Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem ( Elysia and Tarquin)

The boss looked at him, clearly surprised. "What are you doing here?"

Evan was a little out of breath. "I was worried about you, so I came to check in. Here I brought you something to eat!"

He handed over a paper bag. "There's some trail mix, smoked ham, and a couple bottles of Grandpa's finest bourbon."

The boss raised an eyebrow, glancing at the food, then at Evan. His expression was complicated. "Didn't he tell you about my relationship with him?”

"He did," Evan replied.

"And you still came to see me? He and I are sworn enemies, you know! Are you planning to stick with me and ditch him?"

Evan shook his head. "Bernard never said you two were enemies. He said you're his little brother in training, which makes you my uncle in the guild."

The boss clenched his jaw, clearly frustrated. "I am NOT his little brother!"

Evan just grinned, keeping things light. "You don't really get a say in this, you know. It's like how kids don't get to pick their parents. That's up to Grandpa and Grandma- they set the rules!"

"You're their son, Bernard's their student, so that makes you Bernard's brother-in- arms. Which means you're my uncle in the guild, whether you like it or not!"

He put the bag down on a nearby rock, pulled out a bottle of bourbon, twisted the cap off, and handed it over. "Here, warm up with a drink."

He knew the boss was a bit of a drinker-never went a day without a shot or two.

The boss hesitated, then took the bottle, eyes lingering on Evan for a moment before tipping it back and taking a long drink. He had a bit of a drinking problem, and right now, he was both thirsty and stressed, so he didn't hold back.

But then, in the next second-

With a thud, Evan dropped to his knees right in front of him.

"You drank the bourbon I offered, so that means you've agreed to be my uncle now!"

"I didn't know about you and Bernard before, so maybe I wasn't as respectful as I should've been. Please, Uncle, don't hold it against me!"

The boss looked completely bewildered. "Who... Who's your uncle? I never agreed to that!"

Evan just grinned wider. "You drank, so you can't back out now! A real man stands by his word!"

"From now on, we're family-uncle and nephew! We gotta look out for each other, stick together, go through the tough times as one, and share the good times too!"

"Uncle, please accept my respect!"

And with that, Evan pressed his forehead to the ground in a full-on kneel.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

When he finished, he stayed kneeling, looking up at the boss with bright, sincere eyes.

The boss just stared at him, completely thrown. "You..."

"Uncle!" Evan called out again.

"You, you..." The boss stammered.

"Uncle!"

"Alright, alright, just—” He was speechless.

“Uncle, uncle, uncle!" Evan insisted, refusing to let go.

The boss's lips trembled, but he couldn't get another word out. His eyes started to

go red-not with anger, but with emotion.

Back in the day, he'd forced Evan into an apprenticeship, just to spite his own brother-in-arms. But Evan

never accepted him, never once

called him 'Master.'

And now, hearing Evan willingly call him 'Uncle' like this, it was like the clouds had

parted and the sun finally shone through.

After his parents died, his

brother-in-arms was the only family he had deft. But because Bernard refused to avenge his mother, he'd hated him-and ended up losing even that last bit of family. noveldrama

But here was Evan, kneeling, calling him Uncle with so much sincerity promising that they were family. That they'd stick together, weather the storms, and share the joys.

To say he wasn't moved would be a lie.

He'd grown up on anger and revenge, been cold and ruthless, but he was still human.

And humans-no matter how hard they try—can't help but feel.