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We’re both completely stumped and have no good excuses, apparently.
Liam shakes his head. His hair moves luxuriously from the simple motion like some slow-mo shot out of a shampoo commercial. “I’ve known you two were sneaking around since day one. Neither of you are anywhere near as subtle as you think.”
“What?” Jesse says. “We’re not sneaking around.”
“Even I saw it,” Maddox says. “Why do you think I wasn’t laying my charm on Andi. You don’t think I could’ve wooed her by now if I didn’t know you’d already spoken for her?”
“Actually, I would’ve wooed her,” Carter argues. “It would’ve been no contest. Your charm versus mine? Might as well be a lion trying to arm wrestle a mouse.”
“You’re the mouse?” Maddox asks.
“Lions and mice don’t even have the joints and body composition to arm wrestle, dumbass,” Jake says. “And the lion would just eat the mouse.”
“Point is!” Carter interrupts. “I would’ve absolutely wooed the socks off your little sister if Jesse hadn’t beat me to it.”
“Do you all mind?” Jesse asks.
Carter grins and points. “See? We’re making him jealous. Why would you be jealous if you weren’t already embroiled in a secret affair with Jake’s little sister.”
Jake glares. “And why do you think I had to grit my teeth and give you permission to continue your secret affair if I didn’t already know it was going on?”
I share a look with Jesse. Is this really happening right now? He gives me a subtle nod.
“We weren’t sure if we should tell you guys,” I say.
“It was supposed to only be casual,” Jesse adds.
His few words mean the world to me. It was supposed to only be casual. As in, it’s not anymore. As in, it’s officially more than casual. If I wasn’t trying so hard to play it cool, I’d be squealing and dancing around right now.
“Does this mean I don’t get to watch Andi try to scamper through the snow outside my window in the morning anymore?” Carter asks. “Because that was pretty hilarious.”
Jesse shakes his head. “Come on, Andi. Let’s go pick up your parents. I don’t know how much more of these guys I can take right now.”
“More like you want to get in the truck and play grab ass,” Carter says, laughing.
Jesse shoots him the middle finger. And me? I take a big handful of Jesse’s ass in front of everyone, drawing a chorus of laughter and a groan of disgust I assume is from my brother.
32
JESSE
I’m in a room at the bed and breakfast while Andi and her mom sit on the bed, wrapping the Secret Santa gifts we spent the first part of the day buying. To my surprise, her parents haven’t been too hostile toward me. Sure, her dad had a bit of the stand-offishness I’d expect from a man who is watching his runaway bride daughter launch herself straight into a new relationship. I’d be worried if he wasn’t suspicious of me.
He’s lounging beside me in one of the two arm chairs in the room. He’s a tall, incredibly thin man with a big head and a large, prominent Adam's apple.
It occurs to me that I haven’t been up in the rooms at the bed and breakfast in years–since back when my parents were running the place. These days, I just come in the front or back door, hang around the kitchen and lobby, and go. It’s oddly nostalgic up here.
Andi and her mom are chatting at high speeds about anything and everything that’s happened since her arrival in Frosty Harbor.
“I used to sneak into these rooms and jump on the beds,” I admit to Andi’s dad.
He glances up from his paperback, grinning. “Andi said your folks used to run this place, right?”
I nod. “Yeah.”
Both our eyes drift to Andi. She’s in a fluffy white sweater, black leggings, and she has kicked off her boots so her bright green reindeer socks are on proud display. There’s a fluffy red ball on each big toe that must make her shoes wildly uncomfortable, but Andi apparently decided it was worth the pain.
“So you two are pretty serious, then?” Her dad’s question sounds somehow more like a threat, and I’m not exactly sure what response he wants.
