TACK

I wake up to another day with Hunter at my side. We already have a morning routine. Hunter and I talk in bed and check our messages before showering together and joining Siobhan and the twins for breakfast.

With anyone else, I'd likely get hostile over sharing my space so much. With Hunter, I feel like our entire lives have been leading to this comfortable moment.

This morning, Siobhan sits between her girls and plays word games. Around us, people seem restless from staying at the farm so long. I spot Indigo wandering around the dining hall, unsure where to sit his ass. When I call his name, he seems leery about joining Hunter and me.

After breakfast, Hunter and Siobhan bail on me so they can take care of Carys. I'm unsure what to do with myself. Before I can hunt down Indigo, I run into my foster dad.

Elvis is a big guy with a thick head of dark hair and a strong chin. He smiles easily, loves to dance, and lives on his own terms. I took a long time to trust his easygoing behavior. My dad was a piece of shit but could fake a warm personality. Elvis, though, really is a fun guy.

"How are you feeling, bud?" Elvis asks and gestures toward my stomach.

I pat it harder than I should and shrug. "I've felt worse."

"But you've also felt better," Elvis replies. "How are you up here?"

When he gestures to his head, I exhale deeply. "I don't need a pep talk."

"How many girlfriends have you had before, sport?"

Rolling my eyes, I mumble, "I get it."

"No, you don't. Dating is a whole different monster than what you've experienced before. And Hunter isn't just any chick. She's a rich girl with options, and you've been waiting for a long time. That's a lot of pressure."

"I'm fine."

Elvis tilts his head and murmurs, "You look pissed off."

"Hunter and I are doing good."

"You can't know. Things are wild at the beginning of the romance. Everything is fun. But you're also dealing with people trying to steal away your woman. Hunter's a strong woman, but everyone has a breaking point. And there you are saddled with the pressure of keeping her safe and sane. If you can't see it's a lot to deal with, maybe you need glasses."

Elvis's fun, almost goofy vibe can be jarring after dealing with his younger brothers. Some people wrongly view him as a lightweight. But he owns the ability to break through an asshole's walls. That's why I'm suddenly feeling insecure and looking for his approval.

"I don't want her to leave," I admit, glancing around to make sure no one hears me sounding like a worried bitch.

"She's gotta go sometime. The farm doesn't fit a rich girl like Hunter."

"If the farm doesn't suit her, how can I?"

"Well, chicks like to slum it, kid."

Elvis throws his head back and laughs loudly at whatever he sees on my face. He pats my shoulder, and I fight the urge to smack away his hand.

"You're a member of the Backcountry Kings," Elvis says through his chuckling. "That makes you royalty in Banta City. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

"So, I am good enough for her?"

"You know the answer to that shit, Tack. But this dating thing is new for you. That's why you're acting like a little bitch."

Shaking my head, I mutter, "Suzanne will be back in Banta City soon."

"And you're worried she'll meddle in your relationship."

"Yeah, she can't think I'm good enough, right?"

"Did you forget how her other daughter is already married to a biker? This shit is old news for Suzanne."

Sighing, I shake out my shoulders and look around. "I don't know."

Elvis starts walking toward the woods and gestures for me to follow. "Let me tell you a story while we check the traps."

Tailing him, I think of the many times he'd take me walking when I was on edge. I'm not sure if I should be insulted by how this tactic still works.

"Back in the day, my brothers and I did work for Aunt Fred's dad. That's how I first met her. As you know, Rooster Dick was a stone-cold loon. He had all those kids and two wives who were more in love with each other than with him. That whole family is crazy as fuck. In the middle of all the chaos was Winifred, looking finer than any other woman in the world. The first time she flashed her shy smile in my direction, I was a man in love."

As we check traps along the inner perimeter, I smile at his words. Elvis and Aunt Fred were the first happy couple I ever saw. I have zero doubt my parents loved each other, but their love came out as venom. Our neighbors argued all the time, too. Most of the foster families I stayed with were cold with the dad shitting on the mom who then shit on the kids.

That's why I figured Elvis and Aunt Fred were pulling a con on us kids with their happy marriage performance. But he makes her laugh, and she is always building him up. I was mostly surprised by how gentle they were with each other. I never realized people could be soft if they weren't trying to get laid.

"The first time I went to pick up Winifred at her family's bar, I walked into a fucking madhouse," Elvis says as we keep walking through the dense woods. "Her brothers immediately started fucking with me. Her sister was right up my ass. Dot kept asking why I wanted a boring fuck like Winifred instead of a hot bitch like her. They were literally poking at me, trying to start a fight. At one point, I thought Caveman was going to set me on fire. Even though I knew that's how the Callaghan family did shit, it was still scary as fuck."

Despite Aunt Fred being a soft-spoken woman, her family has crime and crazy flowing through their veins. That's why the foster boys' antics never fazed her. She'd seen, heard, smelled, and dodged it all before.

"But I never forgot why I was there," Elvis says as we circle back toward the houses. "I wanted Winifred like I'd never wanted anything in my life. She owned this real special part of me. So, I let her family push me around and give me grief. I knew fighting back wouldn't help. I just smiled and joked around like they were fun people instead of nutjobs. Dot stopped hassling me, and Caveman quit trying to set me on fire. Once the madness peeled away, there was my prize wearing her shy smile and wanting only me."

"That's the kind of magic I want with Hunter."

"And you'll get it. But right now, you're in the madness part of the courtship. You might feel like you're sinking in the chaos, but Hunter is your lifeline. Just hold onto her and know the madness will eventually peel away, leaving you with your prize."

"What happens then?"

Elvis smiles at my question or maybe my tense tone. "You live your life, Tack. You get up, work, play, and fuck. Every night, thank your lucky stars that you have a body that works, a mind that's sharp, and a woman who's offered her heart. Life's not complicated. When you don't know the answer, you need to ask someone for help. Hunter knows how to do that. Can you put your ego aside long enough to look around and realize you have a big fucking family ready to throw you a lifeline?"

We stand back in the clearing between the two main farmhouses. I hear kids laughing, dogs barking, and music playing. Somewhere on the farm, Hunter is with her friends. She has embraced the chaos of my life. I'm less certain about how I'll deal with the posh elements of hers.