Page 102 of Lavender and Lightning

“Only if you do it on the dance floor. If you’re in the kitchen or even out behind the building, then—”

“Lucas!”

He laughs and I turn my head to give him a chastising glare, but that only makes him laugh harder. Rhett uses a finger to bring my attention back to him, and I go still at the serious expression on his face.

“I’ll do what I have to do to get you out of there safe. If that means breaking a few fingers or fracturing a kneecap, or cracking a skull—”

“Don’t put too much thought into this,” I grumble.

Rhett chuckles but continues. “There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to protect you, Lydia.”

I can’t help but melt at the depth of emotion behind his eyes. And even though I probably shouldn’t, knowing that Rhett isn’t afraid to cause violence in my defense makes me love him that much more.

forty-three

Lydia

Whenwemaketheturn onto the main drag of Chauvert, Louisiana, my stomach lurches into my throat. It’s like stepping four years back in time. Nothing has changed, not one business or bench. I know exactly how the inside of the ice cream shop smells, the sound of the bell on the front door of the pharmacy. And when we pull into a parking spot outside of the credit union and step out of the SUV, the air is thick with humidity, smelling slightly of decay as the breeze comes in off the bayou. The deep clanging of the church bell two blocks away marks the hour, and my head turns automatically in the direction of the steeple just visible over the top of the buildings.

“This is where you grew up?” Lucas asks, closing the back passenger door and looking around.

I nod, lost in memories. Jason and I riding our bikes the six miles from the house to spend our allowance on candy and comic books from the corner store, or to see whatever movie was playing at the single screen theater up the street. Going on my first date with my high school boyfriend at the family restaurant, being so embarrassed when I realized that Sam and Adam were watching us from a few tables away. Learning to drive and parallel park in my dad’s pickup truck in the residential streets that branch out away from this central artery.

“Not much to do,” Caleb mumbles, standing on the sidewalk in front of the car, looking up and down the street.

“Still plenty of ways to get into trouble,” I reply with a distant chuckle.

Like when Sam crashed his first car while street racing outside of town. Or when Jason and his friends got caught tagging the side of a building. Or when Adam’s friend broke his leg bridge jumping into the canal. And that’s only the times I know about. I was never given the freedom to roam like they had once I came into my designation.

Lucas slides his arm around my waist as we move to stand beside Caleb, and I look up and down the street for any sign of my brother. Rhett checks his watch before shoving his hands into his pockets. His eyes are hard, his jaw clenched into a serious line as he scans our surroundings. Caleb moves to my other side, adjusting so casually that any uninformed observer wouldn’t be able to recognize the flanking position.

“If y’all’d’ve told me that we’d be playing spies, we could have met in the park. There are some hungry ducks in need of attention.”

I spin at the sound of the deep Southern drawl, my face splitting in a wide smile at the first sight of my brother. I detangle myself from Lucas’s hold and run the few paces between us, launching myself at him, latching my arms around his neck in a tight embrace. Jason is tall like all of the men in my family, so when he straightens to his full height, he pulls me off my feet for a moment before setting me back down. The first inhale of his juniper and cucumber scent brings sudden moisture to my eyes, and I have to blink it away. That scent has been my safe place for so long, and I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed it.

“I can’t believe you’re actually here, Lydi,” he whispers in my ear.

“I missed you so much, Jace,” I reply, voice cracking slightly.

“I missed you, too.”

We break apart, and I look him over. He’s still as bulky as I remember, broad shoulders and muscled arms. His platinum blond hair is longer than I’m used to seeing, but it suits him somehow. He’s dressed in jeans and an open button-down, with a white t-shirt under it. I feel a little overdressed, with my black skater skirt and breezy white top, but I try to push the nervous feeling aside. Jason’s green eyes, twin in color and shape to my own, scan me as I assess him, and he smiles a lopsided grin when he gets back to my face.

“You look great, Lydi. Georgia is good for you,” he says fondly, a sly twinkle in his eye.

I roll my eyes at the subtle tease. I’m about to retort when I sense Rhett coming up beside me. Jason’s attention moves to him, spine straightening to his full height. He’s still a few inches shorter than Rhett, but his bulk makes up for the difference.

“You must be Jason. It’s good to finally meet you in person,” he says, holding out a hand to Jason to shake.

“You, too, man,” Jason replies, taking the offered hand.

The handshake lasts a moment longer than it should, and I catch how their knuckles whiten slightly as they squeeze, trying to get the other to flinch. Rhett’s pleasant smile never wavers and Jason’s eyes flash when he finally lets go.

“I’m Lucas, Rhett and Lydia’s other boyfriend.”

I jump as Lucas comes up and throws his arm back around my shoulders, squeezing between Rhett and me to shake Jason’s hand as well. If Jason is surprised by the bold introduction, he doesn’t let it show in his face. He just smiles and shakes Lucas’s hand, and I do notice the little quirk in Jason’s eyebrows as he feels the thick calluses from all the time Lucas spends wielding knives.

“He part of your harem, too?” Jason asks, nodding over our shoulders to where Caleb is still standing, hanging back.

---