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“It’s so good,” Blakely says, shoving another bite of her cake into her mouth.
“Slow down, sweetie,” I tell her. “You don’t want to choke.”
“Okay, Kenny,” she says, taking a much smaller bite this time. I smile at her, calling me Kenny. I sort of love it when it comes from this adorable little girl. Almost as much as I love her father calling me Kens. They must be a nickname family.
My phone vibrates on the table. Grabbing it, I smile when I see a text from my best friend, Morgan.
Morgan: Happy New Year’s Eve. How’s the wedding?
Me: Happy New Year’s Eve. It’s good. It’s at the dinner stage right now. Well, the cake, actually.
I snap a picture of Blakely’s cake plate, being sure not to get her in the picture, and send it to Morgan. I’m not sure how Declan would feel about me sending pictures of his daughter to my best friend.
Morgan: You’re eating cake??
Me: They insisted I join them. It’s small, just close friends and family. You’d love them all.
Morgan: I’m glad you’re not bored out of your mind. LOL.
Me: Definitely not bored.
Declan heads this way, so I snap a picture of him to send to her. He’s wearing dark-washed jeans and a long-sleeve black button-up, with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. I swallow hard before firing off his picture.
Morgan: Damn!
Morgan: Details.
Me: His parents live next to my grandma.
Morgan: Does he live there too?
Me: No.
Me: Gotta go.
Morgan: KENNEDY! You can’t just go after sending me that. If he’s single, you get to drive him as you stole him.
I can’t stop the laugh that bubbles up in my chest. “For you,” Declan says, leaning over my shoulder and whispering in my ear. All laughter ceases as my body heats at the close contact.
“Thank you.” I tilt my head back to smile at him. He taps my nose just like he did earlier with Blakely. I should be offended, right? Or worried that he’s putting me in the friend zone? I’m not. Because the heat in his eyes tells me he’s thinking of me as anything but friendly.
“You’re welcome.” He takes his seat next to his daughter and dives into his cake like he didn’t just set my body on fire by being so close.
My body has never reacted to a man like this. Not even my ex-husband. Just another glaring reminder that we never should have married. It seemed like the logical next step, but that’s not always the best decision just because it seems logical. I was young and loved him. I still love him, but I’m not in love with him. In fact, I’m pretty sure I never was.
“Kenny, you need to eat your cake.” Blakely’s looking at me like she can’t believe I’m not devouring the chocolate goodness sitting in front of me.
“Yes, ma’am,” I tease, and she grins and nods when I take my first bite.
“Are you hiding?”
I turn to find Jade smiling at me. “Nope.” I grin, and she chuckles.
“I get it. We can be a lot to take in.”
“No. Not at all. I’m just soaking up all the happiness,” I tell her.
“You should be out there dancing. My boyfriend still has seven single brothers.” She winks.
“Are you playing matchmaker?” I ask.
“Depends. Is there one of them that you have your eye on?”
Declan. “Nope.”
“Ah, the plot thickens.” She moves to lean against the wall next to me. “Tell me which one.”
“Stop.” I shake my head. “They’re all very nice-looking men.”
“They are, and I know you have your eye on one of them. Don’t feel bad. We all did. Well, Palmer and I did. Piper already had her eyes on Heath.”
“You lost me.” I have no idea what she’s talking about.
“The day that Deacon proposed, all the guys were standing together, and Ramsey told us if we had our pick, who would we choose.”
“You picked Orrin. I take it?”
“Yep.” She grins. “Little did I know that a few minutes later, he’d follow me outside and ask me out on a date.”
“What? No way. Did Ramsey know he was going to do that?”
“Nope. She didn’t know that Deacon was proposing that very same day either.”
“So Palmer?”
Jade nods. “She picked Brooks.”
“What are the chances?” I ask with a chuckle.
“It’s fate. You have to choose. The universe needs to hear you in order for it to happen.”
“You don’t really believe that, do you?” I ask, raising my eyebrows.
She shrugs. “I’m not really sure what I believe. I know that it could be coincidence, or it could be fate. What I do know is that I’m in love with Orrin, and well, you know how things turned out for Palmer and Brooks.”
“What’s going on over here, ladies?” Ramsey asks, throwing her arm over Jade’s shoulders.
“Just admiring the view.” She nods to where most of the guys are standing around talking and laughing.
