Cricket (Cricket Kendall Book 1), page 31
“Anything.” His voice is so genuine and endearing.
“Well, we took an Uber home last night, and I’m pretty sure my brothers don’t remember where they left their car. I have the address, but it’s like forty-five minutes from here.”
“Don’t worry.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “We’ll head over in a few hours to pick them up and help them go get their car. That’s not a big deal at all. What time are you working until?”
I exhale in relief and smile into the phone. “Between one and one-thirty, I think.”
“Text me the address, and we’ll see you then. And listen. It makes me feel so fucking giddy to have you ask for my help like this. I would do anything in the world for you, little witch.”
“Ugh, you’re totally making me blush now.”
“You’re fucking adorable when you blush.” He growls quietly.
I make a purring noise in the back of my throat and widen my eyes in horror at myself. “I’ve got to go now. But seriously, thank you so freaking much. You’re amazing!”
“Good luck, little witch!”
I hang up the phone and smile at it. I don’t think Emerson and Killian will mind. They said they like the guys. I wonder what I might have said to Theo when I called him last night, but it’s too embarrassing to consider. I walk into Mrs. Gallagher’s studio and try not to think about it.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Killian
I’m woken up by the sound of low voices, but I’m way too groggy to make out what they’re saying. I stir and crack my eyes open. God, the light fucking hurts. It takes me more than a few seconds to recognize Cricket’s guy friends standing above me.
I rub a hand over my eyes and groan. “Fuck, what time is it?”
The moody one crosses his arms. “Almost eleven.”
I know their names, but I’m way too messed up right now to bother trying to remember them. The funny one hands me a glass of something. I figure it’s probably one of Aurora’s nasty concoctions, so I don’t hesitate to take it from him and chug it down. After a few seconds, my headache is gone and my vision is no longer blurry.
“Thanks, bros. What’s up?” I grin up at the guys.
Theo chuckles. I can remember their names again. “Cricket asked us to help you guys get your car since you took an Uber home.”
Em stirs from the other side of the bed and looks up at the guys with a mean scowl. “If you guys want to sleep with our sister, you’re trying way too fucking hard.”
Their faces fall. Goddamn it, Em. I punch his arm and grumble, “Come on, dude. She’s their friend.”
Emerson sits all the way up and glares at me. He can be the meanest motherfucker when he’s hungover like this. It doesn’t help that shit is weird between him and Luca right now. Cricket and I tried to get him to talk to us about it last night, but he refused. I take the other glass Hollis is holding and shove it at my twin brother. He downs it and grimaces.
“Sorry.” He blinks at the guys. “Where is Cricket, anyway?”
I feel weird sitting in bed while the other guys are standing around the guest room. So, I stand up and stretch. I’m still in my clothes from last night. Honestly, I barely remember getting home at all.
“She’s at work. Today’s her first day at that yoga studio around the corner from here,” Hollis says.
Emerson snorts and rubs his eyes. “Cricket got a fucking job?”
Cas is still scowling, but I’m pretty sure that’s his version of resting-bitch-face. He shrugs his shoulders. “She says she needs to meditate more to help her keep her magic in check. She thinks working there will be good, and she seems excited about it.”
Emerson gapes at him now, but I feel myself grinning like a maniac. I knew it. I fucking knew she told them about being a witch.
“What the fuck? She told you guys? She’s only known you for a couple of weeks! Cricket has never told anyone outside of our family before,” Emerson says, rubbing a hand over his face.
I roll my eyes and wave my hands at him. He’s fucking daft if he doesn’t realize there’s something off about these guys in the same way there’s something off about Cricket and Aurora. They’re not witches, but I’d bet my life they’re something else. I have a few theories already.
“Come on, it was fucking obvious. She trusts them.” I narrow my eyes at the guys. “But what do you mean, keep her magic in check?”
Theo glares at Cas with his arms crossed. “Goddamn it, Cas. Cricket said she was going to tell them.”
“I figured she already did! And it’s not like we’ve been fucking subtle since they got here.” Cas holds his arms out and widens his eyes.
Hollis rolls his eyes at his friends and finally answers my question. “Cricket says her magic has been getting a lot stronger since she moved here. We’ve been helping her.”
Em and I look at each other. She didn’t tell us that either. Cricket used to tell us practically fucking everything. Emerson frowns slightly. “How much stronger?”
Theo, Hollis, and Cas get really excited smiles on their faces and describe some of the shit they’ve seen Cricket do. I’m pretty fucking dumbfounded. I’ve always been so proud of my little sister and her magic, but from what these guys are saying, her gift has completely surpassed what our family has always expected.
It doesn’t escape my notice these guys are totally in awe of Cricket. They’re not scared of her, and it sounds like they’ve each completely embraced Cricket with all of her quirks and witchiness head on. I knew they liked her, and I’d been honest with my baby sister when I said I thought they were pretty cool guys. But I feel my respect for them growing exponentially.
“Mom is going to flip the fuck out.” Emerson shakes his head at me as he gets up and gets his shit together for a shower.
“Dude, don’t fucking tell her yet. It’s fine. Cricket turns eighteen in a couple of weeks. We already suspected something like this was going to happen.” I grab my clothes so I can shower upstairs in Cricket’s room.
The guys offer to wait in the bookshop while we’re getting ready. I rush upstairs to Cricket’s room and get ready as fast as I can. I’m determined to figure out what’s going on with Cricket and these guys more than ever. The only way I’m going to figure it out is by hanging out with them. Cricket isn’t going to divulge anything to us.
When I get downstairs, I see a girl with curly brown hair behind the register. I can’t remember her name, but she’s glaring toward the back of the shop. Figuring the guys must be somewhere in the stacks, I head in that direction.
Before I even turn the corner around one of the shelves, I hear Theo’s voice. “Sorry, I can’t.”
“Aww, come on. You used to love playing with us. Especially together.”
I walk into the aisle quietly. Hollis is the only one who notices me. There are two girls—one blonde and one brunette—clinging to Theo’s waist and smiling up at him. Cas has this mean fucking glare on his face, and even I can admit it would scare the fuck out of me if I was his target.
Theo pushes the girls away until they’re at arm’s length. “You guys know I’m with Cricket.”
I raise one eyebrow as I slowly walk up behind them. Hollis smiles but doesn’t say anything.
The brunette girl pouts. She probably thinks it’s cuter than it is. “I don’t see Cricket here now.”
“She’s always here in my heart,” Theo says.
Cas snorts, but he doesn’t stop glaring. Hollis bites his lip and glances sideways at me again. I feel myself grinning too. Man, that might be the cheesiest fucking thing I’ve ever heard.
The blonde girl puts her hands on her hips and scoffs. “You know, Cricket is telling people you aren’t even together.”
Theo turns his head and sees me. He looks surprised, but he just smiles at the girls and shrugs. “A guy can dream, right?”
The brunette keeps up the pout and turns to Cas. “Well, what about you? Are you too busy?”
“Fuck off.” Cas snarls.
When the girls turn their eyes to Hollis, he coughs and looks up at the ceiling. I almost burst out laughing. You’ve got to love his approach.
I throw my arms around Theo’s and Cas’s shoulders, since they’re closest to me. “Sup, bros?”
“What the fuck? I didn’t even hear you, dude.” Cas jerks back.
Hollis and Theo laugh. The blonde and brunette perk up and run their eyes over me. I can’t help glancing back and forth between them. They’re pretty hot, both wearing super short shorts and tee shirts tied off to show their midriffs.
The blonde puts her hand on my chest and gives me a flirty smile. “Who’s your friend? Does he want to play with us?”
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t slightly tempted. But they’re definitely still in high school. Besides, I prefer to chase girls. It always makes the sex so much better.
“No, thanks. I’m good.” I grin at them.
“This is Cricket’s brother, Killian, I think.” Theo pats my shoulder, giving me a half-smile.
Damn, he got it right. People can almost never tell me and Emerson apart. I nod my head and hold my hand out for a fist bump. Emerson comes walking around the corner into the aisle. He barely glances at the girls before raising an eyebrow at me and the guys. Without another word, we make our way outside to Theo’s jeep.
Not gonna lie, I’m pretty jealous of his jeep. It’s fucking nice. I really want to see the other guys’ cars too. Especially Cas’s. I pray they’ve changed their minds about letting Cricket drive. Somehow, I end up sitting in the middle seat in the back between Cas and Hollis because I’m the smallest. Which is seriously a fucking joke, because I work out almost as much as Em does, and I’m pretty ripped.
After we’ve been driving for about five minutes, Emerson glances around at the guys. “Do you know where the fuck we’re going? Because I don’t.”
“Yeah, Cricket texted me the address of where you guys parked.” Theo laughs.
“Figures she wouldn’t trust us to remember.” I snort.
“Do you remember?” Hollis jokes, raising his eyebrows.
I shake my head, and the guys laugh. For the rest of the drive, we talk about school and sports. The guys ask us more questions about Cricket and our family, and what it was like for us to grow up having a witch as a sister. I can see why Cricket likes these guys. They’re funny, and they’re definitely the kind of guys we would have hung out with in high school. Emerson is acting a little weird, though. Like, he’s being friendly, but he’s not joking around as much as he normally would. When we pull up next to our SUV in some shady looking parking lot down the street from one of the clubs we went to, Emerson takes the keys from me so he can drive.
He looks at me like he’s waiting for me to get out of the car first. I give him a grin. “Nah, bro. I wanna keep talking to these guys. Take one of them with you to keep you company.”
Emerson rolls his eyes and glances back and forth between Cas and Hollis, since Theo’s going to drive his jeep back. Em sighs resignedly. “I’ll take the quiet one.”
Neither of them move, so I nudge Hollis. He opens his door and Cas groans. “Goddamn it. If he’s the quiet one now, then what are me and Theo?”
I grin and point at Theo. “He’s the funny one. You’re the moody one.”
Hollis and Theo burst out laughing, and Cas scowls and runs a hand through his dark hair. Once Hollis and Emerson are out of the car, I get out and hop into the passenger seat. Emerson flips me off before he gets into the SUV, so I grin and blow him a kiss.
It’s quiet as we drive back to Emery Ridge. Theo taps his fingers on the steering wheel, which is kind of driving me crazy. I’m trying to think of what I can ask them so I can figure out if my theory about them is right.
Theo clears his throat, interrupting my thoughts. “Does your brother...does he not like us? I didn’t think it was that weird for us to drive you guys over here.”
“Yeah, he likes you guys. We both do. I think he’s just freaked out about you guys with Cricket.”
“Because she told us she’s a witch?” Cas grumbles.
“Maybe.” I shrug. “I think it worries him because we’ve always been so protective of her. Like, you know, she was a really weird kid, and people picked on her a lot just because they could tell she was different.”
The guys look completely horrified at this revelation. Fuck, I didn’t mean to make them feel bad for her. I try to make my voice sound light and easygoing. “I think Emerson is more freaked out because Cricket’s never really had any close friends, and she’s never had a serious boyfriend.”
“She didn’t have friends in Florida?” Cas asks quietly.
Aw shit, Cricket is going to kill me. “Well, she mostly hung out with me, Em, and our group of friends. Last year when we left home to come out here for college, I think she had a tough time of it. She won’t admit it, but I know she was ready to get the fuck out of that school. I think you guys are great for her. It’s clear you really care about her, and I think it’s fucking awesome she trusts you enough to share her magic with you.”
They’re quiet and seem to contemplate what I said. Cas chews on his lip and stares out the window, and Theo keeps tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. He turns the radio on so it’s playing quietly. I need to get them talking again.
“So, you’re telling people at your school you and Cricket are together, huh?” I give Theo a teasing grin.
Theo taps his fingers on the steering wheel again and coughs. “People started assuming she was my girlfriend, and I just sort of went along with it.”
“You like her, don’t you?” I smirk at him.
A smile slowly spreads across his face. He turns his head to glance at me. “Yeah, I like her a lot.”
Cas makes this animal-like growling sound. I whip my head around to see him glaring at the back of Theo’s head. “I like her too.”
I raise my eyebrows. I can’t keep the dumb grin off my face. I half-expected they wouldn’t admit it to me.
Theo looks at Cas in the rear-view mirror. He looks irritated, but not surprised. “Glad to hear you finally fucking admit it out loud.”
Cas still looks pissed as fuck. I smirk back and forth between them. “Why don’t you both date her, then?”
I’m only sort of joking. I’m fully prepared for them to look at me like I’m fucking nuts. Theo smiles sideways at me and quickly turns his head to smirk at Cas.
“We can’t do that.” Cas sputters.
“Why not? Like I said, Cricket’s never really had a boyfriend before. She’ll hang out with a guy for a few weeks and then get bored. Em and I always figured when she found a dude she actually really liked, it would be all or nothing for her.” I gesture between the two of them. “This isn’t exactly what I expected, but I’m not surprised.”
Theo laughs. He does this thing when he laughs where his nose kind of scrunches. Cricket probably thinks it’s cute. Cas looks completely fucking dumbfounded. I smirk and raise an eyebrow at him. Man, teasing these guys really is just as fun as teasing Cricket.
“People already talk shit about her at school because of us,” Cas says, running a hand through his hair. “Besides, I don’t even know if she likes us like that.”
“She does. I asked her,” Theo says with a dopey-ass smile on his face.
“What? You asked her if she likes us? Or just you?” Cas sits up, practically screeching at him.
Theo taps his fingers on the steering wheel again. Goddamn it, that’s driving me nuts. “She said she likes all three of us.”
“So, what’s the problem, then?” I ask. “Who gives a fuck what other people think? If I thought you guys weren’t serious, or Cricket didn’t like you guys, I wouldn’t be saying shit right now.”
The guys look at each other, but they don’t say anything. I fidget anxiously, trying to think of a subtle way to ask what they are. Fuck it. “Is it because she’s a witch and you guys are whatever supernatural thing you are?”
They’re quiet at first, and Theo tenses beside me. Cas lowers his voice, sounding more startled than anything. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Come on.” I laugh. “I’ve been around magic my whole life. And the whole thing with Stella...” I shake my head and laugh at their faces. “She fucking hates us. And we love Cricket, so I know it doesn’t have anything to do with the fact you guys are into her. Plus, it makes way more sense for Cricket to tell you about her magic if that’s something you have in common with her.”
The guys are speechless. After what feels like the longest fucking pause ever, Theo glances at me and shrugs. “Technically, we can’t tell you, but Cricket can.”
I groan and slump down in my seat. “Ugh, fuck Cricket! She knows this is going to drive me crazy.”
“What? Why?” Theo laughs in surprise.
“Because this is right up my fucking alley. I’m a history major, but after I get my B.A., I want to specialize in the history of folklore and the supernatural. I know way more about witches, and our ancestry in particular, than Cricket does. Maybe even more than Aurora and our grandmother.”
The rest of the drive passes quickly. They ask me questions about witches and their history. They don’t bring up the idea of dating Cricket again, and I don’t ask them any more about what they are. The fact they’ve even validated my suspicions is more than enough for now. As fucking weird as it sounds, I’m excited to get back to school where I can do some more research.
When we get back to Flora & Feathers, Theo texts Cricket to see if she’s done with work yet. Emerson and Hollis laugh when they get out of the SUV, so that’s a good sign. I can’t fucking wait to tell Em what the guys said. I’ll wait until later when we drive back to Denver.
Emerson walks over to me. He rocks back and forth on his heels anxiously. “You don’t think Cricket will be pissed if I take off, right? Luca’s at home, and he asked me to come over.”
