Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 75656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“Only Blakely Kincaid,” I say to myself. That little girl marches to the beat of her own drum, and I love it. I love that Declan and Kennedy let her be who she is. I don’t know many little girls who would want to have a princess birthday party at a go-kart track.
Grabbing everything I need, I climb out of the car and make my way inside. I see the huge party room off to the right, and there is a dry-erase board on the window wishing Blakely Kincaid a happy birthday. Looks like that’s where I’m headed. Pushing open the glass doors, I step inside the room.
“Hey,” I greet Kennedy.
“Scarlett, hi.” She waves.
“Can I help with anything?” I ask, placing the gift bag on the table where a few gifts are already sitting.
“I think we’re all set up. They’re making the pizzas. We’re going to eat, ride go-karts, have cake, open presents, and probably more go-karts. We rented the room for the entire day,” she explains. “With my husband and his brothers, it was necessary. They love this place.”
“Big kids at heart,” I reply.
“You have no idea.” She laughs. “I was just situating the cupcakes and cake. Everything else was already set up when we got here.”
“That makes it nice.”
“It does, but there are so many of us even when we get together at one of our houses. It doesn’t take long to set up or take down with everyone pitching in.”
“Mom!” Blakely comes barging into the room. “Uncle Ryder beat Daddy!” Her excitement is contagious.
There are four little girls who trailed in after Blakely and look just as excited that Declan lost. “High five.” I raise my hands to Blakely first and then to each of her friends as we celebrate Ryder’s win.
“That’s what I like to see,” a male voice says. I look up to see Ryder. He grins and moves straight for Blakely. I watch as he lifts her into his arms and swings her around in a circle. Her laughter rings around the room, her friends cheering and asking for a turn.
Ryder places Blakely back on her feet, making sure she’s steady before moving on to each of her friends. The giggles of all four girls fill the room.
“You want a turn?” a deep voice says from behind me. I know it’s Archer. I can smell him. Sandalwood and something uniquely him. It could also be the way he rests his hand on my hip and squeezes gently before releasing me. It’s as if my body knows his touch.
“If I were six, I’d say yes.”
“What? You think I can’t lift you in the air over my head and spin you around?” He seems to be stunned that I would think that.
“I’m not fun sized like they are.” I nod toward the group of girls.
“Is that a challenge, Firecracker?”
“Is what a challenge?” Ryder asks.
“Scarlett here seems to think I’m not capable of lifting her in the air and swinging her around like you did those little ladies.” He winks at the girls, and the room once again fills with giggles.
Even at five and six, these girls know that the attention of a Kincaid man is something to celebrate.
Ryder smirks. “What, you think that arm porn is just for show?”
“I… don’t know,” I confess.
“What’s for show?” Maverick asks.
I turn to look over my shoulder, and somehow the room is now filled with Kincaids. I’m usually more perceptive, but Archer has a way of sucking my attention along with all of the air in the room.
“Are we putting on a show?” Merrick asks. He glances over at his niece and her friends with his brow furrowed.
“No. Scarlett is challenging Archer,” Ryder speaks up.
“No. No. No. That’s not what’s happening here.”
“Oh, I think it is. You’re not backing out now. Are you, Firecracker?”
“I didn’t say that either.” I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place here. I don’t want to show off at Blakely’s party. This is her day, but dammit, I don’t like to back down from a challenge either.
“What’s the challenge?” Declan asks.
“Scarlett doesn’t think I can spin her around like Ryder did with the girls.”
“I’ve got twenty on Arch,” Sterling says.
“We are not placing bets,” Alyssa scolds her husband. She turns to look at me. “But if we were, I’d put my money on Archer too.” She winks at me, and I can’t help it. I laugh.
“Fine. If you want to show off your arm porn and the skills it took you to get it, who am I to stop you?” I stand up tall and square my shoulders. I know that in about two seconds, he’s going to have his hands on me, propelling me into the air, and I have to seem unaffected. It’s not that I don’t think that he can do it. It’s more that my self-preservation was hoping he would back down.