Page 9

“Anton Wright Hayes,” Miss Belle scolds, not skipping a beat. Same as when she was talking to Ken at the diner, her sweet Southern demeanor flipped to zero tolerance faster than Superman’s speeding bullet. “Do not get mouthy with me.”

Anton goes still, both the grown man and the little boy inside him taking the reprimand wholeheartedly.

“Came by to get this,” he tells her, holding up the notebook. “We’re adding something new this year.”

Miss Belle rolls her eyes, holding up her hands in surrender. “I don’t want to know. Truly. You stayin’ for dinner?”

Anton tosses me a glance, our eyes locking for a second. I do my best to keep my face plain. To not give him any indication of what I want. Or any kind of fuel to continue to mock me. He has more than enough already.

“Nope,” he answers, not taking his eyes off me. “Wouldn’t want to intrude.”

“Suit yourself. But then stop being rude to our guest and get out of Sawyer’s room!”

Anton nods, giving me another wink, then turning to go. He pauses briefly at the door, kissing his mother on the cheek, then disappears down the hall.

I hold my breath, waiting for him to reappear, like a bad jack-in-the-box. He doesn’t, though, and after a long moment I exhale, my lungs burning as I let it all go.

“I apologize for that. Despite how it may seem, he was raised better than that,” Miss Belle says, stepping into the room.

“You’re Belle Hayes,” I mutter .

“I am. Did you not know that?”

I shake my head, more than a little embarrassed to admit that I’m just now figuring this all out.

“Oh.” She walks in, gently sitting on the bed next to me.

The mattress barely moves under her weight, as if even her sitting is the smoothest move on earth.

“Well then, let me introduce myself properly. I’m Isabelle Huxley Hayes, but everyone just calls me Miss Belle.

I’m married to Auggie, mama to Gus, Milo, Anton, Huxley, Jace, Ewan, and Willa—in that order—and grandmama to no one yet.

Although Auggie and I are secretly hoping that changes soon now that some of the kids have started to settle down. ”

“Nice to meet you.” I nod. “I’m still just Sawyer Brown of Hurricane Shoals.”

“Everyone’s favorite spring break destination. In fact, that’s where Willa and her friends went junior year. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of Dustin Wild, but?—”

“He was discovered at Wall Bangers, yeah. My best friend’s family owns that bar. In fact, she’s kinda hoping I can get some stuff signed while I’m here.”

“Oh, we can make that happen,” Miss Belle assures me.

I perk up. I know the Hayeses pretty much own this town, but do they have that much power?

“You have that kind of pull?”

“I do. More than that, Willa does. He’s a groomsman in her wedding.”

Come again?!

I sit up straight. I’m not sure I heard her correctly.

“He’s…what?”

She laughs, patting me on my thigh, a move that is warm and loving. Like she’s my own mother, and we’re having a regular heart-to-heart chat.

“I told you; Hickory Hills is a small town, Sawyer. We all know each other. I’m surprised Anton didn’t tell you himself.”

I shrink back at Anton’s name. There’s no escaping him, even outside of work. Especially since I now know that I’m staying in his childhood bedroom.

“It didn’t come up.” There. That’s a good way to put it. “The day was… It didn’t go quite as I expected.”

Miss Belle lifts an eyebrow, inviting me to continue. I don’t know what else to say though, for a number of reasons. Not the least of which, he’s her son.

When I don’t say anything, she sighs. “What did he do?”

“Nothing.” I shake my head.

“Oh, I don’t believe that. Not for one second.”

Shifting on the bed, she turns to face me. Her features soften, making her look even more motherly.

“I love all my kids, more than anything. But I also know them, very well. And all seven of them are very different, and for better or worse, have played unique and specific roles in this family. Gus is the responsible one, Milo the sassy one, Hux is our non-conformist, Jace our wild card and family romantic, Ewan the introvert, while Willa is the baby and as the only girl, the princess. And Anton…” She sighs.

“Anton is our instigator. He lives to get a rise out of people. And he will poke, poke, poke until he gets a reaction. Just for giggles. Feral middle-child energy is what his brothers call it.”

Feral middle-child energy. That explains a lot.

“I can see that.”

“My biggest piece of advice?” She leans in, conspiratorially. “Don’t let him know that he’s getting to you. Then hand it right back to him.”

My insides lift, like a hot air balloon that has the intake valve left all the way open. I’ve just been given the key to Anton Hayes. The secret to knowing how he works. Sure, it’s easier said than done, but now that I know what to do, I can learn. I’m a quick study. This will be no different.

“Thank you.”

I squeeze Miss Belle’s hand, hoping she knows how much this means.

“Of course. I meant what I said when I told you that you’ll fit right in. Now, the pizza is getting cold, so let’s go eat. And I’ll get you all caught up on everyone and everything you need to know about Hickory Hills for the Fourth of July.”