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A man who hadn’t been on the deck when introductions were made stopped behind Jake’s chair. “Are you talking about the night Curt face-planted into his plate because he wouldn’t touch the vegetable on the side? One of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.”
“No one asked you, Gray,” Curt snapped.
Taylor giggled at the image of Curt falling asleep and landing face-first in his dinner. “Seriously, he fell into his meal?” While it’d make a funny scene in a movie, she didn’t see it actually happening.
“When he pulled his face out he had this white creamy sauce Henri served with the meal dripping off his chin and nose,” Gray said. “I think that was the last time he refused to eat what Henri served. Well, at least when Aunt Elizabeth was there. She was the only really strict one about that. And Aunt Marilyn never did it.”
“I never fall asleep at the table. But I did fall asleep at the movies.” Never one to be left out of a conversation, Reese jumped right in. “It was a boring movie.”
“Boring movies put me to sleep, too,” Gray said.
“And when he does you know, because he snores,” Curt said, perhaps sharing some embarrassing information as way to get even.
“Can I go play on the beach and build a sandcastle?” Reese asked. She’d asked about building a sandcastle both last night and this morning. Once she got an idea in her head, it didn’t leave.
“There are already some buckets and shovels down there. I can show you where to change and then bring you down and make introductions. Alec, Allison, and Kiera are all still down there,” Addie, Trent’s wife, said.
She’d anticipated Reese wanting to hit the sand and water when they arrived, and planned accordingly by having Reese put her bathing suit on under her clothes. Since she didn’t plan on touching the water, she hadn’t packed one for herself.
“I already have my bathing suit on. See?” Reese lifted her T-shirt, revealing the black-and-white-striped bathing suit top underneath. “Can we go?” She bounced on the balls of her feet and looked at Taylor. “Please.”
Not many things were more boring to a child than sitting around and listening to adults talk. “Sure.”
He watched Reese skip ahead, Taylor and Addie following closely behind her. He hadn’t been worried about whether or not his family would welcome them today. Even though none of them brought guests on a regular basis, he’d never known his family not to accept someone at a gathering. Taylor’s comfort around them had concerned him, but judging by her interaction with his cousins so far, his concern appeared unnecessary. Too bad he couldn’t say the sam
e about his comfort so far this visit. He could’ve done without Jake sharing an embarrassing story the moment they sat down.
“Glad to see things worked out. I was worried when I left your house the other day.” Trent picked up his son, who’d made his way over to him. “Still, you should’ve listened to me and Gray in the first place.”
“What did our cousin do?” Jake asked.
Trent and Gray happily filled Jake in on all the details. Neither gave Curt a chance to get a word in and defend himself.
“Stupid idea, Curt. But it looks like everything turned out okay.” Jake looked toward the beach, where Taylor stood talking to Addie while Reese began work on her sandcastle.
“And don’t worry, we’ll wait to tell her more stories about you some other time. Don’t want to scare her away yet,” Gray said.
Jake let his son climb from his lap back into Charlie’s when she returned with a bowl of grapes cut up into small pieces. “We just need to get them all in before the wedding so she knows what she’s getting ahead of time.”
“Get what in before whose wedding?” Charlie asked.
“Curt’s wedding,” Jake answered.
Charlie’s hand stopped, a grape almost to Garret’s mouth, and she looked at him instead. “You’re engaged? When did you propose?”
“No, your husband—”
Jake interrupted him before he finished. “You brought Taylor and her daughter to a family cookout. You’ve never brought a woman to a family-only event.”
Except for when he’d introduced them to Abby inside, he hadn’t mentioned Reese was Taylor’s niece. Because of the close bond between them, most of the time he thought of Reese as Taylor’s daughter. And Jake was correct. He’d brought dates to large fundraisers or events like the annual New Year’s Eve party where hundreds of people would be around, but he’d never invited a girlfriend to a private family gathering like this cookout.
“Reese is her niece, not her daughter. Taylor’s her guardian.” He hoped his cousins didn’t ask for more specific details, because they weren’t his to share.
“Irrelevant. You still brought them with you today. A wedding’s in your future, cuz. Should I congratulate you today or wait until she has the ring on her finger?” Jake asked.
“He’s ri—” Gray started but stopped, touching his forehead with two fingers and shaking his head. “Don’t know if I can say this.” He took in an exaggerated breath. “He’s….” His voice trailed off.
“Right,” Trent said, finishing the sentence for his brother. “I know. Difficult to comprehend, but Jake’s right.” He pretended to shudder.
