THE STARS ARE BEAUTIFUL - WATTYS AWARD NEW ADULT WINNER 2019

Callum | Chapter 22

#342—SHE HAS A GREAT sense of humor.

"We here for the grub. Heard y'all got some." I pretended to spit on the ground. Tatum stared at Everly and me... Well..., mostly at our appearance. Everly rivaled Ellie May, while I gave Joe Dirt a run for his money. It took every ounce of discipline not to lose my shit and blow the gag.

"Heards gon'be quite the party," Everly chimed in as she tugged on her braids. "Callum Andrew here done promised me y'all gonna go mudd'n after we eat. Then we gon' go down yonder to the crick and swap spit under the moonlight."

"Damn, baby," I added, "That right there sound like the makings of a great country love song. You should write that there down."

Tatum grabbed my flannel shirt. "You are such an asshole." She laughed before fully getting the last word out.

"What?" I continued, as I gave a lick to the big, fake Bubba teeth Everly and I had found in a costume shop. The front two were missing, and the rest were tobacco-stained and wayward. "I thought you might like yous a preview of what me and Everly gons look like when we git hitched and move to joe-juh."

Tatum put on a good show and tried hard not to laugh, but when Everly smiled and showed her fake teeth—that were even more hideous than mine—Tatum stood no chance.

"That was pretty fuckin' good... I gotta say." She closed the door behind us, and we removed the teeth. There wasn't much we could do about the rest of our appearance, but Everly unbuttoned her flannel and let it hang lose around a white T-shirt. I pulled the ties from her pigtails and raked my fingers through her hair. Soft blonde waves fell around her shoulders.

"So damn pretty," I told her. "Too damn kissable."

"And yet..." She sighed.

She helped me unbutton my shirt, but what I wore underneath wasn't much better. She laughed as she pulled the mullet wig from my head.

Tatum waved us inside. "You know your way around. Nick should be here soon."

"Thanks for inviting me into my house, Tatum Tot."

She looked at Everly. "He hasn't given you a dumb nickname yet, has he?"

"No, but he has a slight fixation on calling me by my first and middle name."

I smiled. "I most certainly do not, Everly Anne."

Tatum rolled her eyes. "At least your name is pretty." She shrugged. "And not a lunchroom classic."

Everly smiled awkwardly. "It means wild boar of the woods or something equally cringe-worthy."

Tatum took her hand and pulled her through the house. I followed behind them until we reached the living room, where food adorned every available table. It was an odd mix of guests, my family fused with Nick's and Tatum's. My pop wasn't anywhere in sight, but that wasn't much of a surprise. I turned to Everly and told her I wanted to go find him. I'd planned on doing it alone, but she slid her hand in mine. I couldn't blame her: I wouldn't want to be left alone in a house full of strangers, either.

I wasn't too thrilled about the possibility of him being drunk in his room—I didn't want her to see that. Tatum noted my discomfort and offered to go find Noelle, so Everly could change her clothes into something less Ellie May.

As I suspected, he was passed out in his room, shoes on, fully dressed. I tucked a blanket around him and left him to sleep. It was the only place he was ever at peace.

Noelle caught me at the bottom of the stairs.

"Is there a reason why the little homeless girl from my café is trying on my clothes right now?" she demanded.