Jake gave another light tug to my hand, and I moved to him. He pulled my hand up so ours were sandwiched just to the side of our chests. He looked down and lightly kissed the tip of my nose. “You good, Ivy?” he asked, his blue eyes skating over my face.
“Peachy,” I said on a sigh. My breath had disappeared. Poof.
His smile widened, creases appearing in the stubble on his face. “Peachy?” he paused. “I’ll take it,” he whispered, then lowered his mouth to mine. When he was just a breath away, he stopped. “Is this okay?” he asked, his lips moving over mine.
“Heck yes,” I said, rolling up on my toes to close the distance between our mouths. All common sense and any debate about the type of friends we were had left the building. My entire being, my focus, was on having his lips meet mine. We met, lips parted, and his tongue immediately slid in to meet mine. It was heavenly for all of a few seconds until I heard the catcalls begin.
Pulling back on a breath, I looked to Jake’s back porch where Drew and Steph stood waving at us. “Nice lip lock, Jakey!” Drew called. “Now get in here with what Addie tells me is a killer Granny Hill coffee cake because clearly we need more sugar and carbs at this brunch.” With that, he and Steph stepped back into the kitchen.
I laughed, my cheeks heating up, but also somewhat excited to spend more time with this family. Looking up at Jake, I shrugged. What else was there to do? “Let’s go.”
Jake and I walked into his kitchen to what can only be described as controlled chaos. Addie was chasing Chief around the kitchen to the living room calling out, “Chief, it’s time for a dannnncccceeee partyyyyyy!” Music was flowing out of the speakers, but I couldn’t place the band, though it sounded familiar. Sam and Margot were loudly debating how many pancakes to make from the stove. There were donuts spread across the counter on platters—clearly the entire neighborhood should be arriving imminently, there was that much food. And Steph was pouring what appeared to be mimosas. It was loud, somewhat boisterous, and felt like a welcoming hug.
Drew came over and gave Jake a pounding embrace. Pulling back, he made an obvious production of looking over Jake and myself. My brows drew together as I watched. Finally, curiosity got the better of me.
“What are you doing?” I asked in a low voice.
Drew was clearly waiting for that question as he pulled back with a wide smile. “Just checking to make sure there are no visible love bites. No need for the parental units to see that shit, am I right?”
Jake mumbled something about his brother being all kinds of an idiot before saying he was going to change. As he walked by Addie, he rubbed her head. Then he moved to his parents, gave his mom a kiss on the cheek. My heart melted. Jake placed the cake carrier on the counter, then headed toward his room.
Here we go. I faced the kitchen, wondering what to say. I mean,Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Spencer. Thanks for creating a man who can give a girl a hell of an orgasmdidn’t seem to strike the right note.
Steph moved to my side, handing me a mimosa. “Here you go, girl. I find a little champagne before talking to the family of the guy you had hot sex with the night before seems to take the edge off.”
Considering I’d just been taking a sip of said beverage, I spit it back into the glass and gave her a small glare. “Jesus, Steph. You don’t hold back.”
She laughed. “I said it before, I’ll say it again. Two younger brothers.Two. Really, it’s the only comment necessary. I mean, they’re great guys, but the topics they think are appropriate are ridiculous. I’ve learned just to roll with it.” She glanced behind me, then her eyes twinkled. “Incoming,” she whispered.
What? Before I could process that comment, I felt a hand on my shoulder. “Ivy, dear.” I turned to see Margot standing there. As soon as I turned a bit more, she pulled me into a heck of a hug. “We’re so happy to have you and your daughter.” Pulling back, she looked to the living room where Addie could be heard directing Chief. “Do you mind introducing us? Sam and I were having a bit of a discussion about pancakes when she came in and found Chief, so we haven’t said hello yet.”
I pulled back to see that Margot actually appeared nervous. That was unbelievably sweet, but also unnecessary. “Sure, hold on.” I stepped back to call Addie from the living room. “Ads, come here please.”
I watched Addie race in from the living room, followed close behind by Chief. “Yeah, Momma?” Her blond waves were already a complete mess, likely due to a good case of bedhead tousled even more from twirls and the wind on the way over. Her outfit, of course selected by her, included a pink long-sleeved T-shirt with a unicorn in sequins. It was multicolor or gold, depending on which way you flipped said sequins. She, of course, had it on multicolor. Her blue tutu was flowing around her. She had on polka-dot leggings that also had rainbows interspersed among the dots. Somewhere in Jake’s house was her coat and shoes, because she was already down to her socks, one striped, one purple. I hoped she never lost the joy she had in expressing herself through her clothes. Addie gave zerof’s about what people thought you should wear. She wore whatever made her happy, and I was here for it.
“I wanted to introduce you to Jake’s parents.” I looked to see that Sam had joined Margot and Steph and Drew were standing nearby. Shaking my head with a smile, I looked to Addie. She was grinning at the assembled crowd while also trying to check out the spread of donuts behind them. “Okay, babe, this is Mr. and Mrs. Spencer.” I gestured at Sam and Margot.
“Oh no, Sam and Margot please,” Margot added, bending down and offering Addie her hand.
Addie grabbed her hand and shook it. “Hi Margot,” she sang. Looking up at Sam, she said, “Did you bring the donuts?”
Sam’s smile widened. “Yep. I’m Sam.”
Addie’s eyes looked up with a whole lot of joy. “I love donuts.” Her voice trailed off. Obviously she was angling for some prebreakfast snack.
Sam gave me a look, and I nodded. He grabbed the platter and offered it to Addie. “Would you like one before breakfast?”
Addie glanced my way. I replied to her unasked question, “You can have one after meeting Jake’s sister and brother.”
Addie looked over at Drew. “I already know Drew, silly. I painted his nails with Jakey.”
Steph coughed, trying to cover up her laugh.
I didn’t even try. Laughing, I said, “That’s right, baby. But this is Steph, Jakey’s big sister.”
Addie smiled, then said, “Steph, do you want a donut?”
Steph smiled. “No, sweetheart. I’ll get one later. Did you have any breakfast yet or are you ready to eat?”
