Falling for Ezra Thomas (Life With the Thomas Brothers #4)

7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Lorelai

Sitting in a room filled with every member of the Thomas family is always intense. The love that fills their home is undeniable. Each woman who steps into the role of girlfriend and future wife is wrapped into the fold as tightly as the King of England’s firm. Vivien sits beside me, bouncing her leg with anticipation. Beck has his usual scowl etched on his face, but the rest of the family is confused.

Well, that isn’t entirely true. Rafe and Silas know what is about to happen as well, which is probably the most logical explanation as to why they chose the seats on either side of Ezra—defensive positions to protect their brother from the onslaught of questions that will be hurled at him once he admits what he’s done. Emma and Ella share a glance, and Ella has an uneasy hesitation about her as she fidgets with the hem of her shirt.

“Ezra, what is this impromptu family meeting about? And this late at night?” Mr. Thomas asks. His gaze locks on mine. I don’t blame him. It makes sense for everyone else to be in this room, but me? The sister of a future family member? It makes a little less sense. Not that their stares are cruel or mean in any way. They’re merely confused, and…yeah, I don’t blame them.

Ezra ruffles his already messy hair and looks to me one last time for support. I smile and nod before taking Vivien’s hand. This is going to get loud fast. In the end, this family will throw its full support behind Ezra, but it’s going to be a massive shock at first. And a lot of questions in rapid fire succession. And some annoyance and anger.

“Well, I know you’ve all been wondering about some stuff,” Ezra says.

“Yeah, like why you up and kissed—” Lev elbows Maverick in the gut, quieting the youngest Thomas brother. Lev gives him the sternest side eye glare I’ve ever seen.

“Ezra?” Mrs. Thomas’ lower lip trembles. She knows. She’s a mother, and she knows something is coming that will rock her world, turn it upside down, and maybe stomp on her heart. She’s already been through it with Silas, and thinking about that breaks my heart for her.

“I put a lot of thought into a decision that I made, but unfortunately I didn’t put as much thought into how I would tell you all about it. I’m sorry for that, but I’m trying to make that right now. A couple months ago, I joined the Army. I’ll leave for basic training in a few days.”

Silence fills the room. It’s the sort that’s so dead, so empty that you hear your own blood rushing in your ears. A breath seems like it might break the quiet, so you hold it in, waiting. Ezra’s eyes hop from one brother to the next, but they’re all too stunned to speak.

Except Silas, who never was one to let a quiet moment go to waste.

“Somebody say something,” he drawls. “It isn’t like staying quiet changes anything.”

The floodgates open and all those questions bombard Ezra at once. He tries to field them all, but at this point, the only thing he can successfully do is shrink into the sofa and wait them out. His mother is crying, but she’s trying to hold it in. Mr. Thomas squeezes his wife’s thigh and pulls her onto his lap to comfort her, while the brothers range from angry to excited to confused. All except Beck, Rafe, and Silas, who already knew.

Lev pins Silas and asks, “Is this what you knew? You’ve been acting sketchy around the town house.”

Silas leans back and tucks Ella against his chest. “Yeah, but I couldn’t spill his news. It was up to Ezra to tell everyone.”

“When do you leave?” Novan asks, his hands clasped in front of him.

“In a few days, like I said. I can write and call, but it’ll be on a schedule,” Ezra says.

“And after basic training, where will you go?” Griffin asks. He’d been ready to head back home now that the holidays have passed. His packed suitcase was sitting at the door when we arrived at the Thomas house. If nothing else, Ezra is great at procrastination.

“I’m not sure. Probably Columbia, South Carolina based on what they’ve told—”

“Columbia?” A sob follows Mrs. Thomas’s outburst, prompting Ezra to drop his head in shame.

“Honey, it’s not like he has a choice in where they send him. And it’s not that far away.” Mr. Thomas pats her back and wraps his arms around her. “Ezra, why did you wait so long to tell us? This all feels so rushed, when we could have had time to let it sink in.”

Beck huffs but says nothing. Vivien sighs and purses her lips before nudging him. He frowns and sits forward after the gentle reminder that he should have his twin’s back. “He made a choice that was right for him, and he didn’t know how to tell everyone. Let’s face it, this family makes it hard to branch out and do our own thing.”

“That’s not fair, Beck,” Wilder says. “No one ever said—”

Beck waves his hand and the cranky side of him emerges. The same way it always does when Ezra is coming under attack. “Yeah? You try going off and doing something on your own and see how they like it. Oh wait, you did. How’s Chatswain City treating you? How about you, Silas? Did you enjoy your mission trip? Griffin, you’re always on the road playing a game. Let’s not pretend that Ezra is the first person who made a move without running it by everyone first.”

“You don’t have to be a jerk about it, Beck.” Lev’s soft tone eases some of Beck’s tension, but not enough to hide that he’s terrified of Ezra leaving. “I get it, okay?” Beck seemingly understands what Lev is saying. He’s done it once already, waited while his twin did something he thought was crazy, but Silas came back. They always come back home, and it gives me hope that someday even Ezra might settle back in Coldstone Creek. Maybe with me.

Case stands and crosses the room while extending his hand to Ezra. Ezra stares up at him with narrowed eyes but accepts his brother’s hand all the same. Case jerks Ezra to his feet and into a bear hug. “I’m proud of you, kid.”

“Kid? You’re not that much older than me, Case.” It’s just what we all needed to lower the temperature a little, take a breath, and focus on the future instead of what we can’t change.

Finally, the rest of the brothers give in to reality. Ezra is leaving, and there is nothing they can do about it but pray for his safety and enjoy what time they have before he leaves.

“I’ll stick around until you leave,” Griffin says. “Won’t be too hard to get the time since training doesn’t start for a few weeks.” Soccer is all Griffin ever wanted to do, and with Beck’s reminder that he’s rarely home, it seems he’s softened toward Ezra again.

“Well, at least we know why he ghosted Lorelai after kissing her,” Maverick says and shrugs. Of all the brothers, he is my least favorite at this very moment. At almost twenty, he’s got more muscles than brains which he puts to good use at the firehouse with Novan, but boy oh boy, do I wish he had a filter for that big mouth of his.

Every single head, including the ones who already knew Ezra and I kissed, turn to look at me.

“He what?” Mr. Thomas asked. “What did you say? He kissed Lorelai? This Lorelai?” He points directly at me, putting me on the spot.

I swallow and try to hide behind Vivien, but there’s no way to escape. There are too many of them, and I’m bound to get caught if I try to bolt. Ezra ruffles his messy hair again and I realize it won’t be long before it’s way too short for him to do that. He reaches for me and digs me out of the pile of people I’ve managed to wiggle behind, pulling me to my feet.

Now Mrs. Thomas has gone silent. Her pretty, tear-filled eyes zero in on me while her lips part in anxious anticipation. She’s been collecting future daughters-in-law like lawn ornaments here lately, and I have no doubt that is what she’s looking for now when she takes me in. I mean, there could definitely be worse mothers-in-law, but Ezra and I are far from that sort of commitment. For crying out loud, we just settled on what we’d call this thing between us—long-distance dating.

“Uh, yeah. About that, Lorelai and I talked about that kiss and we decided to give long-distance dating a shot. We’re going to write letters while I’m gone and see where this goes.” Ezra’s cheeks flush and mine prickle. I’m sure we are a matching pair of red faces at this point with all eyes on us, but when he grasps my chin and tugs my face to look at him, the rest of the room disappears.

I lick my lips and swallow my nerves, gazing into his deep, endlessly soulful eyes. I’m in trouble. Oh man, I’m gonna have to figure out how to be the girlfriend of a soldier, because I can’t even remember my name right now.

“We’re good, yeah?” he whispers in front of God and his whole family. I manage a little nod and a small smile, the best I can do under the pressure. He leans forward and presses the sweetest kiss to my nose.

It’s going to be okay.

I’ve been a part of this family since I was a little kid. They love me, and there is absolutely no reason for me to worry about what comes next where they are concerned. It’s the man standing in front of me that has me spiraling out of control.

“Can you put your weekend getaway on hold for a few days?” he asks, forgetting there are other people in the room. Still, I nod. “Will you go on a date with me tonight?” Again, I muster a nod even as my stomach swirls with anxiety. “Thank you for being here for this. For me.”

“Um, can you two stop with the gooey eyes while the rest of us are in the room?” Maverick asks.

Ezra growls and shoots his brother a fierce glare, but Maverick is probably right. We were too far gone, too lost in each other to even remember there were others in the room.

Mrs. Thomas stands and wipes her tears. “I need a moment, then I’ll make some dessert. You two should…you know.” She motions for us to get out while the getting is good, but guilt tears at my chest.

“Do you want me to ride home with Viv? We can go out in the morning. Maybe get breakfast? That way you can spend time with your family,” I say.

People slowly exit the room, still full of questions that will have to wait. Eventually, Beck smacks Ezra on the shoulder on the way to the kitchen and we’re alone. Ezra rests his forehead on mine and sighs, the weight of the world finally off his shoulders. Mostly. I have no doubt there will be many more confrontations between family members, but now that the initial shock has abated, he seems freer.

“I suppose I should spend some time with them, but I want to talk to you. I want to make sure you’re okay with everything before I leave. I don’t want to leave you feeling like this is barely tangible, okay? I’m in it, Lore. I want to put in all the work.”

I know that already. I feel it in the way he holds me with his fingers tucked into my belt loops, gently swaying me back and forth. He’s getting comfortable, and it’s only been a few hours since we agreed to give this thing a try. It’s only now that I remember Ezra never does anything halfway. For a relationship with him, that’s great. For my heart knowing he’ll do the same as a soldier? It’s almost too scary to think about.

This whole adventure is going to be a giant step into the unknown. My entire life has been turned upside down in less than twenty-four hours, and I’m emotionally spent. When Ezra slides his hands up my back and pulls me into a tight hug, my tension eases further and I know, no matter what happens, my life will never be the same.

“How did this happen?” he murmurs. “How did you go from Lorelai, my best friend’s sister and my childhood friend to the one person I can’t stand to leave behind? You’re going to steal my heart, Miss Mays.”

We’re moving fast already, and a sudden need to protect my heart takes control. I wiggle free and look up at him, but I don’t expect what I find. This is not Ezra Thomas, the goofy and lighthearted half of the elder Thomas twin duo. He’s lost that sparkle, the thing that makes him, him.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“I’m having second thoughts, that’s what’s wrong. Only, I’m not exactly allowed to have second thoughts about this.”

“This? You mean you and me or the Army?” Panic nudges my self-protection mode up a notch.

“The Army. This thing between us might only be a few hours old, but I think that might be part of the problem. I want to stay and explore it with you. I want to spend all of my time with you, and that’s hard to do when I’m getting yelled at by a drill instructor all day.”

I can’t help giggling, but I brush the messy hair from his face and try to contain my laughter. “You’re going to look so much different when you get back. This crazy hair will be gone, for one. And let’s not forget the snazzy uniform. I feel sure I can find plenty of time for you when you get back.”

“Yeah?” he teases, repositioning his arms so I have very little wiggle room.

“I can always make time for a man in uniform.”

“Ew. My brothers wear uniforms. Don’t make me think about you kissing them.”

I roll my eyes and realize that this is step one. This is the part where I prove that I can support him even through things that are scary, unknown, or even all wrong for him. He won’t really know until he gets there, and even then he’s got to stay until the end of his first enlistment. Who knows if it will be a career, but if I really want to do this with him, I have to wipe the sadness from my face and enjoy the time I have with him before he leaves.

“Hey,” I say and grab his hand, pulling free from his embrace. “Stop acting like it’s the end of the world. Look at it like it’s the beginning of a future filled with possibility. You’re going to be just fine, and I’ll be here every step of the way.”

“Oh my gosh!” Mrs. Thomas screeches from the kitchen. “The engagement party! I have to reschedule everything!”

Ezra drops his head and shakes it. “Well, I guess possibility number one is helping her reschedule a party. You up for it?”

I shrug. “I mean, I am the maid of honor. It’s kind of my duty.”

A wide grin spreads across his face as he raises his head. “Maybe you’ll catch the bouquet this spring.”

I roll my eyes and swat him. “Oh, stop. What is with you Thomas men? Can we date before you wife me up?”

He pulls me into his orbit again and kisses my cheek. “I’ll try.”