Whenever an unexpected question popped up, the easiest way was to let one of us talk. The other could just agree to the story.
“We haven’t had any time to travel,” Phoebe said, which was smart because we didn’t have to come up with fake details.
“Both of us have been pretty busy with work,” I added.
“We wholeheartedly recommend traveling,” Jude said. “I sometimes take weeks off so we can spend as much time as needed in a new destination. If there’s anything I’d have done differently when I was younger, it would have been to travel more.”
“Oh, honey! We’re making up for it now in spades,” Emma said. “We didn’t really have that much money back then, and with the kids, it was easier to just visit local destinations for a quick getaway.”
“True, true,” Jude said, looking from Phoebe to me. “But Phoebe here looks like she’d enjoy traveling.”
She turned to me, grinning. I straightened in my seat, leaning into her and kissing her temple. “Hint taken,” I said.
I’d go with her on a world tour if she wanted to.
Oh wow. That was a dangerous thought. Relationships were not my thing. Never had been. All my life, my focus had been entirely on Sterling Investments, then growing my own portfolio of businesses.
Phoebe was made of something different. She wanted marriage and a lot of other things I couldn’t give her. I had to make damn sure I remembered that later tonight.
She yawned after a while. “Goodness, it’s very late.”
To my astonishment, it was eleven o’clock. Their stories about Egypt had taken up most of the evening, but I’d enjoyed them.
“All right, we’ll go to bed. You youngsters can stay out here for as long as you want,” Emma said. “It’s a good thing you insisted on us putting everything in the dishwasher after we finished eating.” She winked at Phoebe, who laughed.
“I always do that. Marshall used to say—” She stopped midsentence, throwing me a panicked look.
Damn it.
“I had a roommate for a long time,” she said slowly.
“And he was an asshole,” I added. That was 100 percent true.
“Well, anyway, I always want to get the dishes out of the way before relaxing.”
“It’s a good strategy,” Emma said, winking at her. “We’re early risers. I get up at 5:00 a.m.”
Fuck me.I’d planned to sleep on the couch and head upstairs before they woke up.
“Good night,” Jude said as they went inside the house.
I waited for a bit before turning to Phoebe.
“You want to go up too?” She yawned again. “It’s pretty late.”
I glanced behind me. I didn’t see anyone moving inside the house, but I knew they’d come out soon to use the bathroom.
“Let’s go upstairs, and we can talk.”
She nodded.
I stood up abruptly, pulling her chair back, and she stood as well.
She walked slightly in front of me. On instinct, I put a hand on the small of her back. There was no reason for it whatsoever. We were completely alone. She didn’t pull away, though. If anything, she pressed herself into my fingers as if she couldn’t get enough of my touch.
If she knew everything I wanted to do to her…
We went up the narrow staircase. “Be careful where you step,” I warned. There was a night-light along each step, but it wasn’t nearly enough for someone who wasn’t familiar with the house.
