Page 69 of A Love Like Pumpkin Spice
“What the fuck?” I turn fully to look at him, as Chaos gets up and jumps down onto the couch pillow.
“That’s what I said,” he chuckles. “That little accusation could have cost me my job and my entire future. Thankfully, the cops already thought he was full of shit, and when they came up empty after searching my room, I was cleared.”
“Thank God,” I whisper, drawing a pattern over his shirt with my finger.
“What I’m trying to say is ‘I don’t mind’ would be an overstatement. Jay and Marissa are not your responsibility. Whatever they’re doing, whether it’s beef with people from our town or bringing down your mood, it’s not your fault,” he continues, and every word hits closer to home. When he calls Wayward Hollow “our” town, I’m one breath away from bursting into tears again.
“It’s just so unfair,” I mumble, cuddling against his side. “I know I keep saying that, and life isn’t fair, but everyone always talks about karma and …” I take a deep, shaky breath. “Right now, it feels like they will never get their comeuppance. They get to be shit people their whole life, and it only benefits them. Now they are parading around town with this we-can-do-whatever-the-fuck-we-want attitude, because theyknowthere won’t be consequences. There have never been any. And I’m sick of it.”
I glance up at him, gnawing on my lip as I carefully choose my next words. “All my life, I’d hoped Marissa would get knocked off her high horse and land in the mud.”
His curious stare drills into the side of my face, and I pretend to watch TV while I continue.
“God, that makes me sound mean. But, you know, I thought if she finally got consequences, it would force our parents to finally open their eyes and realize what kind of person they raised.” Cinnamon moves in my lap and I run my fingers through her soft fur, smiling when I hear her purr.
“To be fair, I’d hoped it was in her best interest, but it was also my own chance at schadenfreude.”
He chuckles and I grin when he presses a kiss to my temple.
“You want to know what happened to my buddy after the drug incident?” he asks softly and I nod.
“He caught a grip. A few months after I moved out, he messaged me and apologized for being a shitty friend and roommate. I think he’s some kind of computer hotshot nowadays, but it took the police, a few nights in county jail, and rehab for him to realize how badly he’d messed up.”
“The difference is I’m pretty sure neither Marissa nor Jay will ever reach that point,” I say, and take a deep, frustrated breath.
“Marissa has her head so high up her own ass, she’s basically wearing herself as a crown. In her mind, she is the main character. The only person in the whole wide world who matters. Nothing can happen to her. Nobody ever tells her no. And if they do, she’ll just pretend they didn’t. Because there won’t be consequences.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose.
“Maybe you’re underestimating Erik,” Henry mumbles, and I nod against his shoulder.
“I sure hope so,” I admit, softly tracing a subtle line of different colored fur on Cinnamon’s back. “But all I can do is wait. And I hate waiting and not being able to do anything. It makes me feel helpless.”
I sigh as he tightens his arm around my shoulders, pressing another kiss to my head.
“Their time will come,” he assures me. “Mr. Peterson already volunteered to run them out of the city with torches and pitchforks.”
I shoot him an amused smile. Paired with Lauren’s offer of playing one-sided dodgeball with Jay, Marissa and some pumpkins, it makes for a very amusing picture in my mind.
“I’m just saying it could be a highlight of the autumn fair,” I say with a giggle and cuddle further into him. “Can we chant the song fromBeauty and the Beastwhile we do it? ‘Kill the Beast’ seems fitting.”
“I’ll be in the first row,” he assures me. “Just have to get my pitchfork out of the basement.”
He pulls me into his lap, much to Cinnamon’s dismay.
“We got this, Nic. Whatever happens.” He whispers against my temple, and I exhale all the tension and doubt that have been building over the day.
God, I’m so lucky Chaos brought me to him.
Chapter 28
Henry
“Aww, there’s our grandchild,” my mom coos as soon as she opens the door for Jensen and me, her gaze immediately dropping to my dog. She’s in her usual weekend getup—a soft sweater, reading glasses still perched on her head, and that warm smile that somehow takes me right back to being six years old.
Jensen immediately barrels inside their house, tail wagging so furiously he’s about to lift off the ground, and singing the song of his people. His excited tippy-taps echo through the hallway as he zigzags indecisively—torn between saying hi to my mom or my dad first.
“No, Jensen, down,” I say sternly when he decides to greet my mom first and jumps at her. My mom has owned dogs all her life too and doesn’t give him any attention until he sits at her feet calmly, only his wagging tail to show how excited he is.
