Knitted Hearts by Amber Kelly
Foster
“Come on, everyone. It’s time for tonight’s main event,” Charlotte calls.
“What is she on about?” Walker asks.
“You’ll see,” Payne says as he grabs his beer and walks toward his fiancée.
We all follow, and Sue comes running after me. I scoop him up and join the others.
Charlotte is standing and addressing us all. “Follow me,” she beckons as she continues walking. “As part of the entertainment that we want to offer families who come to spend a long weekend with us here, we have set up an outdoor movie theater.”
We round the side of the new mill. The back wall is painted white, there is a stand in the back with a projector, and the lawn is dotted with … pools?
“What is this?” Dallas asks.
“This is our theater. It has a digital projector that will show high-resolution films on that wall. We have adult-size inflatable swimming pools that will serve as your seats. They are each filled with pillows and warm blankets, and each one has a bucket beside it with iced-down drinks and a box of traditional movie snacks, such as popcorn, chips, and assorted boxes of candy. There is a Bluetooth speaker at each snack box that can be adjusted to the volume you like.”
“Oh my God, this is cool,” Bellamy chimes.
“It was Charlotte’s idea. The pools are safe, comfortable, and can be easily hosed out, sanitized, and laid out to dry. It will be effortless to maintain. Plus, they are affordable, so if they are damaged or spring a leak, they can be replaced. In fact, she already has a storeroom of backups,” Payne tells us.
“What a neat idea,” Sophie tells Charlotte.
“Guys, grab your wife or girl or whatever, and choose a pool, and we’ll start tonight’s double feature. Beginning with Thor: Ragnarok and ending with Casper.”
“Yay!” Beau bellows his approval of the movie choices.
Everyone starts pairing up, and Beau snuggles in with his uncle Payne and Charlotte. I walk over to one of the empty pools.
Truett looks over at me. “Wanna snuggle, brother?” he asks.
“Hell no.”
He shrugs. “Suit yourself. I’m an excellent cuddler,” he says as he lies in one of his own.
I watch as Sonia settles in with George beside Elle and Walker and decide to say hello.
I take a knee beside her. “Comfy?” I ask.
She startles and then smiles up at me.
“Snug as a bug,” she answers.
“Sue here wanted to check in on his buddy, George,” I say, and as if on cue, Sue leaps from my arm and into the pool with the girls. He circles George a couple of times, and then he gives a big yawn and curls up with her.
Sonia giggles and reaches down to scratch his head.
“I hope you don’t mind an additional pool partner,” I say.
She smiles up at me. “There’s more than enough room for him, and his dad is welcome to join us, too, if he wants,” she offers.
I don’t want to impose, but I’d like to get into that pool with her.
“Are you sure?” I ask.
She scoots over to make room for me beside her.
“Positive,” she says as she pats the spot.
I kick off my boots and climb in. It’s awkward for a grown-ass man to crawl into a plastic pit, but once I get settled with the pillows stacked behind my back, Sonia nestled into my side, the puppies snoozing contentedly at our feet, and the blankets tugged up over us, I have to admit, it’s relaxing. Sort of like a blow-up mattress under the stars.
The thought of having Sonia on a mattress causes an uncomfortable tightness in my jeans.
Not the picture I need in my mind at the moment.
Stop being a fucking creep, I scold myself.
Payne waits until everyone is seated, and he uses a remote to start the film.
The side of the cider mill illuminates with the opening credits, and we all start clapping.
The picture and sound quality are impressive. It’s such an inventive entertainment option. I look around and see all the couples wrapped up in each other, laughing, sharing popcorn, and enjoying a carefree night. Even Truett looks to be having a good time all by himself in his pool.
I look down, and Sonia is cracking open a box of peanut M&M’s. She pours a bunch in her hand and offers them to me. I take one and pop it into my mouth. She does the same, and I can’t help but focus my attention on her mouth. I bet those plump lips are soft and warm and taste as sweet as they look.
Get your libido under control, Tomlin.
Sonia settles into my side, and when I look down, I can see the swell of her breasts from the top of her tee. A sigh of contentment escapes her as she clutches the end of the blanket and wiggles, burrowing deep into its warmth. I lay my arm on the outside edge of the pool and drape it around her. Cocooning her with my body, I bring my nose to the top of her head and inhale the honey scent of her hair.
My eyes fall across the way to Elle, who is cuddled into Walker, but her focus is on Sonia and me. She smiles her approval, and I lift my chin.
We are twenty minutes into the Marvel movie when I feel something fly into the back of my head. I set my bottle of cider down on the ground and reach back and swat at it. A few seconds later, another small object taps the side of my face and bounces into the pool with us.
“What was that?” Sonia whispers as I search between us.
“A big mosquito?” I guess.
Then, two more tiny assailants hit me from behind, and I turn and see Truett launching kernels of popcorn in my direction.
“That’s it, you little shit,” Walker says as he stands in his pool and starts throwing Corn Nuts like darts at a chuckling Truett.
Before I even have time to retaliate myself, Payne, Walker, Myer, and Truett are in a snack-food battle. Braxton is the only man still paying attention to the movie.
“You guys are animals,” Dallas calls through the laughter.
Beau stands up from his cozy spot in Charlotte’s lap and yells, “Hey, all of you, behave. Thor and the Hulk are not pleased with you right now. You all sit down and be quiet!”
“Yeah,” Charlotte shouts in support.
“He started it,” Walker tattles on Truett.
“Truett, you’re in time-out,” Beau says as he gives him a stern look.
Truett frowns and eases down into his spot.
And just like that, four grown-ass men settle down while calling their apologies to an eight-year-old.
“You’d better watch your back, Truett. It’s on now,” Walker mutters as he lies back with Elle.