The Promise (Neighbor from Hell #10)(84)

“It really was,” Joey mumbled in agreement.

“I see,” Reed said, glancing back down to find his wife watching the show with rapt attention as she absently popped a piece of brownie in her mouth from the plate he’d made her, making him sigh in relief when she didn’t follow that up with a hand slapped over her mouth and a run for the nearest bathroom.

“Her anti-nausea medication wasn’t strong enough,” Roger said, rubbing her back as he typed something on his phone. “I’m putting in an order for a stronger prescription.”

“So, she’s feeling better now?” Reed asked, shooting his wife a thoughtful glance.

“She should be—Shit!”

“Thank you,” Reed said, dropping the man that had made his wife feel better on the ground before he took his spot on the lounge chair and pulled her closer.

“You’re welcome,” came the pained groan.

“Why’s he hiding behind a mailbox?” Shawn, his wife’s official date to this party, asked from where he sat on the road next to her.

“Not if he wants to live,” Joey said with a sad shake of her head only to glance at Shawn with a frown. “Shouldn’t you be working on my palace?”

“We didn’t discuss a palace,” Shawn said, narrowing his eyes on her as he helped himself to a cookie off her plate.

“We’re discussing it now, Shawn,” she said, shaking her head with a sigh, “We’re discussing it now.”

“So, someone going to tell me why Garrett is getting his ass kicked?” Reed asked as he wrapped his arms around Joey.

“We’re not really sure,” Hayley began from where she was sitting on her husband’s lap, “but we’re pretty sure that it has something to do with the books currently being thrown at Garrett’s head.”

“He did seem to get upset when it was delivered,” Zoe murmured in agreement.

“He really did,” Kasey murmured in agreement.

“Who is she?” Reed finally asked the question that he’d been wondering for several months now.

“Kristen Haven,” Kenzie said with a sigh. “She grew up across the street from us.”

“That’s not Kristen,” Danny said, shaking his head only to frown when he took in the small woman currently hurling another book at his brother’s head.

“It can’t be Kristen,” Lucifer said, but the look on his face told him that he wasn’t exactly sure.

“Who’s Kristen?” Rebecca asked from where she sat with the rest of the Bradford wives on the large picnic table that they normally liked to use to yell catcalls and ogle their husbands when they were working on Garrett’s house.

“Just some girl that used to live across the street from us. She was a quiet little thing, a bookworm that kept to herself. Garrett used to feel bad for her and would go out of his way to make sure the other kids left her alone,” Arik said with a shrug.

“And who grew up to become K.L. Haven,” Kenzie announced with a devious grin as all the women in their group suddenly went still.

“Who’s K.L. Haven?” Aaron asked as he shot Garrett a sympathetic wince when the woman in question aimed for his balls.

“That’s K.L. Haven?”

“The one and only,” Kenzie said before adding, “And she wrote about Garrett,” just as one of the books landed in front of them.

There was a slight pause and then…

Reed was picking up his wife as Jackson reached past them and grabbed Shawn before all hell broke loose as every Bradford male within twenty feet did whatever it took to get his hands on that book.

“But the pretty,” Joey mumbled with a sniffle that had him sighing as he carried her back to the safety of their house.

“Not happening,” he said as something occurred to him.

Where the hell did Jen go?

---

“Where the hell is it?” Matt bit out, shoving the stack of papers that he’d been meaning to go through aside and-

“What are you looking for?” one of his family’s guests that had wondered into his shop asked.

“Shop’s closed,” he said, shifting his attention to his desk and began shoving empty take-out boxes and wrappers out of the way as he searched for-

“Is this what you’re looking for?” that same someone that should have left asked as the order slip that he’d wasted the last hour for was held in front of his face.

“Thanks,” Matt said, dropping the bag of old McDonald’s wrappers on the floor and grabbed the slip.

“You’re welcome,” his brother’s wayward guest said as Matt glanced down at the slip in his hands and swore when he realized that he’d ordered the wrong wood.

Shit!

“Who are you?” Matt asked, tossing the slip aside and started searching for the purchase order that he was going to need in order to return the wood for full credit.

“Most likely the reason that Principal Bradford drinks,” she said, sounding proud and drawing his attention to find the prettiest green eyes that he’d ever seen watching him.

“That doesn’t answer my question,” he said, taking in jet black hair, soft curves, and noted that she was probably shorter than Joey, and definitely wasn’t legal.