by Jillian Neal
“Sure. Thanks.” The waitress made a note on her pad and went to fetch my soda.
T grinned. “Okay, tell us about the house.”
Since I’d been waiting on that very opening, I leapt in. “It was built in 1910. Four bedrooms and two baths. One of the bedrooms is perfect for my office. There’s a secondary staircase off of the kitchen that goes to another office that will be perfect for a theater room. I’m going to tear out a few walls to re-do the kitchen and of course change the paint. The original hardwoods and fireplaces are in great shape. The basement is finished. The porches are gorgeous and it’s on South Twenty-third so not far from Tier Seven.”
“I keep telling her if she wants to blow out walls, I can take care of that for her.” Griff brushed a kiss on my cheek.
“You are not using anything that requires a cylinder, a metal jacket, or TNT to do demo on our house, honey. I have a crew, and when they’re finished we’ll still have something left to work with.”
“You’re so picky about that,” he continued to tease me. “Just swear to me you’ll do something with that blue room at the top of the stairs. It hurts to look at.”
“Yeah, retina-burn blue is rarely a good paint choice. I’ll make it better.”
The even hum of conversation and the soothing sounds of the cooks in the kitchen settled around us. The waitress returned with several platters of sides the guys must’ve had as a standing order.
To all of our surprise, Maddie stepped hesitantly towards the table. “I’m assuming baby batter and clam sauce must be old school.”
“You came.” T stood and offered up his seat. I fought not to actually applaud this thing I was watching happen before my very eyes.
She offered us all grins as she scooted close to Voodoo so T could slide back in beside her. “My parents wanted Olivia to spend the night with them. My house was too quiet, so I thought I might pop in. I won’t stay long.”
“We’re thrilled you’re here,” I vowed.
“Hell yeah, girly, have an onion ring, and stay a while.” Voodoo offered her the basket.
“Baby batter will never go out of style,” T explained, “it’s evergreen, but how long were you standing over there?”
“Just a few minutes. I didn’t want to interrupt the game. Brought back more than a few good memories. Plus, I kind of wanted to see if I could still sneak by a pack of Berets. Makes me feel like I still have skills.”
I grinned at her. “I’m sure they’d be happy to play their game for you anytime, and I’m going to need you to teach me that sneaking by them thing.”
She laughed. “Never thought that game would be something I’d miss, and I will happily share all of my knowledge with you, Mrs. Haywood. Beret wives have to stick together.”
I squealed. “I will never get tired of hearing that.”
When Griff’s brow furrowed, I knew I wasn’t the only one who’d noticed T discreetly prop his arm up on the back of the booth behind Maddie’s shoulders. Using the waitress’s reappearance to take our orders as a distraction, Griff leaned closer and whispered, “Is there something going on there?”
“I’m really hoping so.” I nuzzled my head on his shoulder to conceal my answer.
“You think either one of them has figured it out yet?”
“Nope. Not yet.”
H.A.L.O. Redeemed
Find out what is in store for T and Maddie in H.A.L.O. Redeemed
Or Go back and find out more about the Sevens by reading Aaron and Natalie’s book, Last Call (Part of the Camden Ranch Series)
And keep up with the latest on Jillian’s upcoming books by joining her mailing list at: http://jillianneal.com
About the Author
Bestselling author Jillian Neal likes her coffee strong and sweet with a shot of sinful spice, the same way she likes her cowboys. In fact, her caffeine addiction is quite possibly considered illicit in several states as are a few of the things her characters do. When she’s not writing or reading, you’ll find her in the kitchen trying out new recipes or coming up with excuses reasons to purchase yet another handbag or make an additional trip to Sephora. Though she’ll always be a Bama girl at heart, Jillian hangs up her hat and kicks up her boots outside of Atlanta with her hunk-of-a-husband and her teenage sons.
For more information…
jillianneal.com
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Also by Jillian Neal
Broken H.A.L.O
H.A.L.O. Undone
H.A.L.O. Redeemed
Camden Ranch
Rodeo Summer
Forever Wild
Cowgirl Education
Un-hitched
Last Call
Wayward Son
Gypsy Beach to Camden Ranch
Coincidental Cowgirl
Gypsy Beach
Gypsy Beach
Gypsy Love
Gypsy Heat
Gypsy Hope