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“I—”
“Hey, Merit, look at you arriving on time. With a guest.”
They both looked over to see Shelby in the doorway leading from the foyer to the living room. Clearly, Merit didn’t bring guests to brunch on a regular basis. That made Mae feel better, until she saw the blatant curiosity in his sister’s eyes.
“Hi, Mae. Love that dress.”
“Thank you.” Mae smiled wanly, hoping she didn’t have to dash for the bathroom anytime soon.
Beside Merit’s baby sister stood a good-looking guy about mid-twenties, olive complexion, greenish eyes, short brown hair streaked with blond on top, and a neat, trimmed goatee. He was tall and lean, but muscled where it counted. The two of them made a much better couple than her and Chad Meyer, and Mae wondered if he was the reason she’d hesitated accepting the dinner invite from the city hall employee.
The guy glanced down at the military-style watch on his wrist. “Forget on time, he’s early. When’s the last time that happened?”
“Oh, it’s definitely one for the record books,” Shelby teased.
“I’m guessing we have to credit the blond.”
Merit grumbled under his breath as he urged her forward. “The blond is Mae Lockhart, a great mom and owner of Lockhart Construction. Mae, meet Reyes Torrez. Family friend, assistant stable manager, and all around pain in the ass.”
She smiled as she shook his hand. “You’d get along great with my younger brother, Bryce.”
He laughed. “Nice to meet you, Mae.”
“Mae’s redoing my clinic,” Shelby supplied. “We’re getting back on track now that the permit situation is resolved.”
“Cool. I look forward to seeing it.” Reyes turned and backed toward the door. “I was just on my way out, though. I had to drop off mom’s keys after borrowing her car.”
So, not Shelby’s date.
“Your mom’s off on Sundays,” Merit said.
“Someone called in sick. Plus, your aunt and uncle and cousins are here, and she wanted to make sure everything was covered.”
Oh, great. Aunt, uncle, and cousins? Mae’s stomach flipped at the thought of meeting even more of his family. Of being judged by more Diamonds.
“Huh.” He glanced at his sister, then met Mae’s gaze with a hint of apology in his grimace. “I did not know that.”
“Later,” Reyes called before disappearing out the front door.
Merit twisted back to Shelby. “So, who’s here?”
“Uncle Matt, Aunt Gloria, Axel, Raine, and Phoenix. Raine had a show in Durango, so they popped in for the weekend.” Her gaze shifted to Mae. “Raine is a championship show jumper.”
She nodded as if she had a clue what that meant, then turned to look up at Merit. “Maybe I should go,” she said in a low voice.
Before he could reply, the front door opened behind them. Asher and Honor walked in, and Mae met her best friend’s wide eyes with a nervous smile.
“I didn’t know you were going to be here this morning,” Honor whispered as they exchanged a quick hug.
“Kind of a last minute thing.”
“You okay?”
“No?”
Honor offered an encouraging smile as her husband turned from greeting Merit and gave Mae a hug, too. “You are a brave woman.”
“Or a stupid one.”
