ass beating Nate so desperately wants to give him, we’ll let him,” he explains.

“Well, that was comforting, until the end,” I tell him, rolling my eyes.

“What about you guys? What do you have planned for while we’re gone? Nothing too fun, I hope,” Ayden says.

I smile at him. “Oh yes. Remember that thing you always wanted to do? Well, I’m taking the kids to do it without you,” I tease.

“You wouldn’t!” He gasps in mock outrage and I can’t hold my giggle in.

“I have no idea what we’re doing, but it’s bound to be something fun,” I stick my tongue out at him and his nostrils flare.

“Don’t tease me, woman.” He groans and I bite my lip through my smile.

“Alright, it’s a long drive, time for us to head out,” Hudson announces.

We all stand from the table and I walk the guys to the door as Quinn gets the kids to help with cleanup. Once we’re on the porch with the door shut, we play their favorite game of pass the Rowen. Oh, who am I kidding, it’s my favorite game too. I hold each of them a little longer than normal and they let me, no one’s in a rush to let me go either.

“Okay, be good and be safe,” I demand pointing a finger at them.

“Of course, Rowe,” Hudson assures me at the same time Nate grumbles, “No promises”.

“You can stay home, you know,” I threaten him.

“You know if this wasn’t important, I would, Kitten. In a heartbeat. I would much rather spend time with you than in a car with these guys for eight hours. But we need to find out who did this to you, and this is our only lead right now, so I’m going. I promise to only do what’s necessary. That’s the only guarantee you’re gonna get from me,” he offers.

I take a deep breath and nod. “Okay, go before I change my mind,” I insist because if they stand here much longer I’m liable to just grab him and not let go, so he’s forced to stay.

“Okay, Kitten. Have fun with the kids,” he tells me before kissing me one last time and walking away.

I stand there watching them until they drive away, then I stand there staring in the direction they drove off. I’m pulled from my thoughts by little arms wrapping around me.

“It’s okay, Mommy. Don’t worry so much. Are you ready to go?” she asks me hopefully.

I smile down at her and let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding. “Yeah, I’m ready. Let’s go get Logan and Quinn and we can head out. You excited?” I ask her.

“Yes! Logan told me this zoo is so cool! I can’t wait to see all of the animals, Mommy! Do you think they have dragons? One of my friends at school told me dragons are real! How come I’ve never seen a dragon? I thought they were just make-believe,” she pouts.

I chuckle at her adorable pouty face. “I’m sorry, sweetie. That’s just one of the things about living in a non-magical town,” I tell her with a shrug. Not much else I can say about it. “But now that we live in a magical town, you’ll see all sorts of magical creatures,” I promise.

“Yay! I can’t wait! I’m gonna take pictures so I can show Emma and Chloe at school on Monday,” she exclaims.

“I’m sure they would love that, sweetie,” I tell her as we walk into the living room where Logan and Quinn are waiting for us. “You guys ready? We’ve got a big day ahead of us. This zoo is an hour away, but it’s the best zoo around,” I explain.

“Are there unicorns at this zoo?” Violet asks excitedly as we walk to the car.

“I don’t know, you’re just gonna have to wait and see aren’t you?” I tease her.

The kids spend the whole ride just guessing what types of animals are going to be at the zoo. They made a game of it, trying to guess something for every letter of the alphabet. I can’t wait to see the looks on their faces when we get there.

Chapter 14

Rowen

The drive seems to go fast with the guessing game going on. We finally park at the zoo and walk up to the ticket counter. Once we’re inside I stop at the fork in the path and ask the kids which way they wanna go first.

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