Wilde by Abby Brooks
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Amy
Gravel crunches under the tires of Jezebel—I promised never to call her the Scarlet Harlot again, but drew the line at actually apologizing to the vehicle. Leo turns to me, his brows raised, a grimace tightening his lips. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
Sprawling in front of the windshield is a gorgeous home with rolling hills stretching out behind it. Somewhere in that house, Leo’s entire family waits for me. To say I’m overwhelmed would be quite the understatement. I swallow back my fears and take Leo’s hand. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
He bobs his head back and forth, then reaches for the gearshift “You’re right. I’m not. Let’s go.”
I gasp and put my hand on his, but he turns to me with a massive smile.
“Just kidding. I know they’re gonna love you, but I feel it’s only fair to warn you that it’s chaos in there.”
“You’ve already warned me about that.”
“Right. But I still doubt you’re ready for what’s waiting behind those doors. I have five brothers. They each have wives or girlfriends. Some of them a kid or three. Plus my mom…that’s at least seventy-five people.”
“By my count, there are only fourteen people in there.” I try on an easy breezy smile to show how meeting that many people at once doesn’t bother me, but man. That’s a far cry from Dad and me on Thanksgiving, wondering how to cook a two-person turkey.
As we climb out of the car, a woman pushes through the front door of the house. She’s small and heavy set, with her gray hair pulled back off her face. Her smile widens as we approach. “Leonard, dear!” She reaches out her arms for her son while I bite back a grin.
Freaking Leonard? I knew that was his name, but I mean come on. Is there a man who looks less like a Leonard than Leo Wilde with an E?
Marie releases her son, then turns to me. “And is this Amy?” She grips my arms and beams. “Oh, son. She’s even more beautiful than I thought she’d be.” Her gaze drops to my belly and I didn’t think it was possible, but her smile gets even wider. “Well, come on in. The whole crew is waiting for you.”
Leo holds the door for his mom, then catches me by the waist before I step inside. “No matter what happens in here, just remember I love you.”
I spin and hit him with a grin that rivals his mother’s. “I love you too, Leonard.”
“That’s one, woman.” He holds up a finger, then taps it to the end of my nose. “Careful or you’ll be the one earning redemption points.”
Laughter dies in my throat as I step into the house and realize I’d completely underestimated the way fourteen people could fill a room. It’s a lot. I mean, a lot a lot. But they’re all smiling and welcome me like one of their own. I meet Chet, his wife Christy and their son Logan. Gabe, his wife Meredith and their daughter Gabby. Frank and his girlfriend Sarah. I greet Hank and meet his wife, Mollie. Jack, his wife Sam, and her daughter Vanessa. Two dogs click and skitter through the room until Chet opens the door to let them out to run the fields.
I get hugs and handshakes, and over and over I’m struck by the resemblance that runs through the family. Sure, some of it is genetic. The shape of the eyes. The quirk to the smile. The broad shoulders and trim hips, but not all of it can be chalked up to good genes, because the women in the room share the quick wit and genuine warmth that seems to come with the name Wilde.
Dinner is every bit as delicious as Leo promised it would be and I scarf it down with less grace than I intended. I’d blame Little Bit, but that wouldn’t be fair to Marie’s cooking. To top it off, she made fresh strawberry rhubarb pie—a personal favorite of mine. If I’d known, I might have left more room, but alas I did not and as I polish off the last bite, I lean back in my chair, afraid I might pop.
“Oh!” I place a hand on my belly, a tiny fluttering, a strange pressure, a tap tap tap. “Oh! Leo…”
He turns to me, concern tightening his face. “What’s wrong?”
I shake my head because nothing’s wrong and everything’s wonderful and who knew I could be so happy. “I think the baby’s kicking.”
His jaw drops and everything about him softens. He places his hand on my belly and closes his eyes, an awed smile gracing his face. When his gaze meets mine, I’m overwhelmed by the emotion I see there.
“Are you gonna get up and leave me to find a ride home alone?”
I can’t help it. The way he’s looking at me reminds me how I felt when I first heard the baby’s heartbeat…right before I discovered Leo had left the room.
He shakes his head. “I’ll never leave you, Skips. Never again.” He pauses as if he’s debating saying something, then quirks his head and takes a deep breath. “I was gonna do this later. When it was just you and me. But, now seems like a much better time. Here, with my family.”
He stands and fishes in his pocket, then pulls out a small black box as he gets down on one knee in front of me. “Amy, you are my perfect woman and I drew you without realizing. If you remember, in the hotel in Nashville, I told you I couldn’t figure out what she was missing. I’ve had some time to think about it and the only thing she’s missing is my last name. Be Wilde with me.” He gestures toward his family. “With us.”
I’d like to say I remember what happens next, but I don’t. I said yes and the rest? It’s lost to fourteen people celebrating, welcoming me to the family, congratulating Leo, and so many hugs from the Wilde women that all the fears of going through motherhood without my mom start to dissipate. I’ll have an army of family, waiting to give me advice.
But most importantly?
I’ll have Leo.