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“Yes.” I breezed past them, placing the sheet pan on the table I’d set up earlier. “Put that there, please.” I pointed to the side arm of the grill. He complied without question, then moved to the bucket with our drinks. He poured two flutes of champagne.
“Here you are, darlin’,” he said, handing one to me and setting the other down for Vivian. Not only was he humble, but a gentleman too. God help me if he called me darlin’ again.
“Thank you,” I said, lifting the lid to the grill. I was in charge here, at least until Daniel unlocked lips with V to flip the burgers.
With a look that asked if it was okay but didn’t wait for permission, Stone took the spatula from my hand and moved the meat onto the grates above the coals. It was a task I’d done a thousand times, but there was something about watching him do it that made it a brand new experience. He fit right in with our dynamic. Vivian had seemed like a missing puzzle piece; she completed the picture. I didn’t think we needed anyone else, but Stone made me question that.He is here for me.
I shoved the thought away as soon as it came into my head. I knew my destiny, and falling in love wasn’t part of it. All I wanted was safety and the love my two best friends provided. Although I wanted Daniel to have a friend he trusted beyond our walls, I didn’t need any part of it.
But I couldn’t deny something was different about him. Stone made me nervous because I felt him to my core. It was as if I’d known him my entire life even though we’d just met. His effect on me was more powerful than the one I’d felt when I’d met Daniel or Vivian. That was a strong statement in itself.
The way he’d smiled as he passed me the glass of champagne stirred an unfamiliar part of me. He made me feel things I never thought possible and certainly didn’t understand.
“Why do Texans always feel that they have to man the barbecue?” Vivian asked. Being from Texas herself, Vivian suffered from the same complex.
“I didn’t realize the two of you had unlocked lips,” I retorted, giving her a playful shove.
“Test out Stone’s and see ifyouwant to stop,” Vivian challenged.
My chest seized, the thought intolerable because it was actually not so unpleasant. I sank down in one of the lounge chairs and tried to control my breathing.
“Vivian,” Daniel warned, coming to my defense. He understood.
“When you’re up for it, I am too,” Stone said easily, taking the lounger beside me and stretching out.
I clamped my lips together. They were teasing me, but the urge to panic edged closer to the surface.
Stone held my gaze, eyes alight as he took a swig of his beer. “Damn that’s good. Nothing like a cold beer.”
“I’ve had them icing down all day. Figured you for a beer drinker, and if we’re going to do a holiday barbecue, we’re going to do it right,” Daniel said.
“Sounds like a good approach to life,” Stone observed.
I took a long sip of my champagne, hoping to settle my nerves. It was half gone before I realized it, and when Vivian looked at my glass and then at me, I knew what she was thinking: that I was dangerously close to breaking my rule of only getting drunk on Christmas.
It was the Fourth of July. A holiday to celebrate. But my rule was about control. About not becoming like the man I hated. I didn’t want to hate my father, didn’t want to feel anything toward that monster. It only gave him more power over me. Time should have mitigated the way I felt, but if anything, it was a festering wound, worse with every passing year.
“If it bothers you that much I touched your grill, I’ll keep my hands to myself.”
Stone’s voice drew me out of my negative thoughts, and three worried faces looked at me while trying not to be obvious. “Not the best way to make a good first impression,” I said, completely missing the mark again when I tried to inject a little levity. I still came off as rude and stuck-up.
“He’s made an impression all right,” Vivian said, and I gave her a lethal stare before escaping back to the grill.
Vivian sat down beside Stone, drawing him into conversation as Daniel and I pretended the flame on the grill was too hot and needed attending to.
“I liked Stone when I met him, but I never considered the effect he’d have on you when I invited him over,” Daniel said quietly.
“I don’t know what you mean,” I huffed, picking up the spatula and then setting it down again.
Daniel closed the lid on the grill and gave me hisdon’t-insult-me-by-not-being-honestlook. I pursed my lips.
He slipped an arm around my shoulders and kissed the top of my head. I leaned into him.
“You seem out of sorts. And don’t feed me some bullshit that it’s not him.”
“You mean like you did when you met Vivian?”
“Exactly like that,” he conceded. “There’s nothing wrong with letting someone else in our lives.”
