“No,” Yates practically growled stubbornly.
Lincoln’s eyes jumped with mirth. “You don’t really want to hang out with him anyway.”
Undetermined, unfortunately.
“The moment I cancel plans with any of your parents is the moment something is seriously wrong,” I chided, walking backwards towards Yates’s estate as the man followed slowly, his eyes tracking my steps as if he was worried I’d fall.
“Come over after?” King asked, his eyes shading with something serious all of a sudden. “We are hanging out at Dermot’s from now on, and I want you to see the place again. I have a decorator coming soon, andof courseI want your opinion on everything before we start remodeling.”
Oh, I loved interior design way too much. That was a dangerous game, asking my opinion. A small affectionate smile slipped onto my lips at his ‘of course,’ the phrase alone nearly convincing me to help him out.
“Shouldn’t Dermot pick?” I arched a brow curiously as King looked at his cousin, amusement on his face at a joke I didn’t understand.
Dermot looked over my expression before seeming to come to a decision. “Not really my thing. I would rather have your opinion.”
Yates muttered something unintelligible before tugging my hand gently, causing me to let out a small almost growl. “Yates, Iknowyou did not just pull me towards your house. You could have just asked—”
“Why are you always so difficult?” he muttered, my heart rate jumping a bit at our back and forth. Honestly, the man brought out a different side of me.
“I’mdifficult?” I pressed a finger to his firm, muscular chest, his tie absent from his neck so that he could unbutton the top two buttons of his shirt, showing off his golden skin. I wasn’t going to focus on that, though.
“You, Yates, have to be one of the most difficult men I know! Literally!”
“Last time I checked, you don’t spend time with other men besides us.” Yates stepped up into my space as I tilted my chin up, refusing to let him use his height and build to crowd me. He wasn’t wrong, though.
“You don’t know who I spend time with,” I teased, my smile growing as his eyes narrowed, turning into a deep charcoal as any humor disappeared.
Oh, he did not like that idea at all.
Maybe I would tell him I had another date coming up… I mean, I knew that was a surefire way to mess with him. We wouldn’t want this to turn into an unfair advantage or anything, and unfortunately, this man seemed to have me pinned down pretty damn well. Figuratively, not literally, unfortunately… not unfortunately. I’d never want to be pinned down by Yates. Promise.
“Do they argue like this a lot?” Dermot asked, causing both Yates and I to look towards the other four men that I’d briefly forgotten about amid our argument.
Sterling sighed, though he had a smile on his face. “Every. Single. Day.”
“We aren’t that bad,” I muttered and turned towards Yates’s house, striding towards our dinner plans.
Almost immediately, the man was walking next to me, offering a speculative look while placing a hand on my lower back. The heat of his palm warmed my skin and caused me to shiver, but I tried to stuff that feeling down. I would not be turned on while sitting at a peaceful and relaxing dinner with our parents.I would not let him affect me more than he already did.
While all of the houses on Wildberry Lane were similar in style, they each had a unique flair to them that captured their family’s personality. Yates’s house was unsurprisingly massive and made of marble, surrounded by stunning landscaping and a fountain in the center of the circular driveway. Honestly, it was not only gorgeous, but somewhat ‘in your face,’ which, if we were being honest, fit the man perfectly. I made my way up the large marble steps towards a set of white double doors that opened up to reveal Yates’s mother.
Almost instantly, I was surrounded by Chanel No. 5 perfume as Yates’s mom squeezed me in a death grip hug, and I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh as I hugged her back.This.This was why I loved this community. The families of Wildberry had become an extension of my own. Believe me, this was a dream for anyone, especially a girl who was seemingly abandoned by the people who brought her into this world.
“Dahlia, honey, I am so happy to see you!” She pulled back, her familiar silver eyes a perfect match to her son’s in their dime-colored metallic shade.
I had seen Mrs. Carter—or as she preferred to be called,Lilly—only earlier this morning while she and Yates’s dad were coming back from their walk. Every morning, sometime between nine and ten before Mr. Carter left for work, the two of them walked the cul-de-sac, down towards the gate, and back. It was not only sweet but necessary,justin case Lilly had a particular bad lapse in memory.
Around our junior year of high school, Lilly had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s, and while it was a slow progression, I did notice small lapses in memory when it came to short-term events. I think Mr. Carter felt like if she walked Wildberry every day, that it would stick as a familiar location in her mind no matter what happened. I hoped that was the case, but if she was ever lost, I would make sure she found her way home. Any of us would.
I knew the entire situation scared the mess out of Yates.
Something that he’d openly expressed to me before, which said a lot to how much it affected him. Then again, it was no secret that he was very close to his parents, so of course it was something that he struggled with. I imagine most people would.
Lilly always called Yates her ‘miracle baby’ because she had nearly died giving birth to him. I didn’t have details on why the birth was so complicated, but it did explain why they doted over him so much, not helping the fact that the man truly did act like a cocky, proud king of his own imaginary kingdom. Miracle or not, though, I wanted to hit him over the head. Often.
“I’m so glad you invited us over,” I gushed as I squeezed her hand. “I was thrilled when Yates stopped by to invite us.”
The man in question chuckled softly as I snapped my gaze around to offer him a warning look. I loved his family, but that didn’t mean I had to like him.