"Smartest thing I ever did," Alex said, not even the least bit embarrassed about his behavior.
"I can't stand being around you guys anymore. You're all way too … I don't know, mushy, I guess," Austin said as he got to his feet.
"We love you too," Bree said as she sent him an air kiss.
"Love ya, sis," Austin said before shooting her a smile and taking off into the house.
As soon as Austin was out of earshot, Bree turned to the group with a huge smile.
"Once we get George and Esther all situated, I say we have fun with Austin and Kinsey. It's obvious the two are meant to be together. Plus, I have to say this matchmaking stuff is kind of addicting," she said with excitement.
"Now, Bree, we really should leave Austin alone," Trenton warned.
"Why? He was a pain in the arse when I was with Chad. I think he deserves a bit of interference from his family."
"I know Kinsey's half in love with him, if not all the way. I'm game," Cassie spoke up.
With the approval of her best friend, the group put their heads together to see what they could do to help the relationship along.
If Joseph would've been awake, he would have been so proud of them. They were certainly following in his footsteps.
Kinsey settled into her room, impressed by the luxurious suite the family had put her in. She loved the soft purples Katherine had used, from the curtains to the bedspread covering the king sized four-poster bed barely taking up any room in the spacious suite.
She walked over to the sitting area and grabbed the remote, pressing a button, causing a soothing fire to leap to life in the huge built in gas fireplace. She was afraid she could get too comfortable in her room. It was bigger than her entire apartment and certainly had much better furniture.
A knock on her door brought her out of her thoughts. Her body tensed as she made her way to it, afraid Austin was on the other side. She wasn't ready to speak to him yet. She didn't have any clue what she'd say.
She slowly cracked it open, then let out a relieved breath as Cassie pressed forward with a bag of chocolate in one hand, and coffee in the other. Her best friend knew her well.
"I brought the important stuff. I figure I'll get you in a good mood first, then demand you spill your guts," Cassie said, moving over to the sitting area and setting the items down.
Kinsey smiled. She knew there was no way her friend would leave her be until she dished her a plateful of the most delicious details, so she may as well get comfortable. Normally, she'd rush to Cassie to tell her everything, but this was different. With Cassie being related to Austin, even through marriage, it made it seem a little awkward to complain about the guy, or to even tell her how mixed up her feelings were.
"I'm sure you have more important things to do than listen to my sorry tales," Kinsey attempted to joke.
The look Cassie gave her, quickly evaporated all humor from the air.
"Kinsey, we've known each other too many years for you to even attempt to pull that. We've always come to each other, and we always will. Just because I'm married to Austin's brother doesn't mean you can't complain about him. You're my best friend, number one in my life. Never have we let a man come between us, and we certainly won't start now. We can either do this the easy way or the hard way, but one way or the other, you will spill."
Kinsey grinned at her best friend. It was so nice to have her. She knew it was a rare thing to have someone in your life you loved so deeply. If Cassie needed her to jump off a cliff with her, then Kinsey would do it. She knew the same held true in Cassie's mind, so she didn't know why she'd felt hesitant in talking to her, even for one brief moment.
"Thank you, Cassie," she said as she walked up and gave her a hug. It would feel better to talk to someone.
She'd managed to snowball her family, which was a first. Her visit home had been relaxing, and no one had figured out how stressed she was. At least no one had called her on it. She should've known she'd never get away with that with the one person who knew her more than even her brothers.
The two women sat on the couch and Kinsey reached for the bag of chocolate, quickly grabbing a piece and ripping off the wrapper. Setting the chocolate on her tongue, she closed her eyes, savoring the flavor for a moment before speaking. The only true way to eat chocolate. She needed a sugar high to get through the upcoming conversation, too.
"Thanks, Cassie. That was just what I needed," Kinsey said with a sigh of pleasure as the sweet chocolate melted on her tongue. She picked up the coffee and took a sip to wash it down.
"Yeah, yeah, now speak," Cassie said as she took her own piece of candy and sat back, making herself comfortable.