“Fudge,” I breathed, my face suddenly flaming.
He chuckled. “Mm-hmm, exactly what I was thinking.”
Oh!
This could go two ways.
I could make a joke, back away, and let things go on as they had been. Great friends, unresolved tension.
Or, I could lean in and finish that kiss in the barn.
I . . . leaned.
He leaned.
“Chloe? We’re here!” Clark called.
Damn! I’d forgotten there was a third option.
“And where’s the bathroom? This pregnant lady needs to pee like a racehorse!”
“That’s charming, Vivian. We just got here.”
“Oh, shush, Clark, she doesn’t care about— Seriously, Chloe, where’s the bathroom?”
I turned my lean-in to a lean-on, and pressed my forehead against the column of his throat. “They’re here.”
“It would seem,” he murmured, running his hand down my spine. Fuuuuudge.
My nose filled with his earthy scent, I tilted my head up to look at him. We smiled, and I went out to greet my terribly ill-timed guests.
It was a fun night—great food, great music, new friends, and family. We started with a cocktail hour that consisted of three mai tais and a very icy root beer. Lucas had found an old tiki bar recipe book, and we’d been re-creating some of the tasty cocktails from that era. So far our favorites had been the Beachcomber and the Painkiller—although the mai tais were pretty damn tasty.
Watching Viv and Clark together was something else; I’ve never seen anyone flirt and bicker simultaneously so well. With the level of adoration between those two, their bickering was clearly foreplay. Vivian only had eyes for Clark, while he thought she hung the moon. Viv talked a good game, but she was so smitten with my cousin it was funny to see.
Lucas and Clark had immediately clicked, and the two were inside the house now, scooping ice cream for everyone.
Vivian and I were sitting on the back patio under the stars, enjoying some coffee to Dean Martin’s “All of Me.”
“Explain yourself this very second,” Viv said, putting her feet up on the seat between us and leaning back in her chair.
“Explain what exactly?” I asked, curious.
“Explain how you are not hitting that?” She pointed through the sliding glass door at Lucas, coming out of the kitchen holding two bowls.
“Oh my God,” I moaned, praying that he didn’t hear her. He didn’t seem to, although Clark took one look at Viv and raised his eyebrow.
“What are you up to?” he questioned, setting down a bowl of ice cream in front of her.
“Why would I be up to anything?” she asked innocently, attacking her ice cream with a vengeance.
“Because you look like you’re up to something,” he said, sitting down next to her. “You look guilty.”
“I’m just sitting here visiting with your cousin, waiting for my fiancé to bring me some ice cream,” she said, blinking at him. “Whatever could I be up to?”
I snorted and took the ice cream Lucas handed to me. His expression was equally curious, but a glare from Viv made Clark drop the subject.
“So, Lucas. You’re shipping out soon I hear. Belize?” Viv asked, spooning up her mint chocolate chip.
“Yeah, I’m doing another tour with Vets Without Borders. I leave for Belize in a few weeks.”
“Right after the Fourth, right?” she asked.
“Yep.”
“So two weeks, not a few,” Viv said, and I dropped my spoon with a clatter.
“I guess so, yeah.”
Stunned, I didn’t listen as they continued to talk. Wow, he’d be gone in two weeks! Two weeks from now and my nights and weekends would be decidedly Lucas free. He’d be out of the country and away from Monterey for—
“Three months? Did you know that, Chloe? Three months!”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, Viv, I knew that.” I sighed, catching Lucas’ eye across the table. “Vets Without Borders does amazing work. I’m sure he’ll have all kinds of stories to tell us when he gets back,” I said, my voice full of pride. Three months. Wow.
“Oh, I’m sure he’ll have stories,” Viv said in a tone, and now I was one fixing her with a glare.
Oblivious, Clark started asking Lucas whether he’d visited Belize before, and whether he was planning on visiting the rain forests while he was there.
I took the opportunity to pinch Viv’s arm. “Hey, I see what you’re doing—knock it off.”
“First, I can’t believe you just pinched a pregnant woman. Second, I can’t believe you are not hitting that! What on God’s green earth is stopping you? Third, and this is the pregnancy hormones talking, if Clark says it’s okay, I’m going to hit that if you don’t!” This was all said in a stage whisper while Lucas and Clark talked guy talk about monkeys or something. “And fourth, can I have some more ice cream?”