Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 112917 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 565(@200wpm)___ 452(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112917 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 565(@200wpm)___ 452(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
I rolled my eyes. “Put that fur pelt away. You’re scaring people.”
Pearl made her way through the maze of people and leaped at me with a squeal. “Finally,” she said. “I told my friend Grace you were coming, and she didn’t believe me. She wants you to sign her harmonica if that’s okay.”
I nodded while blowing a few strands of her hair out of my mouth as she hugged me. The barest brush of Bear’s fingers across my lower back reminded me he was there and was more than happy to be the bad guy if and when I decided I’d had enough physical contact with people. All I needed to do was mention any word associated with fish—an inside joke I’d come up with after hearing how protective bears were of their salmon—and he’d step in.
It was a longtime understanding but one I rarely took advantage of when I was around my family.
I wasn’t touch-starved, exactly, but it was rare for me to get as much physical contact as I craved. And after the target stamping happened the first time, when I’d thought it was simply an overzealous fan who’d stamped me, I’d realized just how scary it was to be touched by strangers. I’d quickly gone from being very willing to hug fans when they approached to being more hesitant and more likely to lead with a fist bump instead.
This meant I was touched even less than before. My closest friends, my brotherhood, were touchy-feely. We all hugged quickly and easily. But I didn’t see them as often anymore, thanks to my hectic travel schedule.
So I appreciated it when Aunt Rinny came in and nudged Pearl away to give me a real hug. She held me tight and held on for a long time. “So freaking good to have you here,” she said in a low voice. “I missed your good sense and sweet face. Gosh, I wish you weren’t quite so successful. I’d like to have you around more.”
I knew she didn’t mean the part about my success. She was as proud of me as Gran was. But I also knew she meant what she’d said about wishing I was around more. And that made me feel truly loved and needed—for myself, not my cash or my clout—in a way I didn’t get much of.
Gran and Rinny were the real deal in my life, and that was why I’d needed so badly to come to Barlo before getting back on the road.
“Missed you, too,” I said, hearing the emotion in my own voice. “More than you can know.”
She pulled back and held my upper arms, meeting my eyes with wet ones of her own. “You come home whenever you need, hear? We will always be here for you. Always.”
I felt the tears come quickly, but I willed them to stay put in my eyeballs and not dare spill over in front of such a collection of random friends and family. My jaw tightened against the tremble in my chin, and I nodded firmly and quickly before clearing my throat to dispel the emotion.
“Need help in the kitchen?” If there was a crack in my voice, no one seemed to notice… except Bear, of course, who kept a close eye on me as I followed Rinny down the short hall and into Gran’s favorite room of the house.
The expansive kitchen was the heart of this home, and I could see several more friends and family members clustered around the breakfast bar half of the large kitchen island. Gran had various people cutting fruit and veggies to contribute to the day’s feast.
“Make yourself useful,” Rinny said, pointing to a large colander full of green beans next to the sink. “Snap and string those.”
I went to the sink first to wash my hands while several people called out greetings from the island. My friend Carrie-Beth suddenly started blinking fast, and I squinted at her to see if something was the matter with her eyes. Bear leaned in and lowered his voice until only I could hear it.
“Told you so.”
I glanced at him in confusion until I remembered something he’d said after our last visit here. “That ‘old friend’ of yours has a crush on you.”
My cheeks heated as I turned my head to whisper in his ear. “She’s barking up the wrong tree, but I did touch her boob once. It was nice. I can see why you’d be into it.”
Now Bear’s cheeks were turning pink, too. His eyes flared in surprise, and it seemed like they also held a little confusion. “Why I’d be into it?”
“Never mind,” I muttered, waving a dismissive hand through the air when I caught several people watching me. It was inappropriate to put him on the spot about his sexuality. I was his principal, not his friend, no matter how close I sometimes felt to him. I needed to remember that.