Page 41 of Stay With Me
Axel scoffs from his side of the table, drawing our attention to him. “If I had a counselor that looked like you when I was 16, cher, maybe I wouldn’t have dropped out.” My skin heats, a blush creeping up my neck. Axel is an attractive man in his own right. He’s got nothing on Everett, but still.
“Damn, a school full of teenage boys? Maybe I should reconsider,” I joke and everyone laughs.
“I’m just sayin’ if the scenery is as pretty to look at as you are, the line for counseling is gonna stretch out the door,” Axel adds, shooting me a cocky smirk.
“Ya know, I’d really hate for this to be your last day on earth, bayou boy.” A familiar deep rumble comes from the doorway and we all turn to see Everett barely holding himself up against the wall.
“Oh my god, what the hell are you doing?!” I shout, jumping up and racing across the room to help him. I ease his weight onto my shoulders as he leans into me, never breaking eye contact with Axel.
“Everett, knock it off. Sit down right now.” Ember drags a chair next to me and I help him drop down into it. He winces almost imperceptibly but still stares Axel down.
“Don’t you worry, couyon. Ain’t nobody here tryin’ to steal your woman,” Axel replies with a salacious smileon his face. He knows he’s playing with fire, but he just doesn’t care.
“Ça suffit!” Owen’s loud voice booms, and I see Axel’s expression falter. “The boy is still on the mend. Don’t make all Doc’s hard work go to waste when he kicks your ass, Axel.”
Axels scoffs loudly, pushing off from the table and getting up, “Allons-y!” The other mEmbers of the Bayou Reapers stand and follow behind Axel as he stomps away.
“You’ll have to excuse my son. He’s always been a bit of an asshole,” Owen laughs.
“I’m sure that’s landed him in some trouble a time or two,” Eli replies.
“Shit, you have no idea. I heard you say y’all have kids?” Owen asks.
“Yeah, twins. A boy and a girl,” Ember adds with a sweet smile. I know she misses her babies twice as much as I do.
“Bless y’all, they’ll give you a time, I’m sure. When they’re older, that is. But children are the pieces we leave behind in this life, joie de vivre,” Owen says with a grin that almost looks sad. I don’t speak French, but the love he has for his son shines in his eyes.
“The joy of living. Thats about right,” Everett says, reaching for my hand.
“Hold up, you speak French?!” I gasp.
“Un peu,” he replies, holding his fingers an inchapart. “But that’s Cajun French, right? Whole different ball game there, goddess.”
Owen laughs, nodding his head. “Different dialects down here, doll. But in the end, it’s all French.” He shrugs.
Breaker’s phone rings and he picks it up, mumbles a few words to the person on the other side, and hangs up. I swear that man could have an entire conversation with nothing but grunts.
“Helo said he’ll be here in about four hours,” he says, standing and walking out the back door.
“A man of few words, he is?” Owen asks.
“You nailed that,” Rory answers.
“He’s just upset because he’s madly in love with Rory and doesn’t want to be,” I joke, and Rory turns fifteen shades of red.
“Shut up, Kelsea. He can’t stand me,” Rory grumbles.
“Le coeur sait toujours,” Owen says, shaking a finger in her direction before he leaves. Everett laughs quietly to himself at whatever nugget of wisdom Owen just dropped and we all stare at each other, clueless.
“Whatever. I’m gonna go pack,” Rory says, standing and stomping out of the room.
“Let’s get our shit together, sunshine. I wanna see my babies,” Eli says, pulling Ember up and pushing her gently down the hall.
“You ready to go home, babe?” I ask Everett, knowing this experience has affected us all.
He stares into space for a few moments before nodding. “Yeah, I’m ready. Can’t believe I’m actually excited for shit to be normal again.”
“Let’s get you back in bed while I pack and get instructions from Doc. Four hours is plenty of time for you to get some rest.” Helping him to his feet, I support his weight as we make our way back to our room. He doesn’t even try to argue, so I know he must be exhausted. Shifting him back onto the bed, my curiosity gets the better of me. “Hey, Ev?”
