“And they’ll have to get through you,” I added.
“And they’ll have to get through me,” he repeated, grinning at me. Rhys jumped on his feet and stretched his hands out. “Come on. I want to introduce you to someone.”
I knew what he meant, so I stood and walked over, slipping my hands in his. “I can’t wait to meet him.”
We went through the kitchen and opened the double doors that led to the covered patio.
“I love it out here. I still can’t believe Gabe has a pool,” I said.
“Yeah, he and Austin have one, but you’ve probably noticed we all kind of pop in and out of each other’s houses.”
“I love that, you know. You know I always wished I had siblings.” I walked over to one of the pool chairs and sat cross-legged.
“I know. Be careful what you wish for ’cause you’re stuck with the Hallbjorns now.”
I grinned. Yeah, I so wouldn’t have it any other way. Rhys took his boxer briefs off till he was standing completely naked in front of me. I guess I finally understood the whole ‘not bothered by nudity’ thing now.
Rhys knelt, and his body began to shift. Fur appeared, legs extended, ears changed, and suddenly, I was face to face with a large brown bear. Although definitely not as large as Gabe.
The gigantic bear lumbered over to me and stuck its head in my belly. I grinned and wrapped my arms around Rhys’s head. And the bear in my arms purred. “You’re huge, Rhys. But I’m so glad to meet you.”
My best friend purred again, and I rubbed up and down from the top of his head down, and he chuffed happily.
“I love you, Rhys, and your bear is gorgeous. Thanks for introducing him.”
Rhys huffed one more time before moving a couple of steps back, and like before, the fur disappeared, and suddenly, my Rhys was standing back in front of me.
He slipped on his underwear before turning to face me. “Lunch?” he asked.
I chuckled and nodded. Apparently, this was my life now.
* * *
“I can’t eat another bite.”I sighed and rubbed my belly. “I wonder why we call it a pasta salad when there’s, like, no veggies in it.”
“There were cherry tomatoes,” he pointed out.
“Yeah, and bacon and tuna and lots and lots of mayo,” I added.
“Only needs one veggie to be a salad in my book.” Rhys lifted his glass of lemonade and drained it. “Now that I’ve fed the preggo, let’s talk work real quick.”
“I cooked,” I reminded him.
He waved me off. “I chopped the tomatoes. That was the hardest part.”
I snorted. “All right, work. What’s up? Did you have any new ideas?”
He shook his head. “Nope, I was wondering if you spoke to Gabe about the designs.”
I shook my head and grabbed the plates off the dining table and headed for the kitchen. I heard Rhys follow as I turned the sink on.
“No, uh, not really had the time to.” I shrugged. “The moment hasn’t presented itself.”
“Mmmm…” Rhys murmured.
I knew what that meant. Rhys was saying what he wanted to say without saying it. I turned to face him. “It feels weird now,” I finally admitted. “Like I’m taking advantage of the fact we’re sleeping together. It’s like he didn’t say yes before, but I’m expecting him to because—”
“You did the wild thing,” Rhys supplied, a teasing grin on his face.
