Page 68 of Until It Was Real

“The introductions are done,” Kai declares. “Let’s go enjoy my birthday!”

“At a petting zoo,” Dakota mutters.

Paisley giggles. “You should have been there for the last birthday. We went toMermaid Mystical Gardens.It was a blast.”

Eli snorts. “We got kicked out.”

Paisley purses her lips. “We did not get kicked out.”

“They asked us to vacate the premises.”

“But they couldn’t catch us to kick us out.”

Dakota giggles. “And here I thought you were some brainiac.”

“Nah.” Paisley shakes her head. “Jaxon’s the brainiac. I’m the chemistry nerd.”

“I’ll amend the distillery meeting notes to reflect the proper names,” Dakota sasses and I grin. She’s going to fit in with this group of misfits just fine.

“Come on.” Kai motions to us from the entrance, where he’s already waiting.

“I’ve plotted out a route,” he says when we reach him. “We’ll begin with Captain Cluck. Then, it’s off to visit Rumrunner the mischievous goat, Bootlegger the miniature donkey, Old Salty the llama, the mer-cows and the mer-pigs, and we’ll finish at the tortoise race.”

“What are mer-cows and mer-pigs?” Dakota asks.

“Mer-cows are cows that swam to shore from a shipwreck,” Kai explains. “And Mer-goats resemble mermaids with their unusually long, silky coats.”

“I brought my flask.” Paisley offers it to Dakota, who holds up her hand.

“I’m not much of a drinker.”

Zane sighs. “And here I thought you were cool.”

“Unlike you, I don’t need to drink to be cool.”

I chuckle, and Zane glares at me. “He doesn’t drink much either. You two are meant for each other.”

Yes, we are. But not because of some bullshit about not drinking.

Once the others finish sipping from the flask, we begin walking through the petting zoo. I hold Dakota’s hand as we stroll. I was never much for holding a girl’s hand but Dakota’s different. Touching her is an addiction I have no desire to cure myself of.

“Ta da!” Kai motions to a chicken. “Meet the seafaring chicken, Captain Cluck.”

“Seafaring?” Dakota asks.

Before anyone can answer, the chicken clucks and flies up to land on my shoulder. I try to shove him off, but he digs his claws in. “Go away, Captain Cluck.”

Dakota bursts into laughter. “And here I thought all birds hated you.”

I glare at her. “Plank is an asshole.”

My words cause her to double over in laughter. “Only Mr. High and Mighty would say a parrot is an asshole.”

“Can someone get this bird off of me?” I ask my family.

Eli taps his chin as he studies me. “I bet he can’t keep Captain Cluck on his shoulder for five minutes without losing his control.”

Zane rolls his eyes. “This is Mr. Control. He’ll make it thirty minutes.”

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