Chapter 13

Wow.

Just wow.

Who knew a kiss could be like that? All-encompassing. Hell, I felt it down to my toes.

Breathing in Atticus with the fresh mountain air was perfect. I let my eyes flicker open as I glanced up into Atticus’s handsome face. His pale green irises were so captivating as he gazed down at me. There was so much care in his eyes that my breath caught in my throat. He saw me, my flaws, my weaknesses, my current injuries, and he still wanted to kiss me. Nobody had ever looked at me with such devotion.

“So, are you hungry?” Atticus whispered against my lips.

“Huh?” I was hungry, but not for food. Shaking my head at my thoughts, I tried to get my frazzled brain working again.

“I made a picnic for us.” He pulled back, looking a little bashful.

“You made us a picnic?” I just couldn’t fathom the thoughtfulness of the man standing in front of me.

“Yes.” He chuckled. “Come on, I’ll show you.” He wandered back to the car and left me standing there in his wake.

I brought my hand up to my lips. They still tingled as the ghost of his kiss played in my head.

“Are you coming?”

I must’ve spaced out because Atticus was already sitting on a bench I hadn’t noticed, pulling things out of a thermal bag.

I slowly made my way over and took a seat, setting the crutches down out of the way.

“It’s nothing special, just some sandwiches and fresh fruit. There’s also water and coffee if you’d like.”

“This is amazing.” I was still in awe that he’d been so thoughtful to do this just for me. “Thank you.”

He handed me a sandwich and a bottle of water, and we sat there enjoying the view as we ate. We talked more about our lives and the mayhem we’d gotten up to in our teens.

“You really stole your Dad’s car? I can’t imagine you doing anything like that! That sounds more like Lyric.”

“Well, it was his idea. He and Seb dared me that I wouldn’t do anything that dangerous. So, of course, I had to prove them wrong. When Mama found out, I was grounded for a month. Thankfully Pa just thought it was funny,” Atticus said as a smile lit up his face.

“Your Pa sounds like a great man.”

“He was the best.” Atticus paused, looking fondly into the distance, before turning back to me. “Do you ever wonder about your parents?” he asked hesitantly.

“Yeah, I guess I’ve always wondered where I came from, but I made my peace with them a long time ago. I still get—or got I guess now—a Christmas card from the fire chief who found me, but that’s the only connection I have to my birth.”

“That’s nice of him. Do you try and keep in touch?”

“Not really, although, I think I’d like to. I was given the card when I was really young and didn’t understand who it was from or why they were sending me things, and then when I was old enough to understand, I was so angry at the world I didn’t cherish them or acknowledge them the way I should’ve.” It had been so long since I’d thought about the fire chief and his cards. He wouldn’t know my new address now when I finally had one, so I wouldn’t be getting another card ever again. This was another thing Derek had taken from me.

Atticus took my hand in his. “I don’t really know what to say. I’m sorry you’ve had to go through all this. Maybe when you get settled, we can look into telling him your new address or finding him somehow.” He sent me a soft, reassuring smile. All he wanted was to make things better. Sadly, from my experience, the world just didn’t work like that.

“Maybe,” I said and tried to return his reassurance.

After that, we switched topics, and he went on to tell me more about his family and Hope’s Ridge. The more he spoke, the more I considered, not for the first time, that maybe this was a good place for me. This idea was starting to have more to do with the man beside me than anything else, but he made me feel safe, which was something I hadn’t had in a very, very long time.

Once we’d finished eating, Atticus packed up, and we headed back to town.

“Would you like to come to my family lunch tomorrow?” Atticus asked shyly. “We have a big Greek feast. Usually all my brothers are there, a few friends, and Mama and Yaya. It’ll be fun, I promise.”

That sounded great, but all I could say was “Yaya?”

Chuckling, he shrugged. “Sorry. That’s Greek for grandma.”

“You want me to meet your grandma?”

“You’ve already met Mama. I’d love for you to come and meet the rest, and yes, Yaya, too.”

“As long as you’re sure it’ll be okay. I don’t want to put anyone out. Should we bring something?”

Atticus flashed me an amused look. “Don’t worry about bringing anything. There is always more than enough food. Mama and Yaya love to cook, and there’ll be enough food to feed an army.”

“I’ve never been to a big family event.”

Reaching over, Atticus took my hand and interlaced our fingers. “It’s okay. They’ll love you.”

My cheeks heated as I forced a smile. “I didn’t mean to say that out loud.” My insides felt warm with embarrassment as well as his sweet sincerity. I glanced down at his hand in mine and couldn’t help but smile.

We headed to Katerina’s house around eleven on Sunday morning. As we rounded the corner a large rustic Craftsman-style house came into view. I admired the house’s charm as Atticus parked the truck and we got out. I glanced around at all the cars in front of the house and on the street.

“Are these all for your family lunch?” My voice came out a little shaky as I gestured at nearly a dozen cars nearby.

“Probably. All my brothers are here, my cousins, and some friends, too. Most of the street will drop in at some point.” He took my hand and guided me up the front steps. We didn’t bother knocking as Atticus led us inside.

“We’re here!” Atticus shouted in greeting as we moved through the foyer, past a small sitting room, and then out toward the back of the house. I could hear the crowd already; it did sound like a lot of people.

As we stepped into the spacious, open-plan kitchen, the delicious smells made my stomach growl. Kat popped up from behind the kitchen island, startling me.

“You made it!” she exclaimed happily as she came around to greet us. She bypassed Atticus and swept me into a hug. “I’m so glad you decided to come! Welcome to our home.” She was practically vibrating with excitement.

“I’m here, too, Mama.” Atticus smirked at me.

She took the dish towel off her shoulder and swatted him with it. “Shush you. I see you all the time. Bodhi, here, is our guest of honor,” she said with little reprimand.

I shot Atticus a look. Guest of honor! What!?

She linked arms with mine and somewhat awkwardly guided me to the back door, Atticus following in our wake. As we stepped outside, I was able to take in the reason for all the noise. The patio and backyard were full of people. Most were on the deck, chatting around the few patio heaters, while kids of various ages ran around the adults and through the backyard. I could see a fire pit flickering through the people, a safe distance from the house. A group of older men were sitting around it, all laughing animatedly about something. I recognized a few people from Jolt, including Kay. Smiling, I sent him a little wave. He waved back, and the person he was with turned around.

“Finally! Atty and Bodhi are here. Does that mean we can eat now?” Lyric shouted as he bounded over to kiss his mom on the cheek, then punched Atticus’s shoulder in greeting. He had some very similar traits to a golden retriever that one of my foster families had owned. He was always full of energy and a little whacky. You couldn’t help but notice his shenanigans and whatever he was up to with how loud he often was. Smiling to myself, I had to giggle as Kat swatted at Lyric, just like she’d done to Atticus in the kitchen.

Shaking her head, Kat added, “O ómorfos tarachopoiós mou.”

“Aw, thanks, Mama!” Lyric turned to me. “She just called me her handsome troublemaker.” He sent me a puckish smirk.

Kat introduced me to a few people as we made our way around the crowd. Many asked about my injuries. I was just going to say it was an accident, but every chance Kat got she would start the full, rather dramatized story of how Atticus had injured me, then had to nurse me back to health. The first time she told the story Atticus tried his best to correct her. He seemed so embarrassed and remorseful, but eventually, he gave up and let his mom rib him with every new introduction. There were a lot of them. By the time she’d done a lap of the yard, everybody knew the story of my injuries.

I sent Atticus a reassuring smile. I didn’t blame him for startling me. The accident wasn’t his fault and I hope he knew that.

Eventually, after I’d met just about everyone at the party, a stout older woman with short salt-and-pepper hair came onto the back deck with a large platter of what looked like meat, and she set it on one of the many tables nearby.

“As fáme!” she exclaimed as Atticus and his brothers followed her out with large platters and set them around the other tables. There was so much food.

Everyone was bustling around, grabbing plates, then loading them with all sorts of deliciousness.

Atticus came over to me, where I was standing off to the side watching the chaos. “Come on. Let’s eat, and I’ll introduce you to Yaya.” He guided me to one of the food tables, handed me a plate, and filled it with a variety of meats, salads, dips, and breads. He went through each dish I was unsure about until I had a plate full of Greek delicacies.

We headed to one of the picnic tables that had been laid out for this occasion and sat with his Mom and the lady who had started the rush of people serving themselves.

“Yaya, there’s someone I would like you to meet,” Atticus said as we reached the table. “This is Bodhi. He’s new in town.”

“Bodhi, my dear, I have heard a lot about you. Come sit by me and let’s have a chat.” She spoke with a hearty accent as she smiled up at me, her bright brown eyes sparkling.

I quickly obeyed and sat down. Atticus sat across from me next to Kat.

“Hi.” I smiled politely and held out my hand to shake, even though my wrist was in a cast. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Oh dear. My Katerina told me all about your injuries.” She patted my cast with a delicate hand. “Are you feeling better? Is my engonós taking good care of you?” She shot Atticus a serious look. Leaning in conspiratorially, she sent me a wink. “You tell me if he’s not, and I’ll set him straight.”

“Fat chance of that,” Lyric called from where he was sitting nearby.

“You cut that out, young man, or no baklava for you.” Yaya sent Lyric a warning glare.

“I’m sorry, Yaya,” Lyric said quickly. “Pleeeease don’t take away my baklava!” he whined.

“You behave.” She turned back to me and muttered something under her breath in what must have been Greek because I didn’t understand a word.

“Now, you tell me you’re okay. Our Atty is taking care of you and treating you well?” She looked at me imploringly.

I couldn’t help my honest response as Yaya studied me with such... hope?

“Yes, he’s been taking such good care of me. He’s been so generous and so kind. I’ve never known anyone like him.” I could feel my cheeks heat as I glanced at Atticus out of the corner of my eye.

His smile took up his whole face as he beamed at me. The way he gazed at me made me feel like the only person in the yard, even though it was filled with people.

“Ah, I see he’s done well then,” she said, looking between us and our goofy smiles. “Now, how can we get you to make an honest man out of our Atty?”

She announced this just as Atty had taken a bite, and he started coughing. His mom was quick to smack his back so he could start breathing properly again. I poured him some water from a pitcher sitting on the picnic table.

“Are you okay?” I asked, trying to hold in my laughter at the shocked look on his face.

“Thanks.” He coughed and took a big drink. Once he could breathe again, he looked at his Yaya, who was sitting serenely, the picture of innocence—apart from the satisfied smile on her face. I’d never known a grandma could be so to the point.

“Come now, Atty, when hope drops such a wonderful young man in your lap, don’t you want to lock him down as soon as possible?” She seemed so serious that I was getting a little nervous. Was this how families and grandmas were supposed to act?

“Yaya, please!” Atticus shot me an apologetic look. “It’s not like that, really.” He added somewhat desperately. I was beginning to feel sorry for him and wanted to set his mind at ease.

“Maybe he should at least take me on a date first, and then we’ll see.”

Everyone at the table appeared stunned. Did I say the wrong thing?

Atticus looked shocked. “Would you really like that, to go on a date. . . with me?” He set his hand on mine and gazed into my eyes.

I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at his genuine shock. I mean, we did kiss yesterday. “Yes, of course I would.”

“Well, there you go, Yaya. I’m going on a date and that’ll have to be enough for now.” He finished pointedly.

The whole table burst into laughter, and I took a moment to squeeze Atticus’s hand reassuringly. We looked at each other, and I couldn’t believe I’d been crazy enough to suggest a date. Me! My heart soared. I was safe here with his family, and everything I’d seen so far told me Atticus was a good man.