“Yes.” I splash her back aggressively.
“I asked you if you wanted to elaborate on you and Kai?” She wiggles her eyebrows at me.
I sigh and relent. “What do you want to know?”
“Does he make you feel things? You know…all the details, please and thank you.” She puts her hands together, begging me to share.
He's likeno other guy I've ever encountered—which terrifies me as much as it thrills me. My guard slides down when I'm around him, leaving me exposed in ways I swore I'd never be again. There's this quiet tether between us, pulling us together even as I try to ignore it. I've tried denying it, and now I might be ready to step into it.
“Yeah, things I…” I can’t even finish before they're all ohhing. I shake my head at them. “I haven’t even said more than three words.”
“Go on, go on and start at the beginning.” Kendall urges.
“Okay…” I tell them all the details of that first time we met, the hot tub, how we talked and texted while I was away, the baby shower interaction, and what happened when I went down to talk with Joan.
“Wait, you guys kept in touch when you left?” Faith asks, while her mouth drops open.
My sister turns and hops into the conversation. “They talked almost every night, and they have a date on Wednesday.”
I groan and splash water at her.
Everyone gives their opinion about the situation. It’s Faith’s comment that sends a flutter straight to my belly, absorbing the truth in her words. “Sometimes the scariest jumps land you exactly where you need to be.” The consensus was that sometimes we have to put ourselves out there to live a fulfilled life.
By the time we finish talking, adrenaline courses through my veins. I'm not just confident; I'm electrified by the possibilities exploding in my mind. This week won't just be life-changing…it will be the dividing line between everything I was before and everything I could become—the owner of the coffeehouse, a permanent resident of Saxville, and the woman who finally stopped running from what her heart and body desperately want with Kai.
As we are dragging floats out of the pool, I stop mid-step and say, “Thank you guys for having my back. I’ve never really had a closegroup of friends…I mean my sister.” I hug her. “It’s nice to talk to all of you, even though Kendall’s really pushy.” I turn and wink at her.
“You love me anyway.”
“Sure do…”
Kendall says to my sister, “Did you give her the invite?”
My eyes bounce between them. “What invite?”
“You’re invited to our wedding at the Lakehouse…well, we’ve already tied the knot in Aruba a couple of weeks ago, but not everyone could make it. So we are having a party to do it all over again.” She shrugs like it’s no big deal.
“I’d love to be there. Thank you for including me in your celebration.” My heart warms at the care and love these women show. It’s like we’ve been friends forever. We all mesh, and I’m silently thankful for them all right now.
Kendall twists to look at me with her brows knitted. “No girl, you’re one of us now…stuck with us.”
Gah, my eyes well up, and I clear the lump in my throat. All I can say is, “Okay.”
Throwing our floats in a pile, we all grab pool towels and dry off.
We finish the night with ice cream. “How do you stay so fit?” I ask the girls. It’s more of a rhetorical question.
And I realize I’m craving Kai, like I crave this ice cream.
TWENTY-FOUR
Kai
Iwipe my palms on my shorts before knocking on the door. Before anyone can answer, I run a hand through my hair and smooth out my blue polo shirt, shifting from one foot to the other.
When the door opens, Ava’s hazel eyes stare back at me with excitement lingering on the edges. I rooted in place, taking in her beauty. She’s wearing a fitted dress that hugs every curve from her breasts to her calves. My eyes finally land on hers, a grin that tells me she noticed me sweeping over her body.
“Hi.” She waves at me, maybe to get my attention, but it’s always on her.
