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It was such an unexpected and infrequent emotion she hadn’t recognized it for a second. She ordered a steak salad and another glass of wine. “What should we do about clothes for the weekend?”
“We can swing by both of our places and pack a bag.”
She nodded. “Right. Sure. Won’t we be getting in really late?”
His eyebrows shot up. “What time do you usually go to bed?”
It was a little embarrassing to admit. “Nine. Thirty.” Lie. She went to bed at nine.
“Then yes, this will be late. You can sleep in the car if you want and be fresh for tomorrow.”
That made her feel like a little kid going on a road trip with her dad. “I’ll be fine.”
But she was taking that avocado with her.
“You don’t findit strange at all that Dad is out on a date with Lilly, right now?” Sullivan asked his sister, Sloane, as they sat on the back patio of the house they’d grown up in.
The house that his sister now owned with her husband Rick.
Finn was playing in the yard with Rick’s little sister, River. Finn was kicking a ball that River was very poorly pitching to him.
Sloane was lounging in the chair next to him with her baby in her arms. “No. Why is that strange?”
Was everyone being deliberately obtuse? “Because he’s thirty years older than her. Because he’s known her since she was in grade school. Because she’s one of my best friends.”
Sloane’s look was more amused than sympathetic. “It’s not about you. And he’s twenty years older than her, not thirty. You’re hooking up with women ten years younger than you. I’m confused why you see this as such an issue.”
“No one is listening to me.” Sullivan wished he had a beer in his hand but he’d vowed not to drink as much lately.
“Maybe you’re the one who isn’t listening.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“It means that everyone else is telling you Lilly dating dad isn’t a big deal. If you’re the only one who thinks it’s a big deal maybe you should listen to that.”
His sister had a baby and she was suddenly a guru. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He really didn’t. “Can you just spell it out for me like I’m Finn’s age instead of trying to lead me somewhere?”
Sloane rolled her eyes. “Wow. You are really that dense, aren’t you? Maybe it bothers you because you have feelings for Lilly.”
That caught him completely off guard. “What kind of feelings? Protectiveness? Yes, I definitely have those. I don’t want her to get hurt.”
“Oh my God, I can’t with you right now. I’ve barely slept in months and you’re being ridiculous. Maybe you want to date Lilly yourself. Maybe your love for her isn’t just friendship.”
His jaw dropped. “What? No. That is not what is happening here.” It wasn’t. Lilly had been Kendra’s best friend. He would never allow himself to go there, physically or emotionally. He hadn’t allowed himself to go there. Some hidden passion for Lilly wasn’t what was driving him at the moment. It was friendship. Nothing more. “I’m not attracted to Lilly.”
Sloane eyed him. “You’ve had sex with literally half the single women in town but you’re not attracted to Lilly, who is gorgeous?”
“Is she?” Sure, she had long legs and a nice face, but he’d really never noticed. She was a friend. A sister.
“You can’t be serious. Of course she is.” Sloane shifted Penelope from one arm to the other. “Geez, it’s hot out today. Do you think we can go to Jesse’s lake house tomorrow and use his dock to go swimming?”
Jesse was one of Sullivan’s friends from childhood who had made it big playing pro hockey and he owned a house that, while not glamorous, was on the lake with a private beach. “I will ask him after you explain to me if Lilly is so gorgeous why she never dates then.”
Sullivan had wondered about that over the years and he had his suspicions but he’d always been afraid to voice them out loud.
“Because she’s in love with you, idiot.” Sloane tugged at the front of her T-shirt aggressively. “Now text Jesse. This heat is ridiculous for Minnesota.”
He barely heard the second half of what she’d said. His brain had frozen after she’d said Lilly was in love with him.
