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“I’ll tell you when you stop calling me brat. I’m older than you.”
“And still a brat.” He was smiling.
“A handyman is coming next week to do some repairs, and then... on to selling it. It’s going to take some time, though. I can only supervise the handyman after work. I don’t trust anyone to give them keys.”
“We can take turns watching him,” he assured me. My sisters asked me to put them in the rotation too, which helped. My parents offered to watch the handyman during the day, but I refused. There was no rush to sell, and they didn’t have to put their very active social life on hold for it. My parents’ social calendar was better than mine. They did everything from dancing classes to trips around the country.
When I moved from the pool to one of the lounge chairs, I got out the sunscreen and my phone. I had a message from Will. My heart went pitter-patter. I hadn’t ever felt such a strong attraction to a man. It almost scared me.
Will: How are you this morning, fine lady? Head weighing a ton? Hungover?
I smiled, typing back quickly.
Paige: Why such a low opinion of me? My head is perfectly fine. In fact, I’m having brunch with my family :-)
I didn’t have enough alcohol in my system, but I definitely had a Will Connor hangover.
Will: What are you doing after brunch?
I hid my phone when Elsa passed me on the way to the house. If I thought my heart had gone pitter-patter before, it was nothing compared to now. Was he... was he trying to make plans with me?
Paige: Don’t know yet.
I felt like dancing when his reply came.
Will: Let’s do something together.
Paige: Define something.
Will: Not sure yet. Are you game for something spontaneous?
When it came to Will, I seemed to be game for anything. Including letting him kiss me against the door.
Paige: Game on, Will Connor.
Will: How about a trip to the mountains? A short trail?
I stared a little at the phone, wondering if this qualified as a date. Or were we just... hanging out, whatever that meant? After last night, it was clear that Will was interested in doing the horizontal mambo with me, but did he want something more too?
I fiddled with my phone, considering everything. He’d taken me to his sister’s wedding, which had been sweet and personal. Way too much effort just to get in my pants—though I couldn’t be sure, of course.
Paige: Sure. I love hiking.
Will: I know. You told me that yesterday :-)
I didn’t even remember that. I smiled, feeling all sorts of winged creatures in my belly, and chose to view this as a date, hoping Will didn’t consider it to be less.
Will: Let me know when brunch is over.
I tucked my phone carefully in my bag before lathering on sunscreen. Hiding my excitement wasn’t as easy as hiding my phone, though. I looked at Miranda, laughing with her husband, and at my oaf of a brother chasing his daughter through the water, then joined in on the fun, even though the sunscreen hadn’t sunk in my skin yet. I’d be sorry for my impulsive ways when I was eighty and wrinkly, but for now, I didn’t care one bit.
I did laps, then played with my nieces and was generally a brat to my brother. I had to live up to my nickname, after all. I even pulled Dad in the pool when he was passing by, even though he was fully clothed.
“Paige,” Mom admonished with a smile, but Dad wasn’t mad. I’d never seen the man mad one day in my life. He took it in stride.
When my siblings announced they had to get going, I started thinking about what to wear to meet Will. Which was why, instead of texting him when the brunch was over, I waited until I was home to text him, because not only did I need to change, but by the pool I’d discovered that another pass with the razor was needed. I went even higher this time, and afterward slathered on one of those creams that smelled good enough to eat.
Then I dressed in hiking gear. The fabric stretched over my skin a little too tight, and I grinned, imagining Will’s expression when he saw me. He could barely keep his hands off me last night. There was no telling what he’d do today.
