Nodding her head, Suzy agreed. “I have to admit, that used to freak me out about Gray in the beginning. His need to always have some kind of physical contact with me. I never really had that with anyone before. My ex-fiancé just turned over and went to sleep afterward. I thought that was the way it was for everyone. It was almost as if Gray was invading my personal space the first few times. I loved having him close, but at the same time I wasn’t truly comfortable being the focus of that much attention. Now, it centers me. I wouldn’t know what to do without it.”
Raising her hand as if they were in a schoolroom, Beth asked, “Does Nick passing out on top of me afterward count?” Everyone started laughing. “Nick is amazing in bed, but since Henry keeps us up half the night now, instead of the marathon sessions we used to have, we’re more into short, hot bursts and then collapsing for an hour before we have to get up again.”
Suzy groaned. “Please don’t tell me how wonderful Nick is in bed again. I have to look at the man over the dinner table at family gatherings. It’s bad enough that Gray’s mother never fails to mention what a stud Gray’s father is in the bedroom.” Laying her head in her hands, she added, “There are just some things you shouldn’t know about family . . . like ever.”
When their food arrived, Emma let everyone take a few bites before putting down her fork. “I do need some advice about Brant. I thought we were in a good place last night when he dropped me off, but this morning I walked into his office to find him hugging an attractive woman. He introduced her as a friend, but when Declan walked in, he asked Brant what his ex was doing there.”
Claire’s fork froze on the way to her mouth. “Was it Alexia Shaw?”
“Um . . . yes, I believe so. Why?” asked Emma.
“I . . . Jason mentioned Brant being engaged before to the daughter of a friend of his father’s. I was surprised at the time because I just couldn’t picture him getting married; he’s so . . . reserved. I think it was a while back, though, and I’m not sure what happened.”
Always the voice of practicality, Suzy said, “Well, honey, she’s old news. You’re the here and now. They didn’t have their tongues down each other’s throats, right?”
“Er . . . no, not when I walked in.”
“Did it look like they had at any point?” Suzy asked.
“How would she know that?” Beth asked curiously.
Before Suzy could answer, Claire spoke up. “Oh, you’d know. Men just have that crazy, ‘I’m so close to having sex look’ that they can’t hide, especially with little notice. I agree with Suzy; if he and Alexia had been doing anything other than sharing a platonic hug, you would know it.”
Surprisingly, Ella nodded her head in agreement. “Whenever we have unexpected visitors like my mother, she always knows when she’s interrupting something. The last time she actually said, ‘I’ll make this quick since Declan looks feverish.’ We all knew she didn’t think he was coming down with anything. It was just her way of pointing out that she knew what we had been up to. If my mother can spot something like that, you would have been able to as well.”
“Well, crap,” Emma sighed. “I guess I should stop acting like such a teenage girl then. I should have known it was innocent. I mean, I’ve seen Brant . . . excited and that wasn’t it.”
“Well, either that or you’re just way better than this other woman.” Beth clapped her hand over her mouth, seeming to realize how wrong her sentence sounded. “Damn, I didn’t mean it like that. You are better, of course, but there was nothing there to start with, so . . .”
Suzy interrupted her sister. “Let me put you out of your misery before you dig yourself in any further.” Turning to Emma, she said, “So everything is fine and if you want to continue with Brant, then there is no reason why you shouldn’t.” Then, drilling Beth with a look, she added, “Just please don’t do it in anyone else’s house like some people . . .” Beth responded with a grimace and Emma had to wonder what she was missing. “Hey, speaking of sex and exes, I have a new and interesting friend, Beth, with ties to one of your exes.”
Looking surprised, Beth said, “Really? Heck, I don’t have much of a dating past, so who could that be?”
“Well, you only went out with him a few times . . . but you remember Seth Jackson, right?”
“Oh my God,” Beth moaned. “That man had a front-row seat to one of the most embarrassing moments in my life. Please tell me he isn’t your new best friend now.”
“Hardly.” Suzy smiled. “But you’ll be happy to know he’s moved on . . . to someone very close to home.”
Beside Suzy, Claire smiled. “Oh yes, that’s right. I had forgotten that you went out with Seth.”
Holding up her hand, Emma said, “Whoa, let’s take this back a little for the benefit of those of us who don’t know. Who is Seth and what embarrassing moment did I miss?” Ella was trying to stifle a giggle under her hand, so Emma knew it must be a good one.
Beth took a breath and said, “I met Seth through a dating service. He works at the Oceanix.”
“He owns the Oceanix,” Suzy added. “Big difference.”
“Wow,” Emma breathed. “I’m impressed.” The Oceanix was the most elite resort in Myrtle Beach and that was saying something. Her parents had insisted on taking her there for lunch on their last visit. She probably wouldn’t have been able to afford more than a crouton without them paying.
“Yeah, well, I didn’t know he owned it at the time. He just said he was the manager there. Not that it would have made any difference to me. Seth was a great guy.” And wiggling her eyebrows, she added, “And very easy on the eyes. We had only been out a few times when things with Nick started to . . . heat up. I had a very bad and temporary lapse in judgment and decided I was going to continue dating despite finding out I was pregnant.”
Suzy opened and closed her mouth. Emma had to give her credit for holding in whatever comment she had wanted to make.
“So, um, how did that work out?” Emma asked.
Beth started laughing. “Not very well. I met Seth for dinner one evening and Nick showed up. He introduced himself as the father of my child and also let Seth know he was living with me. When Seth asked me if it was true, I had no choice but to tell him that it was. Have you ever had a gorgeous man look at you like you were a complete and total train wreck? Let me tell you, it’s not a good feeling. It was completely humiliating and I have prayed that I would never see him face-to-face again.”
Ella squeezed her friend’s hand in sympathy, saying, “It could happen to any of us.”
Suzy laughed out loud before telling Ella, “Unless you are planning to start dating now, it’s probably not gonna happen to anyone at this table again.”
“I almost hate to ask,” Beth said, “but what were you saying about Seth?”
“Believe it or not,” Suzy said, “he’s dating someone at Danvers . . . again. With a little more success this time, though. She works in installations and her name is Mia Gentry. She’s actually pretty cool; I think you’d all like her.”
“Small town, small world,” Claire offered.
“Should make for a hell of a good Christmas party, though, right?” Suzy smirked.
As the other women gathered their things to leave, Emma was surprised when Ella pulled her aside. Ella gave her a shy smile before saying, “If Brant is what you want, then never stop until you get him. That whole family is so . . . closed off. Declan is better now, but he still has times when he wants to shoulder everything on his own. I’ve gotten to know Brant a bit since Declan and I got together. I can see that there’s a lot more to him than he lets most people see. Ava—she has been a bit tougher. I don’t think she’s ever gonna call me wanting to have a girls’ night. Evan is crazy about both of them, though, and they say kids are the best judge of a person’s character.”
Emma smiled her gratitude. “Thank you, Ella, and for what it’s worth, Declan is damn lucky.”
Brant was waiting for her near her desk when she returned from lunch. She looked at him uncertainly for a moment before putting her hands on her hips and breaking the silence. “What? Don’t tell me you wanted your slave to bring you back some lunch?”
His eyebrows shot up in surprise before a smile curved his gorgeous lips. “Now why would I want yet another sandwich that you had left sitting on the table for an hour before bringing it back to me? I’m sure you have been sorely disappointed that I haven’t succumbed to a bad case of food poisoning yet.”
Dropping her purse on the desk, she said, “It hasn’t been from a lack of trying on my part.” Suddenly Brant gripped her hips, pulling her bottom back against him. She felt his erection nudging against her and wiggled against it, eliciting a groan from him.
“God, you’re turning me on. One more nasty comment from you and I’ll have you lying on your desk with your panties on the floor and my cock driving hard inside you.”