Page 100 of Banter & Blushes #1
ARWYN
W hen the golf cart slowed to a stop, I slid out of my seat and walked to Zaki. He was standing at the entrance to the barn, shoulders slumped with his hands in his pockets. In the distance, I heard the girls crying. Why hadn’t he gone right to them?
“Hey.” I slipped my hand into one of his pockets and took hold of his fingers. “Are you okay?”
He shook his head and wiped his eyes with his other hand. “Why did they run? Why didn’t they come to me? What do I say to them?”
I rested my head on the singed shoulder of his shirt.
“You remind them that you love them more than anything. That nothing they could ever do or say would make you stop loving them. That it’s okay to make mistakes.
Reassure them you know they weren’t trying to hurt anyone but always try to think about what can go wrong when they plan a prank.
That there will be consequences—in this case, the cake, the arch, and a bunch of shirts. ”
He smiled. “Thank you.”
“Anytime.”
We walked hand in hand past the horses to the tack room. Isla and Amelie clung to Meggie, crying into her dress as she sat on a bale of hay. Standing off to the side were Flynn; two of Meggie’s bridesmaids, Maddie and Mellie; and my mom. Laffy and Vennie sat leashed at Alyce’s feet, tails wagging.
I let go of Zaki’s hand and approached the girls, giving each of their backs a light rub.
“You’re okay. Your daddy is here.” I glanced up, and there he was, wearing a soft, protective expression.
His eyes held the kind of warmth that cocooned you like a heavy quilt—gentle and secure—but I caught that hint of pain that was tearing him up on the inside.
The slight lift of his brows, the way he pressed his lips together—everything about him on the outside radiated quiet reassurance and an air of maturity he didn’t often reveal in public.
Meggie nudged them off her lap and stood.
Zaki crouched and opened his arms. They ran to him with tears clinging to their lashes and streaking down their cheeks, and he lifted them off the ground.
Their little legs closed around his waist, and I noticed their bare, dirty feet.
They’d come all this way with no shoes?!
“Daddy, I pranked wrong and ruined the cake!” Amelie wailed. “And then the fire!”
“It was my idea, too!” Isla cried. “All the camp pranks started because of me.”
“Daddy! Your shirt!” Amelie cried. “Did you burn in the fire?”
“No. I used my shirt to help put it out.” He reached around Isla and poked a finger through a hole where a button used to be. “It’s a new style. I kinda like it. Natural air-conditioning. What do you think?” He sat down on the hay bale and settled a girl on each leg so that they faced each other.
I’d tell him later what I thought.
My eyes couldn’t help but linger—just for a second—on the way Zaki’s shirt clung in places and hung loose in others, its hem scorched, collar frayed, and little holes scattered across the fabric like confetti.
He should’ve looked ridiculous. But sitting there, with both girls curled into him, their cheeks streaked with tears, he looked like the hero of an action movie—messy but solid and steady.
There was a rawness to the moment, rugged and tender, and it hit me low in my chest. That sharp, quiet ache of love I could never quite name but always felt like falling and finding home at the same time.
The girls weren’t impressed with his antics. Isla and Amelie just stared at him, incredulous. Then they laughed.
I let out a long breath.
They were going to be okay.
Mom handed me the leashes. “I’ll run back to the cottage and get them shoes,” she whispered.
“Thanks,” I whispered back.
“I’ll wait outside,” Flynn said. “Glad they’re okay, Marshy.” He clapped Zaki’s back.
“I’ll be out in a few minutes, Flynn,” Meggie said.
“Please call Kat and tell her to let everyone at the party know they’re okay.
” She turned to us. “My friends and I were telling the girls about the time we got trapped in the tunnel underneath this barn. It’s been filled in, so it’s not a danger anymore.
But we were missing for a long time, and no one knew where we were.
The whole town looked for us, just like they were looking for them.
Everyone was so scared and worried that something bad might have happened to us. ”
Amelie wailed louder. “I am so bad! I’m so sorry, Daddy! We ruined the party!”
“And everyone is mad at us! Our new friends are never going to want to play with us again.” Isla sniffled.
“Hey,” Zaki said. “Whoa, whoa. Hang on a second. Listen, my sweet little pranksters. You did not ruin the party, just the cake. No one’s mad at you.
I promise. Mistakes happen, and believe me—this one is going to be a story we’ll tell for years.
The arch will be okay. It’ll just need to be repainted for tomorrow. ”
“Can we help?” Isla asked, lifting her head to look at Meggie. “I’m a good painter.”
Meggie nodded. “Of course.”
I sat down next to Zaki. “First things first—I know you’re both very upset, but are you okay? Can I look at your feet?”
Isla sobbed, “I cut my toe, Wynnie. It hurts a little. But we did ruin the party, didn’t we?”
“No, sweetie,” I assured her. “It just stopped for a little bit so everyone could look for you and your sister. How are your feet, Amelie?”
“Dirty.”
I held in a chuckle.
“I’ll get the first aid kit,” Mellie offered. “And a nice warm, soapy towel.”
“I’ll help,” Maddie offered.
“Thanks.” I stroked Amelie’s hair. “I know you got scared. That’s okay. You know you can come to us, right?”
She hung her head. “I didn’t think. I just ran.”
“And I ran after her because I didn’t want her to be alone,” Isla said.
“You’re a great sister,” I said, reaching over Zaki to squeeze her hand.
Zaki echoed my observation, then gently told them all the things I’d suggested at the barn door just moments earlier.
Maddie and Mellie returned and insisted on washing the girls’ feet—and their faces. Laffy and Vennie yipped their approval and tried to help. The girls laughed, and I had to pull the dogs away while Mellie bandaged Isla’s toe.
When they were all cleaned up, Meggie knelt in front of the girls. “Do you know what’s more important than parties, wedding arches, bonfires, or even cakes?"
“Cake’s pretty important,” Isla said.
Amelie nodded seriously. “Really important.”
Meggie laughed lightly. “It is. But it’s not as important as your family and friends.
No matter what happens, no matter how big of a mess things turn into, your parents and family and us friends—who are like family to you—are always going to love you.
Forever and ever. That’s not going to change, no matter how many cakes you squish or how many arches you set on fire. "
Zaki agreed. “Just like I said. And you know, you’re not the first ones to cause a little cake chaos. I once tripped over a plant and landed on top of the actual wedding cake at a teammate’s reception. I was stuck in frosting up to my elbows.”
The girls giggled. “No!” Isla exclaimed. “Did you hide?”
“Nah. But I did make several phone calls to local bakeries and offer them a lot of money to bring a new cake. And then someone told me that only the top layers of the cake were actually cake and the rest of it was fake and frosted for decoration. The real cake everyone was going to eat was a sheet cake in the kitchen!”
“Oh, Daddy!” Amelie giggled. “You got lucky!”
“Yep. And you know what? We all laughed about it later. Just like Flynn and Meggie will. What matters is that you’re safe and that you promise to always tell us when something goes wrong, okay?”
“We’ll always help you,” I said. “There’s nothing you can’t tell us. We’re a family, and family sticks together—even when things get messy.”
Amelie smiled. “Like when Vennie got into the peanut butter because I thought Isla covered it and Isla thought I covered it but nobody covered it and he made a mess in the RV?”
Zaki grinned. “Exactly like that.”
I smiled too. “Now, how about we head back to the party? Molly texted me that Sadie from the diner is frosting a new cake just like the one you crushed. Apparently, she has an extra in the walk-in refrigerator, ready to be frosted if needed.”
Isla clapped. “Really?!”
I nodded. “Really.”
“We got lucky, too, Daddy,” Amelie said.
“You did. Let’s go back to the party. And no more pranks tonight, okay?”
“Okay!”
“Group hug?”
“Group hug!”