“Liv!” I heard from ahead of us.
“I forgot to mention,” David muttered, “your friend Brian Ayers is here.”
“Why?”
“Sometimes we run Lakefront on the weekends. He wormed his way into getting an invitation to eat.”
Brian waved at me as he ran over in basketball shorts and a sleeveless tank. A lock of long blond hair fell into his eyes, and his toothy grin stretched from ear to ear. “Lovely to see you.”
“You too, Brian,” I said.
He laid a heavy arm across my shoulders and nodded to where people had gathered in a picnic area. “Come on, the grill’s already fired up.”
“Mom, look. A Lab!” A young, dark-haired boy came running over from the group, and David leaped forward.
“Hang on, buddy,” he said. “What did I tell you about big dogs? Nice and easy, let her smell you first.”
The boy slowed and held out his hand to Sofie. He beamed when she sniffed and licked it.
I identified David’s family immediately from my research—otherwise known as Internet stalking. David’s sister, Jessa, introduced herself with a bright smile and a sturdy handshake. I liked her instantly. She looked about my age, younger than David, but warm brown eyes gave her sharpness away. “Is this your pup?” she asked.
“No, she’s from a shelter nearby. I volunteer there some weekends.”
Her smile widened. “I like you already. We’re a family of animal lovers. Mom,” she called behind her, “come meet a friend of David’s.”
I watched David’s retreating figure as he took Sofie over to meet Canyon, leaving me alone and without a clue as to what I was supposed to talk about with his sister. A petite black-haired woman glided toward us, wiping her hands on the seat of her jeans. She looked mildly confused, but wrapped me in a tight hug and said, “I’m Judy.”
“Olivia Germaine,” I replied when she’d released me.
“Gerard, come meet a friend of David’s,” she called over her shoulder, never taking her eyes off me. I had to stifle a laugh at how she’d used the exact same words as Jessa. I was beginning to feel like an alien that had just landed in a spaceship.
David’s dad had the same rigid bearing as him, and he commanded that I sit down at the picnic table in the same tone that David would have. Jessa had a fruit plate in front of me in moments, and I didn’t know who I should look at as they all stared at me.
David appeared suddenly and fell onto the bench next to me. He handed me a bottle of water. “I noticed you don’t have anything to drink. It’s important to stay hydrated,” he said, his tone edged with a scolding.
I opened my mouth to thank him when Jessa cut in. “So how do you two know each other?” she asked, looking between us.
“Mutual friend,” David said as I responded, “Work.”
We exchanged glances, and I laughed nervously.
“Olivia here was the one who put us in the ‘Most Eligible’ issue,” Brian offered.
“Oh!” Jessa exclaimed, clasping her hands together. “I’m so glad David finally agreed to do it. He looked so handsome,” she gushed. “You did a wonderful job.”
“I actually didn’t work with David, my colleague did, but I agree. She did a great job,” I said, clearing my throat self-consciously.
“I see.” Jessa smiled mischievously.
“David, sweetie, you never said—has anything come of it?” Judy asked. Her eyes darted conspicuously between him and me.
“Uh, no, not really.”
“Come on, Fish, we both had a ton of responses,” Brian volunteered. “Didn’t you take any of them out?”
“No,” David snapped. “I don’t need a magazine article to find dates.”
“No one said you did,” Jessa pointed out. “You’re being rude.”
