“If you hurt Blondie,” I reply, perfectly serious, “you won’t have to worry about your manhood. I’ll simply kill you and make it look like an accident.”
“Point taken.” Jake laughs and pulls the meat off the grill. “Come on, let’s listen to Mia tell me all about how I did this wrong.”
“I just don’t want any wine,” Addie says, and looks to Jake for help when we step inside. “Seriously, babe, they won’t leave me alone.”
“You know, peer pressure is bad,” I say slowly. “Just in case you forgot from when you were teenagers.”
“Addie loves wine,” Kat insists, but Cami’s watching with a thoughtful gaze. She’s rubbing her lips with her fingertip. She glances over at me and gives a slight nod, and I know what she’s thinking.
I know what’s happening here. Just wait and see.
“So tell them,” Jake says with a shrug. “I told you to tell them a month ago.”
“Holy Mary, Mother of God!” Mia shrieks. “You knocked her up!”
Cami grins. Everyone gasps and stares at Addie wide-eyed as tears gather in her pretty blue eyes.
“He totally knocked me up,” she says, getting choked up. “Isn’t it just the sweetest thing ever?”
The girls squeal and rush over to Addie to give hugs and kisses and belly rubs.
“How long?” Riley asks.
“Do you throw up all the time?” Cici asks.
“I want to throw the baby shower!” Cami says.
“I feel great,” Addie says, and smiles brightly at Jake as he walks over and kisses her cheek, then hugs her from behind. “I’m about three months along. I wanted to make sure everything was okay before we announced it. I know, that seems silly because it’s you guys, but—”
“We get it,” Riley says, patting Addie’s hand.
When the girls are all finished fussing over Addie, I saunter over and pull her in for a big hug. “I’m so happy for you, Blondie.”
“Thank you, handsome.”
“You should stop wearing those shoes. You don’t want to fall and hurt yourself.” The room goes absolutely quiet at my statement, and then all of the girls bust up laughing.
“You’re so sweet,” Addie says, patting my cheek like I’m a little boy who just said something funny. “But you’ll get my sexy shoes off my cold, dead feet.”
“Addie and Cami are very serious about their shoes,” Kat says.
“And you’re not?” Cami asks Kat, looking pointedly down at her cherry-red high heels.
“Not like you guys. You make shoe shopping into an Olympic sport. Have you seen Cami’s shoe-closet dream board on Pinterest?” Kat asks me.
“No,” I reply, smiling at Cami as she blushes.
“Oh God, you have to see it,” Riley says as Jake motions for all of us to file through the kitchen and dish up buffet-style. “The girl knows how to daydream about a pretty closet.”
“My shoes deserve a pretty closet,” Cami says softly, then latches on to my arm and buries her face in my shoulder. God, she’s funny. “I spend a fortune on them,” she mumbles into my shirt.
“I want to go play in Addie’s closet. Since we’re here anyway,” Mia says, and sniffs at the salmon. “These spent about a minute too long on the grill.”
“Sorry, chef,” Jake says, and rolls his eyes. “Eat steak instead.”
“I’m trying to steer clear of red meat,” Mia mumbles, and takes a piece of salmon, along with salad. No dressing. My heart hurts a bit for my sister. She’s beautiful, extra pounds and all, but she’s beat herself up for not being thin enough her whole life. “Addie, let’s go stare at your shoes after dinner.”
“We can totally do that,” Addie says happily, shoving mashed potatoes in her mouth. “God, I’m hungry.”
“I was constantly hungry when I was pregnant,” Cici says with a laugh. “I gained ninety pounds with my first.”
“Holy fuck,” Addie whispers, staring at her potatoes, but then she shrugs and keeps eating. “Jake’s stuck with me. Even if I do gain another whole preteen person.”
“Eat, baby,” Jake says, kissing her cheek.
I glance down at Cami and frown when I see tears in her eyes. “What is it?” I ask softly, so only she can hear. She shakes her head and looks up at me.
“I’m just happy. Everyone’s happy.”
I lean in and kiss her gently. “If you’re happy, I’m happy.”
“WHAT DID YOU think of today?” Cami asks as we finally walk into her house later that night.
“I had a good day. I always enjoy hanging out with you girls.”
She smiles and hangs our coats, then absentmindedly leans down to scratch Scoot’s ears. “I’m glad you had a good time. I did too.”
“Your mood has been hard to read today,” I say honestly, and watch as she thinks it over and then shrugs.
“I don’t know why I’ve had this weird mood on today. I’m so happy for Jake and Addie. I love celebrating my friends’ birthdays, and Riley seemed to enjoy herself. Everything was great today, but I’ve felt kind of . . . melancholy.”
“Come on.” I hold my hand out to her, then lead her up the stairs. “Show me where you’d put this shoe closet of yours.”
“Oh, it’s just a silly daydream,” she replies, but I shake my head.
“So daydream with me for a minute. Where would you put it?”
She bites her lip and watches me warily for a moment, then walks into the bedroom adjacent to her master bedroom and flips on the light. There are three bedrooms up here, not including her master. One is her office, one is a guest room, and this one is currently being used for storage.
“Okay, talk to me.”
“Really, Landon, it’s silly.”
“No, it’s not. Talk.”
She sighs and rolls her eyes, then walks about the space. “I would close up the doorway and make a new one that goes into my bedroom,” she begins. “Then I’d make this whole wall nothing but shelves for shoes. The walls on either end would have racks for clothes and this last wall would have hooks for scarves, my dresser, and more shelves for bags.
“In the middle, I’d put a vanity table and chair. Maybe. I don’t know, I don’t have it all figured out, but I’d essentially turn this bedroom into a kick-ass closet.”
I’m looking about the space as she describes it. “That wouldn’t be difficult, Cami.”
Her eyes light up.
“Seriously, it would maybe take a weekend and a few hundred dollars. Where do you have your shoes now?”
She motions for me to follow her, turns out the light of the closet-bedroom, and leads me into her master, opening a small walk-in closet that would be too small for most women I know. She has all of her clothes hung, and about three dozen shoe boxes stacked under them.
“I just leave them all in the boxes so they aren’t just in a huge heap,” she says. “It works fine.”
I know exactly what I’m getting her for her birthday in a few weeks.
I simply nod and pull her in for a hug. “Let’s take a bath.”
“A bath?”
I nod and pull her shirt over her head, toss it aside, and reach for her bra. In a matter of seconds, I have her undressed and sitting at the side of the bed as I strip off my own clothes.
“Stay.”
“Still not a dog,” she says with a sigh, and watches, her eyes on my stomach, as I turn away and walk into her bathroom. She has a separate shower and tub. The tub is a big jetted tub, the perfect size for two.
I run the water, adjust the temperature, and walk out to find that she’s flopped onto her back, her feet still on the floor. Her eyes are closed. I wish I knew why she seems so down today.
“Did you fall asleep?” I ask before laying my lips against hers and kissing her sweetly.
“Mm-mm,” she says, and grins against my lips. There’s her pretty smile.
“Have I mentioned how much I love this dimple in your cheek?”
“You used to tease me about
it when we were teenagers,” she says as I pull her to her feet.
“Did you ever stop to think that teasing you was my way of flirting with you?” I ask as I guide her into the bathtub. I sit behind her and tug her back against me, then wrap my arms around her stomach and simply hold on.
“Well, if you were trying to flirt, you were bad at it,” she says, and bats at the bubbles with her hand.
“I was a teenager. Of course I was bad at it.” I chuckle and kiss her neck, just under her ear. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m just quiet, Landon,” she says, and leans her head back on my shoulder, takes a deep breath, and relaxes against me. “There’s nothing wrong.”
“Will you tell me if that changes?”
“If you like,” she says.
“I want you to talk to me. I want you to tell me anything and everything.”
“You’ll get sick of hearing my voice,” she says, and looks up at me with a smile.
“Impossible.” I kiss her nose. “Your voice is the best part of my day.”
“My voice? Not my body, or my mouth?”
“Those are both impressive,” I reply, and tuck her arms under mine, hugging her around her shoulders now. “But it’s your voice that makes my day.”
“That could be the sweetest thing that anyone’s ever said to me,” she says.
“Oh, there’s more to come, sweetheart.”
Chapter 9
~Cami~
“What’s up with you?” Addie asks me as I walk into the office and close the door behind me. I stop and look over my shoulder, as if she might be talking to someone else. “Yes, you.”
“Well, I was going to balance our corporate checkbook,” I reply, and walk over to my desk. “And I need to write a check out to the newspaper for the ad we bought. I also need to balance the tills from last night.”
“Not that,” Addie says, and rolls her eyes. She sits in the chair by my desk and crosses her legs. “The other stuff.”
“What other stuff?”
“I noticed it at Riley’s party on Sunday,” she says, watching me closely. “When you get quiet¸ it’s because your brain is in overdrive.”
“It is?” I frown and sit back, thinking over the past four days. “I thought I just got quiet.”
“Yeah, because you’re thinking.” She smiles. “Spill it.”
“Well, this is new information,” I reply.
“Are you happy?”
“Yes.” I think about all of the time I get to spend with Landon. I love my house. I love my job. I even have a cat that’s beginning to tolerate me. “I have no complaints.”
“Okay, good. But something is bothering you.”
I frown and sigh. “So, things with Landon are good.”
“It looked like it, if the way he looks at you and can’t keep his hands off of you is any indication,” she replies with a wink. “But I can hear a big, fat but at the end of that sentence.”
“It’s a little but.”
“Okay, hit me with it.”
“But when’s the other shoe going to drop?” I ask, and sigh in relief. I didn’t even realize that I’d been agonizing over it, I just knew that there was something that was bothering me.
“The designer heel, or the steel-toed work boot?” she asks.
“I don’t have any shoes to drop,” I reply, spreading my hands wide. “He knows all about my past. It’s no secret.”
“And you think he has secrets?”
“I don’t know.” I stand and pace the large office that we all share. “Maybe. Probably not secrets per se, but there’s things that bother me.”
“Like?”
“Like the Navy,” I reply, spinning to look at her. “He loved the Navy. He loved to fly, to live all over the world, and now he has to settle for being here, and what if he gets tired of being here?”
“How do you know he will get tired of being here?” she asks.
“Landon’s always had a wandering soul. He’s talked about living in far-off places for as long as we’ve known him. I like it here, Addie. I don’t want to move away. I don’t think I could. I have a home and a business to run.”
“Whoa, Cami. He hasn’t even said anything about moving away.”
I blow out a breath. “I know, I’m overthinking it.”
“What are you really worried about?”
I bite my lip and feel the tears that I’ve been trying so hard to keep at bay fill my eyes. “What if he doesn’t feel the way I do?”
“How do you feel?”
“I love him. But I’m afraid to tell him because what if it sends him running?”
“Sometimes you just have to take the risk,” Addie says.
“I’m not a risk taker, Addie. I always play it safe. I’m the numbers girl. But being with Landon has been the biggest risk I’ve taken because I’ve fallen completely in love with him, and not in a childish crush way, and he could just be in it because I’m a distraction that he needs. This whole thing makes me very, very nervous.”
“I think you’re way overthinking all of this,” Addie says. “Which shouldn’t surprise me because you’ve always been an overthinker. Cami, he’s always cared about you. Always. You’re the one that he’d pull aside to ask your advice, or hang out with. And the way he looked at you at my house on Sunday? A guy doesn’t look at a girl like that if she’s just a convenience.”
“Maybe.”
“I’m not blowing smoke up your ass.”
“Well, that’s a relief, because that just sounds uncomfortable.”
Addie smirks. “Right? I don’t understand that expression.”
We laugh and glance at the door as Riley comes inside and looks back and forth between us. “Did I interrupt something?”
“Just me trying to talk some sense into her,” Addie says.
“Did you lose your sense?” Riley asks. “Because I can help.”
“She thinks that Landon’s just biding time with her.”
“That’s not exactly what I said,” I reply, glaring at Addie. “I said it all makes me nervous.”
“Girl, he looks at you like you’re an ice cream cone and he wants to lick you all day long.”
I purse my lips. “He is good with his tongue.”
“Atta girl,” Addie says, giving me a high five. “Is he good with the other stuff too?”
“Why does this feel icky?” Riley says, her face pinched like she smelled something gross.
“Because it’s Landon and he’s like a brother to us,” Addie says. “But, he’s her man, so we have to still ask the questions.”
“He’s good at all of it,” I reply. “Better than anything I might have daydreamed about over the years.”
“That must be good because you’ve had a lot of time to daydream,” Riley says, smiling. “I’m happy for you. And I know you. Don’t overthink it. Just enjoy him. Take it one day at a time. Don’t worry about what might happen, because you’re not a psychic. You don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“That’s a lot of advice,” I reply. “And how is it that you all knew I overthink everything and I didn’t know it?”
“Because we’ve known you forever,” Addie says. “And we love you.”
“We pay attention,” Riley agrees.
“I have one more thing,” Addie adds. “If you love him, tell him. Life’s short, and sometimes even the girl who doesn’t take risks needs to make the leap. Just be honest.”
“I’ll think about it,” I reply. “Thank you.”
“Can we have chocolate now?” Addie asks hopefully.
“We can always have chocolate.”
I go to the safe and pull out the deposit bag for yesterday. Each evening, the last waitress and bartender on shift close out the tills, put the cash and credit-card receipts in this bag, and stow it in the safe. I reconcile it the next day.
Riley and Addie are chatting about going shopping for baby clothes and Addie wants us to come over later to help her design t
he nursery. I’m listening with half an ear as I count the money for the fourth time.
It’s still short by eighty dollars.
I frown and count it again, still coming up eighty dollars short.
“What’s wrong?” Riley asks.
“The bar till is short eighty dollars.” I glance up at the girls, then back down at the cash and receipts on my desk. This is weird. The numbers always add up. We may be a dollar short here and there, but never this much. “It’s so odd. This is the fourth time this week. I’m losing it, guys. I can’t even balance the damn daily till. I’m supposed to be the numbers girl, and all I am is a big, giant mess!”
“Take a deep breath there, tiger,” Addie says, and stands to come look over my shoulder. “Want me to count?”
“Sure, a second pair of eyes is never a bad thing.” I stand so she can take my chair and add all of the money, coming up with the same conclusion. “Seriously, what’s wrong with me? My personal life may be in chaos, but the numbers always add up. I’m losing it.”
“You’re not losing it,” Addie says as she counts the money. “You’ve been working your ass off, and we’re only doing as well as we are because of you.”
“She’s right,” Riley adds. “Take a deep breath and give yourself a break.”
“Is it always the same amount?” Addie asks.
“No, but it’s never big. It varies from forty to a hundred.”
“You don’t think the new girl, Leah, is stealing from us, do you?” Addie asks with a frown.
“Maybe she doesn’t know how to count back change?” Riley asks diplomatically.
“I don’t know, but we should talk to Kat about it,” Addie says.
“Leah’s here now, so I’ll text Kat to come in here,” I reply, thumbing out a message to Kat. A few seconds later, she walks through the door and we tell her what we’ve found.
Kat’s eyes narrow. “I’m going to get to the bottom of this right now. I won’t tolerate this in our place.”
She stomps away, out the door, and we all look at each other, then hurry to follow her into the bar.
There are no customers right now. We haven’t opened for lunch yet.
“Leah,” Kat says as she walks behind the bar toward the petite blonde. “Are you stealing from me?”
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