Across the Vanishing Sky (Starlight Grove, #1)(69)

Dex leaned closer to me. “Orion told her that he has her covered.”

I stifled a giggle as Kol glared at his brother. I was just glad that angry stare wasn’t directed at me.

“So, Brae,” Waylon said, handing me a gorgeous salad the glaring brother had made. “You moved from Oakland?”

I nodded as I dished some up for Owen and me. “Yes. I lived there for a little over eight years, but I grew up in Rhode Island. On the beach.”

“Big difference, Rhode Island to Oakland and Oakland to Starlight Grove,” Wylder suggested.

“It is,” I agreed.

“But Starlight Grove is the best, right?” Skylar asked. “We got mountains and rivers and lakes. And soooooo many animals.”

I grinned at the little girl. “It’s definitely winning me over day by day. And if I get to meet some of your alpacas, I think it’ll take the lead for sure.”

“You have alpacas?” Owen all but shrieked.

Skylar giggled. “I can show you after dinner. We can bring them treats.”

“What do alpacas like for treats?” I asked, curious.

Skylar leaned back in her seat, pulling up a mental list. “They’re a lot like horses. They like carrots and apples. But they also love bananas, watermelon, and pumpkin.”

“There are some watermelon cubes in the fridge for ya, Little Princess,” Waylon told her.

“Thanks, Grampa Way Way,” she said, reaching for a roll.

“What did you do in Oakland?” Kol cut into the conversation. His question didn’t feel the same as Waylon’s or Wylder’s. His felt a little more like an interrogation. But if it meant he’d stop giving Dex a hard time, I’d take it.

I lifted my plate so Waylon could put some brisket on it. “I worked for a small accounting firm as a receptionist and then their office manager. It’s how I learned bookkeeping.”

Wylder broke off a piece of his roll. “And thank God you did because I never want to look at QuickBooks again.”

The corner of my lips tipped up. “I don’t mind it. I actually kind of like it. There’s always an exact answer, no gray areas.”

Wylder chewed thoughtfully. “I get that.”

Maverick shook his head. “No way. The gray is where all the fun is.”

Kol let out a grunt. “Of course you think that.”

“Sorry, black-and-white boy, some of us like to live a little,” Maverick shot back.

“And by living a little, you mean nearly breaking your neck at every chance?” Kol argued.

Maverick shrugged. “At least I’m living.”

There was something there. A bite to the accusation. And I sensed it was a low blow.

Kol stiffened in his seat, divots carved into his cheeks from how hard he was clenching his jaw.

Shit. This had the potential to go bad. So I said the first thing that popped into my head.

“I hear you guys like hot sauce competitions.”





28





DEX





The entire kitchen went quiet, but I had to fight a laugh. Barely an hour with my family, and Brae already had a sixth sense for when things were about to tip into the danger zone.

“What?” she pressed. “Is that not true?”

Wylder set down his root beer. “We do, but it’s not something I would recommend you partake in unless you’ve got an iron gut.”

Brae shoved her chair back, crossing to where she’d dropped her tote bag with the little Bigfoot on the corner. Jesus. She and Waylon were a match made in heaven.

She crossed back to the table and began depositing hot sauce bottles across the center. “I did some research and found a few things. My gift to the group. Did you know there’s a little gourmet shop two towns over that has a whole wall of hot sauce?”

Orion had barely taken his eyes off her since his arrival. And it wasn’t in an interested way. It was in a looking-for-evidence way. He wanted to prove that she was the enemy combatant he hoped she was.

It annoyed the hell out of me.

As if he could feel my glower, his gaze flicked to me for the barest moment. I fought the urge to bare my teeth at him or flip him off. But his focus was already back on the woman next to me.

“What do you say?” Brae asked. “Hot sauce challenge?”

Maverick let out a hoot. “Will you marry me, Little Badass? You had me at boobie cookies and hot sauce.”

Brae laughed. “I already know I can’t keep up with you.”

“Damn,” Mav muttered. “A heartbreaker on top of it. Mad respect.”

I turned my glare from Orion to Maverick.

He lifted both hands in surrender. “Yeah, yeah. No looky, no touchy.”

“How about you try shutty uppy?” I suggested.

“That’s an almost swear,” Skylar informed. “It’s not nice to tell people to shut up.”

My lips twitched. “Noted, Little Princess.”

Skylar turned to Brae, lowering her voice to a comically conspiratorial tone. “Kick their booties. They’re always bragging about how many peppers they can handle.”

Brae slid back into her chair and leaned across Owen to deliver a whisper of her own. “I’m representing girl power tonight.”