“You guys are going down,” Mia shouted back at us.
“Whoa, hey, they’re cheating,” Asher and August shouted in unison, scrambling around the table. “Let’s go. Parker, your woman is a cheater. You gonna let her beat you?”
“Nah, she’s just smarter than you guys and that’s why I’m on her team this year.” Parker left to find Mia and Sophie.
The twins grabbed baskets and took off out the door together, leaving their designated partners staring after them.
“Did they just leave you on your own, Imogen?” I had to laugh. “This is great.”
“Wait, whose team am I on?” Imogen called out to the retreating twins. “August, you have to be with me.”
Bond just shook his head, put on his black sunglasses, and walked out the door with Hank. We barked with laughter until I felt her gaze settle back on me affectionately.
“The Easter egg hunt is a family tradition, but I haven’t seen it like this in years. The twins fight a lot, but August just left his new wife standing there. This is going to be fun. You ready?” I asked.
“Honestly, I’ve never had an egg hunt as an adult,” Chloe said, already moving towards the door. “I’m past ready.”
“Never?” I asked, falling in step with her. “You’re in for a treat. You have to be ruthless. Can you be?”
She shrugged and tilted her head with a brilliant smile, the kind of smile that would make a man do almost anything.
“That’s a scary smile, ma’am,” I said. “I think I got the right partner.”
By the time we got to the back lawn, the twins were battling Murphy and Parker over an egg up in the oak tree.
“Would you look at that, Chloe.” I pointed to Parker. “That’s what your sister did to him.”
“She has that effect on people, always has,” Chloe said proudly. “But just because she’s super nice doesn’t mean I’m letting her win.”
She grabbed our baskets and darted into the yard, passing a giggling Sophie. I made my way through the maze of rose bushes toward a yellow egg hiding within. I caught up with her, excited by her enthusiasm. We were behind everyone else, so we had to be smarter, or a little sneakier.
“Follow me,” I whispered in her ear.
Gravel crunched under our shoes as we ran along the circular walkway leading to another flower bed with fancy water fountains and ornate benches.
“Doesn’t look like anyone hunted in here yet, so hurry,” Chloe said quietly, completely immersed in the competition. “Are we supposed to come in here?”
Moments later, Mom and Henry appeared out of nowhere, like magic, acting all innocent, but I knew to watch them. I quickly explained that they’d won four years in a row.
“I see a few eggs over by the big fountain. I’ll go get them.” Chloe turned back. “You go toward the little fountains in the back, there has to be some there.”
“I’m watching you, Mom,” I said, running past her to grab an egg in the birdhouse above her head. Then I ran back toward Chloe.
“Oh my God. You stole that egg from your mother,” Chloe gasped when I reached her, holding five more eggs.
“Oh yeah, I did. Hurry, we only have about twenty minutes left,” I said, pulling her with me.
“Twenty more minutes? You guys hunt eggs for that long?” Chloe asked, trying to keep up. Just how many eggs are out here?”
“Hundreds of eggs. We usually never find all of them.” I pulled us behind a bush. “We need a plan to get past them to get up to the front yard.”
“Why, doesn’t everyone know to go out there?” Chloe asked, looking around for the rest of the family.
“Sure, they do, but the minute someone heads that way, everyone else follows.” I got down on my hands and knees. “If we can get out there without being seen, we’ll be ahead of the gang.”
“I feel like a secret agent or something,” Chloe laughed. “Are we supposed to be out here?”
Chapter 12
Chloe
“Are we supposed to be out here?” I asked. “Or are we in fact cheating?”
I looked back once more to the family.
The lawn and gardens looked like a scene from a scary movie. People were running frantically in all directions. The fountains in the middle started dancing.
“Is it like this every year around here?” I asked from my crawling position behind Trey.
“It seems a bit crazier than usual, but mostly, yes.” Trey stood as we turned the corner of the building. “Hurry, we have a few minutes before the alarm to grab eggs. No one has pillaged yet.”
“You go left and I’ll go right.” I ran, grabbing as many eggs as I could find. I’d heard Murphy say it was about who had the most eggs, not who had the prize eggs.”
After five minutes of scrambling, the house alarms sounded, signaling time was up. Although we were only minutes ago chasing each other around stealing eggs, we all stopped hunting and headed to the porch where Diana stood with a tray of lemonade and a warm smile I really liked.
“Where have you two been?” Asher asked suspiciously of Victoria and Henry. “You know the rules.”
“Your father had a little mishap with the fountains.” Victoria helped a limping Henry up the steps. “Do we have a doctor in the house?”
“Dad, what did you do, or should I ask, what did Mom have you doing?” Parker stepped up to look at his leg. “I would say first that those pants are garbage. The question is how the knee is under them.”
“It’s nothing big, Son. I just slipped.” Henry plopped down in a chair. “Nothing a band aid and an ice pack can’t fix up.”
“You’re bleeding, so you slipped hard on this knee. Maybe you better sit out the rest,” Parker advised, all business.
“You would love it if I sat out, but that’s not happening.” Henry took the ice pack Diana had brought out. “I have a trophy to win.”
Diana walked around with a clipboard, taking count of everyone’s eggs.
“Now what happens?” I downed my whole drink. “Is it over?”
“This is not over yet,” Murphy offered from her laying position on a nearby hammock. “You have about three more minutes to rest and round two begins.”
“There’s a round two in this?” I immediately looked to Sophie to see how she was feeling. “Sophie honey, are you feeling alright?”
“Yes, Mummy. This is so much fun. I got ten bum nuts all by myself.” Sophie dumped her eggs onto the lawn. “Aunt Mia only got six.”
‘I’m not sure how many eggs I found.” I looked around at everyone holding onto their baskets trying not to listen. “You guys take this egg hunt pretty seriously?”
“Well, it’s about bragging rights.” Trey covered our basket with a napkin. “You remember I told you my parents have been winning this egg hunt for years, and we all want to take that title.”
“How do you suppose they keep winning?” I asked, looking over to his parents. “Do you think they cheat?”
“Ha. Chloe, I know they cheat, but we all do. Lately it’s become about out-smarting the others.” I really laughed now. “No one used to care as much until my parents started the bragging. They brag obnoxiously at the charity event even.”