Tangled in Divine(Divine Creek Ranch 14)(34)

“Who else?”

Grace and Teresa glanced at each other and at the same time said, “Kemp Whittier.”

Teresa nodded. “Big-time woobie. So is Seth Carter.”

Grace bit her lip and interjected, “Oh hell yes. He’s like Angel—a stealth woobie.”

“Stealth woobie?” Gwen had to giggle.

“Average build and height but he emanates protectiveness. And with the way Jayne looks at him, he might as well be seven feet tall.” Gwen didn’t know either of them quite as well as the others but she had to agree. Jayne looked at Seth as though all he needed was a red cape.

Grace sighed happily before taking another sip of wine. “And then there’s Chris Potter. Fuzzy woobie.”

“Fuzzy woobie?” Gwen asked.

Grace blushed and said, “He and Julián came with Lily, Clay, and Del Cook to Bowie Lake with the rest of us for an outing late last summer. We grilled and swam, and a few people brought their boats. Chris went waterskiing.”

“Really?” Gwen had a hard time picturing that big guy in swim trunks cutting a path across the lake at high speed, but the image made her smile.

“Yeah, and he’s quite the fuzzy teddy bear.”

“He’s hairy?” Gwen was almost afraid to ask.

Grace giggled salaciously. “Not the way you’re thinking, honey. Either he grooms or he got tapped just enough by the fuzz-fairy to be over-the-top sexy but not so much that he’s like Sasquatch in need of a spa day. Sorry—not that I am lusting after any other man’s fuzziness but he’s got just enough to keep the right woman warm at night.”

Teresa whispered, “It was hard not to stare, Gwen. You’ll see. He’s got just the right amount—”

“What? Wait. I’ll see?”

Teresa looked her straight in the eye and nodded. “There’s truth to what Grace is saying. Love is…in the air.” She made a point of gesturing discreetly over Gwen’s shoulder. “Chris has been watching you since you left Julián’s lap.”

Grace elbowed her friend and whispered, “So has Julián.”

Trying not to be obvious, Gwen looked over her shoulder and discovered that the women were right. Chris and Julián were staring like they wanted her to come back…to both of them. Julián spoke softly to Chris but never took his eyes off of Gwen.

“Whoa. I think the hormones are getting to me,” Gwen whispered as she turned back to look at her friends and sipped her wine. “Chris has been really quiet all evening but really…”

Grace gave her a crooked smile. “Attentive? Watchful? He reminds me just a little of Adam when we first met. I thought he was really intense at first. I think it was actually uncertainty on his part.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’d known Jack a long time and had been secretly in love with him for a good part of it. When I met Ethan and Adam, the attraction was so sudden and we needed time to figure out our dynamic. I’ll never forget the first time Adam kissed me.” Grace’s cheeks glowed and she brought her fingertips to her lips.

“Had you known each other a while by that point? Did you already know that he wanted to be part of a ménage? Did Ethan know?”

“It developed pretty quickly once they clued in that I felt guilty for being attracted to all of them the night that they helped me get free from my live-in, freeloading boyfriend, Owen. In retrospect I realized they were too noble to make a move while I was committed to someone else, even though he was an abusive asshat.”

Teresa chuckled and said, “He was a big jerk. I hated the way he beat down your self-image.”

Gwen was surprised by that statement. “You had a bad self-image?” Grace was one of the most poised, sexy, self-confident women Gwen knew. She couldn’t imagine her ever seeing herself as “less than.”

Grace sipped her wine and nodded. “You didn’t know me back then but Teresa can tell you…I was afraid of my own shadow. I could barely converse with Jack without turning beet red. That change was gradual and I give my men all the credit for it. They worked hard to draw me out. But if you think my story is extreme, you should hear Teresa’s sometime.”

Teresa waved her hand dismissively. “Let’s not. I’m in a good mood and don’t want to rehash all my history for Gwen. Suffice to say, Angel and Joaquin won me separately but claimed me together—here at one of Grace’s Christmas parties just a few years ago.” Her eyes grew misty as she stroked the black onyx pendant she wore.

Gwen was taken back to the same holiday season, recalling her own close encounter with Joaquin, and heat stained her cheeks. She’d hooked up with Joaquin just barely a day before he’d met the woman who would own his heart. She wondered if she’d ever get over the guilt, even though neither of them could’ve known that would happen.