Pulling my brows together I stared at her. She slightly shook her head and took a few steps away from Trent. “Let’s go. I want to see what the hell is going on.” I grabbed my purse off the small table by the front door and walked out.

After getting all the tiny humans into their car seats, Gage and I buckled up. “Will you give me an idea as to where we are going?”

Gage raised an eyebrow and pulled his bottom lip into his mouth. “Nope.”

“How far away is it?”

“Ten minutes.”

“What can we do there?”

Gage glanced at me and a smirked covered his face. “Anything you want.”

“You’re really not going to tell me anything?”

Slowly he shook his head. “Nope.”

“You’re just mean.”

“Not what you were saying last night. I do believe last night you were calling me God and telling me just how good I was.”

My eyes were bulging out of my head. I snapped my head to the backseat to make sure Gabe hadn’t heard what Gage just said. “He’s not paying attention to us. He’s watching Despicable Me. Chill.”

“I don’t care. Don’t say that in front of him. I don’t want him getting the wrong idea.” I fiddled with my seat belt.

Gage shook his head and sighed. He didn’t say anything. After a few minutes he turned the radio up. Hail to the King by Avenged Sevenfold was playing. Drumming his fingers on the steering wheel as he drove Gage sang along. Sitting at a stop light he turned to me and smiled. Synyster Gates was in the middle of a guitar riff when Gage joked, “Hail to the king, baby.”

Pointing to the light, I said, “Shut up and drive, ball boy.”

When the song ended Gage was pulling into a long brick driveway, guarded by a gate. Rolling his window down he typed in a passcode and the gate slowly rolled open. Lining the driveway was mature pine trees and a few weeping willows here and there. Gage grabbed my hand and kissed my knuckles. “For future reference the passcode is one-three-seven-eight.”

I flashed my eyes to the backseat. Gabe was wrapped up in his movie. I don’t know what Gage is getting at today. The stuff he’s saying and doing is a real mind fuck. Studying Gage, I asked, “Where are we?”

He kept his gaze fixed on something in front us, he said, “Home.”

“Huh?” I asked in confusion. I turned my head to look out the windshield. Ahead of us was a huge plantation style house. The trees lining the driveway ended and short, well-trimmed hedges lined the drive up to the oversized wrought iron steps leading to the wraparound porch. The house was a classic white with black shutters and deep burgundy door. There was a balcony above the welcoming front porch. The place looked like something straight out of Steel Magnolias.

Gage pulled to a stop just in front of the beautiful home and shut his car off. “Home. I figured it was time I get a house down here. I have my apartment in New Orleans but I want Londyn to grow up here.” Gage shrugged. “My mom and I walked through it two weeks ago and I knew it was the right place for Londyn and me.”

“Wow. Gage, it is, wow. Beautiful. Most beautiful thing I have ever seen,” I said, still taking in just how beautiful it was.

“I’ve seen something more beautiful.”

I glanced at Gage. He was watching me. Dammit. He was doing it again. My heart was skipping all over. “Um…can I see the inside?”

One side of his mouth lifted. “Of course. I didn’t bring you out here just to see the trees and front door. Let’s go.” Gage grabbed his keys and got out. He unfastened Londyn and carried her up the steps. “Daddy is going to have to put up a baby gate on these stairs, huh Londyn Lou?”

Londyn giggled. The rest of us following Gage and Londyn. When he opened the front door I was expecting butlers and maids to be waiting. Instead, there was a pretty, older lady in a paint stained shirt and jean shorts.

“Meme!” Londyn squealed and held her hands out.

“I didn’t know you were coming by today. Your brother and I wanted to get all the painting finished before you brought Londyn. She shouldn’t be around the fumes, honey.” The older lady wiped her hands on her shirt before taking Londyn and kissing her cheeks.

“Mom, its fine. Jenna and Larkin are leaving Sunday after the boys’ party. I wanted them to see my place before they left.”

Jenna hugged the lady that I now knew was Gage’s mom. Gabe was holding Evie’s hand. He was craning his neck around to take everything in. We were standing in the large, open foyer. “Mommy, this place is fuckin’ huge!”

“Shh! Gabriel, we don’t say that word,” I chastised.

Gabe looked at me innocently and said, “Fine. This place is freakin’ huge.”

Gage heard him that time and looked down at Gabe. I could see he was biting the inside of his cheek to stop himself from laughing. Too bad no one else followed his example. Everyone, including Gage’s mom was cracking up.

Was there was a gun from the civil war around here anywhere? Just shoot me now. My son and his mouth would be the death of me.

Gage wrapped one arm around my waist. “Mom this is Annie. Annie this is my mom, Tamra Tucker.”

The way he said my name had my toes tingling and the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. I had the feeling she knew a lot more about me than I knew about her.

Tamra held her hand out, smiling sweetly. “So nice to meet you, Annie”

Taking her hand, I replied, “Nice to meet you too, Mrs. Tucker.”

She dropped my hand and shook both hers in the air. “Oh, please call me Tamra. Mrs. Tucker is my mother in law. She is old and senile. I am much too young to be anything that proper.”

Gage looked at his mom for a moment before asking, “How did you get here? Your car isn’t out front.”

“Dylan. He ran into town to pick up a few more drop cloths and paint brushes. He should be back soon. Why don’t you show everyone around while I entertain the kids?”

It was like Evie took that moment to notice Gage’s mom standing a few feet away from her. She let go of Gabe’s hand and ran to Tamra. “Aunt Ra Ra! Dis my fweind, Gabe.” Evie smiled brightly at my little boy.

Tamra shifted Londyn to her hip and looked at my handsome little guy. Gabe actually looked a little shy. Hmm. I didn’t know my son, the loud mouth, dirty talking little boy had a shy bone in his body. Holding her hand out, Tamra said, “Hello, Gabe. It is so nice to meet you. Evie talks about you all the time.” Tamra looked to Jenna and Larkin and winked.

Little Evie had her first crush. And, it was my little man. How sweet.

Shaking Tamra’s hand, Gabe said, “Yeah, she likes me.” He sighed and lifted one shoulder. “All the ladies do.”

Tamra giggled. “I can see why. Would you like to help me unpack toys in the playroom while Gage shows your mommy his new house?”

Gabe smiled. “Yes! Mommy, I’m going with Tamra to play.”

She took all the kids and started down the hall. I have no idea how she did it. Gabe and Evie were holding hands again and she was carrying Londyn, Nash, and Knox. Brave woman.

Gage grabbed my hand and walked us into the sunken living room. “Obviously we all know what room this is. What I really want to show y’all is upstairs. But, to be the nice host, I’ll tell you everything that’s down here on our way upstairs. Everything down here is covered in boxes anyway.” Leading us up the ‘Gone with the Wind’ staircase, Gage said, “There is the obvious living room, kitchen, dining room, family room, office, two half bathrooms, and a theater room. There is also a sunroom off the kitchen that leads to the back deck and the pool. I also have a pool house and a bungalow style guest house out back.”

He walked to the double French doors at the end of the hall. Shoving them opened I could see into what I assumed was his master bedroom. There was a large four post bed in dark wood in the center of the room. Beside each side of the bed was a nightstand in matching wood. There was an armoire in the corner with a large dresser to the left. In the opposite corner was a black leather couch and chair facing the flat screen television hanging on the wall. Glancing around I noticed a large picture hanging above the couch. It was in black and white. It was the kids and I on the beach. I had Londyn and Gabe in my arms, my head was back and I was laughing, both kids smiling. We looked happy.