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Kristen pushed back her chair. “Hold any further details. I need a drink. Want one?” She moved to the refrigerator and pulled out a pitcher of homemade lemonade.
“Some of that would be great.” Jen’s stomach growled. In a rush to get there this morning, she’d opted for only a protein shake. Bella’s performance had taken them straight through lunchtime. “Mind if I grab a snack?”
At the counter, her sister filled two glasses. “Help yourself. You know you don’t need to ask.”
Jen tossed a bag of popcorn in the microwave. It was her brother-in-law’s favorite snack, and Kristen always had plenty on hand.
“Okay, so you went to a private beach. What else? Did he take you to one of the fancy Newport restaurants?” Kristen asked. “I’ve been dying to visit the Spiced Pear. It’s supposed to be incredible. I’ve been hinting to Dan that I’d like to go there for our anniversary in September.”
Jen liked her brother-in-law a lot, but he didn’t always pick up on subtle hints. If she were Kristen, she’d flat-out tell Dan she wanted to go to the Spiced Pear or simply make the reservation herself. Otherwise there was a very good chance Dan would come up with something else for their anniversary. “If you guys go down to Newport for your anniversary weekend, Bella can stay with me.”
It wasn’t uncommon for Bella to spend a weekend with her if Kristen and Dan went away.
“Thanks. I don’t know what we’re doing yet.” Kristen took a long sip of her lemonade. “Back to your date though. Did he take you to dinner?”
The microwave beeped before Jen answered. “Nope.” She pulled the bag out and tugged it open. She waited for the steam to escape before filling two bowls. “He grilled us lunch.”
“Grilled? Okay, I guess you were at his brother’s house so it was probably easy enough. But you did something afterward, right?”
Before she answered, Jen chewed a few pieces of popcorn and then washed it down with her lemonade. “Yep, we went to Pirate’s Cove for ice cream and while there we—”
Kristen’s glass hit the table with a thud. “You went for ice cream? Seriously, he couldn’t come up with anything more, I don’t know, elegant? Exciting?”
Just because Kristen didn’t think a trip to Pirate’s Cove made for a good first date didn’t mean there was anything wrong with it. “Actually, going for ice cream was my idea, not his. He suggested going to the Red Parrot.” Jen didn’t try to hide the annoyance in her voice. “I don’t see the big deal.”
“It’s not a big deal, but you’ve got to admit it sounds like something two high school kids would do on a first date.” Kristen shrugged a shoulder. “I just thought someone with his background would treat you to a more sophisticated first date. Not a grilled lunch at his brother’s house and then ice cream.”
Her sister’s misconception was understandable. What little Kristen and much of the world knew about the Sherbrooke family came from the media. Articles always portrayed them as living the type of lifestyle most people could only dream of experiencing. Perhaps others in Brett’s family did live that way. However, it didn’t fit the man she’d come to know over the past two years.
“We also played a round of mini golf with Brett’s cousin and his cousin’s wife. Afterward we went back to their house for a visit.” Now, she could picture Derek, Brett’s cousin, taking a woman out for a night more in line with what her sister imagined. Although nice and approachable, it was obvious he enjoyed the finer things in life.
Kristen scooped up a handful of popcorn and raised it toward her mouth. “Wow, you’re meeting his family members already? Dan and I were engaged before I met most of his family. Which cousin was it? He’s got enough of them.”
“Derek. He got married last fall.” The unexpected wedding had kept the media talking for months. “He has a house in the same neighborhood as Brett’s brother. We ran into them when we went for ice cream, so it wasn’t planned.”
“Well, as long as you had fun it doesn’t really matter what you two did.”
She’d had fun. She assumed he had too or he wouldn’t have asked to see her again. “We did. Now we should probably get back to this.” Jen reopened her sister’s handbook.
“One last question and we can get back to work,” Kristen said.
She’d given her sister a complete breakdown of her day. But if Kristen had one more question, she’d humor her. After all, she’d given Kristen the third degree more than once regarding the men she’d dated before marrying Dan. “Go for it. But only one, I really do want to get this finished so I can go home.”
“Since you were at his brother’s house, you obviously had access to a bedroom. Did you visit it sometime between lunch and your visit to Pirate’s Cove?”
Jen should’ve expected the question; there wasn’t a topic out there either of them considered off-limits. But she hadn’t. “No, things didn’t go that far yesterday.”
“But you kissed at least. Please tell me you did, Jen. The man is gorgeous. He looked even better in person than he did in the pictures.”
“We…. Wait a minute. What pictures? I didn’t show you the one he sent me.” It was safely tucked away in her desk drawer.
Kristen shifted in her seat. “After you told me who you were meeting, I did a search on the internet for a picture. I couldn’t help myself.”
If the tables had been reversed, Jen might have done the exact same thing. “You shouldn’t have done it, but well, I can’t say I blame you either.”
“I didn’t find many, but I think I found the one you did of him with Trent and Jake. He doesn’t look anything like his cousins.”
She agreed with both her sister’s assessments. There was no mistaking Trent and Jake for cousins. They, like many of the other Sherbrookes, greatly resembled each other. She was glad Brett didn’t fit the mold. While there was no denying his two cousins were gorgeous men, they were almost a little too handsome.
