All Grown Up (Eden High)

She giggled and blushed when I buckled her in before walking around to take my place in the driver’s seat, and for some messed up reason, I was glad that I was the first to do that for her. In fact, it suddenly hit me that all of her firsts were going to belong to me. That caveman DNA was on the rise again, and the thought was even more reason for me to take her back with me when I leave.

The thought of someone else sniffing around my girl behind my back was one that didn’t exactly sit well with me, and I tamped it down before I rage fit in the damn car for no reason. Maybe this is why Jace is so mental when it comes to Sian? I have no clue, but I don’t doubt that it’s thoughts like this that makes him and the others act out the way they do.

I used to roll my eyes and complain on the girls’ behalf when my brothers wouldn’t allow them to cross the damn street without them there. That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but not much. Anyway, I used to see their behavior as a bit much and way over the top, but now I’m not so sure. It doesn’t even feel like a trust thing, which is what I subconsciously always thought it was, but it goes much deeper than that.

Now it seems like more of a protective thing. Like an, I wouldn’t leave the house without one of my limbs sort of thing. It’s weird and ties my guts in knots but in a good way. I looked over at her next to me in the car, looking fresh and sweet, and all I could think is ‘this is mine’. I’ve turned into fucking Jace, or worst yet, Track. That’s a whole other bag of crazy.

“Did you have a good night, baby?”

“Yes, thank you, and you?” So polite!

“I missed you.” I started to tell her that it was much harder leaving her alone now that she was so close but thought better of it. Instead, I held out my hand, and she took it, leaving me to drive with one hand on the wheel as I maneuvered through the familiar streets.

Small talk kept my mind off of her scent that tickled my nose, and I smiled at how cutely innocent she was. The thought that someone was trying to mess with this innocent little thing made my teeth ache, and she had no idea that while she was prattling on about how excited she was to see the others for her birthday that I was plotting the demise of said asshole in my head.

The school parking lot was almost full because although the kids were given the option of online classes, this is Eden High; being here is like being on a damn Hollywood set; no one wants to miss a day. You can’t show off your latest designer purchase from your couch now, can you? I felt like a damn age snob as I looked at the knuckleheads walking around in groups the way my boys and I once did but for some reason seeing these kids as delinquents.

A rush of melancholy hit when I stepped out of the car and walked around to get her. The others had found their true loves here in their last year, and though I’d had the burn for her, she was still too young, so we’d missed out on the whole high school romance thing. There’s no way for me to pack all of that into the next few days, so I’ll have to find a way to make it up to her.

It wasn’t time for the bell to ring yet, and we stood next to the car while people watched and whispered. Some of them called out to us, and I acknowledged the ones I’d left to look after her with a nod. I’ll be having a talk with them later about the half-ass job they’d done, but I can’t have that conversation in front of her because then she’d know I had them shadowing her at school. I’ve been around my sisters in law long enough to know that that wouldn’t go over too well.

I used the guise of looking around at my old stomping ground to actually scope the place out, looking for anyone acting suspicious at my presence. I got sidetracked by the sight of a familiar car that I hadn’t seen in months, followed by another familiar jeep pulling into the parking lot. “Look who’s here, baby.”

She turned from where she was standing in front of me with my arms wrapped around her ass and let out a squeal when she saw Sian stepping out of Jace’s Phantom. The whole crew was here sans the babies, with the guys looking nefarious with bomb masks on their faces.