Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Maybe.
“Perfect.” Kissing his cheek, I nodded toward the passenger door. “Is Daddy getting the door or are you?”
He was adorable as he overthought the situation and finally shrugged. “You can do it. They’ll think we’re playing pretend anyway.”
Good point.
“Yeah, no matter what we do they’re going to spin their own narrative. We just need to focus on giving them your perfect stares and making them think they’re nuts.” I didn’t need to be nice to nosy lunatics who were going to make my boy nervous.
Paxton took another breath and sat straighter again. “Yes, I’m boring and I don’t deal with nosy people.”
“Perfect.” He looked almost grown-up. There was something playful in his expression, but I had a feeling most of the nuts in the diner wouldn’t notice. “Let’s go and I’ll open the door because I want to hold your hand.”
His adorable blush made him look little to me but it was fading quickly. “Daddy…”
He was totally going to out us.
“Yep.” Giving him a peck on the cheek, I got everything in order and hopped out of the Jeep. He was mostly boring looking by the time I got around to the passenger seat, but he wasn’t as relaxed as he had been. “I will defend you against weird questions.”
His lips pressed together to keep from smiling and he nodded seriously as I helped him out of the vehicle. “Thank you, Fraser.”
That sounded so awkward he cocked his head and frowned as he stepped closer to me. “Oh, that…”
“Just don’t say my name.” Kissing him one more time, I closed the Jeep and started heading inside. If I waited for everything to be perfect, we’d never get lunch or make plans for the hike. “It’s going to be fine.”
Mostly because half the diner was empty.
Even Paxton noticed something was off and leaned close to me to whisper. “Where is everyone?”
He was good and his voice had been so low even other dragons wouldn’t have heard him, but neither of us were subtle enough. Alick’s mate laughed as Alick waved us over. “Everyone nosy or bossy is over at the VFW coming up with some new clubs.”
Saved by the overachievers.
But all Paxton heard was the comment about the VFW Hall and he tugged on my hand. Yep, I knew what that meant and I also knew we wouldn’t get a better chance to talk about their wedding. My sigh had Paxton nodding and our lunch guests looking at us curiously.
“This is going to be awkward. But hi.” Dragging a nearly giggling Paxton over to the table, I plunked us down on our side of the booth, Paxton on the inside to protect him from the lunatics. “But we won’t get another chance to talk where no one is going to pay attention to us.”
Their heads cocked in almost perfect unison and Paxton started coughing to cover his snickers. I just shot him a glare. “Stop that. You’re going to make me laugh and then we won’t get it out before the old men come back.”
Paxton and our two lunch companions all started nodding.
“Okay, are you guys aware that the VFW Hall has been rented out for your wedding next month?” Their wide eyes said they had not been aware of that interesting fact.
Paxton made a soft hum, so he’d realized how startled they were too.
When I got nothing from the other two guys, I tried again. “I overheard gossip and it’s entirely possible I got it wrong, but I don’t think so. I don’t know if they’re planning on surprising you or if they think someone else already tattled, but they’re up to shenanigans.”
Alick and Grady both groaned as they came back to life, and Alick tilted over to plop his head on his mate’s shoulder. “That’s why the texts stopped. Once you told them what kind of white was best, that was all they needed to just charge right on ahead.”
Grady scoffed. “You were the one that told them what flowers you were passionate about. That has to be what threw them over the edge.”
I was pretty sure it was the combination of all of it that had given the old farts the ammo they needed, but I wasn’t sure it was my place to tell them that. Before I could figure out my response, though, Paxton leaned over the table and kept his voice at a whisper. “Can one of you explain why you need stuffed animals at a wedding? I really don’t know if that’s…cultural, or well, cultural.”
Dragons and littles?
That seemed to be how we all took his comment because Alick and Grady turned to each other and I knew they were having a private conversation. Paxton and I were patient but he slid close to me and brought his lips to my ear. “We’ll be able to do that too, right?”