Page 88 of Nothing to Deny
“Someone has to handle this.”
“Handle what?” Kelly’s voice raised their attention. How had she snuck up on them? “What’s all the whispering about?”
“No whispering,” Holly said, which was a ridiculous thing to say when clearly there was. Kelly was being lied to by her fiancé, she didn’t need her own family gaslighting her too. “Where is this place we’re going today?”
Change of subject, good plan. Though Kelly had her mother’s blood, maybe she’d take up cooking too.
“Baer!” her uncle exclaimed, prompting her to twist all the way around to see her guy joining them. “Do you know Paul has never been fishing? Tell me you’re a real man, tell me you fish.”
“It’s been a lot of years…” In a slow stroll, Baer came around to her and bowed, waiting for her to tip her head back to join their lips. It was just a slow, casual brush of skin, but it was seductive. He was seductive. She’d been his first thought, hisfirst target. They’d been more intimate upstairs, yet that didn’t stop him seeking her out. “I missed you too.”
Damn, was this guy for real? Her guy. Was it possible his work at Squires changed his whole perspective of women and relationships? Did he know the difference between what he wanted and acting only to give a woman what she wanted?
Was it genuine? Did he know the difference? It felt good, she just hoped it felt the same for him.
“Our women are determined to go to some viewpoint something today,” her uncle said with a flippant shake of his head. “But we’ve got to get him trained, whip him into shape so he’ll be able to look after my daughter.”
“Dad…” Holly whined. “We’re seeing each other, don’t make it a big deal.”
“Yeah,” Kelly said, finding a smile. “You’ll scare him off.”
“And shatter your mother’s dream of a double wedding, yes, yes, fair enough.” Her uncle might know there were unsteady undercurrents between the couples, one of them anyway, but he didn’t get as bogged down about stressing out. “That leaves only you, Freya. Will you make an honest woman of her, Baer?”
“Dad!” Holly moaned again just as her mother came from the kitchen with another dish. “Mom, tell him to stop scaring everyone.”
Her uncle laughed. “Marriage is a life goal; it’s a milestone you should all be happy to shoot for. Look forward to it, your lives can start once you have that certificate in hand.”
“Life’s not like that these days.” Holly reached over the table to snag a coffeepot. “Women can live independently without men, without marriage.”
“There’s something to be said for sharing your life. Okay, independence can feel like strength, but life isn’t a journey youwant to take alone, share it, cherish it. And for goodness’ sake, marry a man who knows how to fish.”
Baer sat next to her.
She retrieved a clean plate from the center of the table. “You’ll have to eat something otherwise this will all go to waste.” Baer loaded a few things on a plate and set it between them as she poured coffee. “I wish the twins were here.”
“Yeah…” He enjoyed a bite of bacon. “It would all be gone by now with those gannets around. I’m starting to get jealous you’re always thinking about my brothers when we’re together.”
She squeezed his thigh beneath the table and bounced up to kiss his jaw. “No need for jealousy.” She rested her head on his arm. “It’s actually a little embarrassing…”
He finished his mouthful and wrapped his fingers around his coffee cup. “Embarrassing? What’s embarrassing? Thinking about the twins?”
“How much I think about our life together. What it might be… What it might look like… How we might be…” She couldn’t say family, that would be crossing the line. Why was she telling him something so embarrassing anyway? “Sorry.”
“That’s what you think about? Us?”
“Presumptuous, I know, don’t say it. Forget I said anything.”
“I won’t forget.” His fingers curled around the back of her head to get it from his arm so they could look at each other. “Our life will look however you want it to look. Whatever you want, I’ll find a way to get it for you.”
And he would, she believed him.
“I’m getting ahead of myself. We’ve found each other, that’s the important thing. We can take our time with the rest.”
She didn’t want to come across as forward or bossy, she didn’t want to seem like she was taking over. Money was noconcern, and they’d have to have that conversation before they made long-term promises.
It would be so easy to get caught up in the honeymoon of their new infatuation. If they wanted this to last, they had to be smart about it. Her uncle was right in one sense, there was something to be said for sharing a life. She could see Baer in hers, forever in hers, did he feel the same about her?
TWENTY-EIGHT
