“I’m not . . .” I shake my head, letting out a breathy laugh. “Hell no.Sit your ass down.”
“The friendship needs to be binding.”
“Does it though?”
She folds her arms, a little pinch forming between her brows because she’s second-guessing my commitment now. She’s about to rip it away as quickly as she offered it. In her eyes, I’m back to being Noah’s dumb friend.
So I sigh and extend her my pinky instead. “This is the best I can do.”
She eyes it and then her arms loosen. “It lacks drama, but okay . . .” She wraps her pinky around mine and there it is. Just like that, a new era is born. I can feel it. Even the air seems to change in recognition.
Once our pinky promise has solidified, she demands to hear all the gossip I’m withholding from her. I go for the most fun piece of drama first: when Gemma accused Phil of cheating in the Easterbake-off. Phil swore on his life that he didn’t cheat, but then Clara walked by his car and found a discarded store-bought cellophane bread wrapper in his back seat. He publicly apologized and admitted that the stress of the holiday had been too much for him. Gemma won first place after Phil was disqualified.
Madison’s smile iswild.She scoots forward. The gossip is a fish-hook sunk into her skin and tugging her closer and closer to me. Our knees are sandwiched together like black and white piano keys.Mine, hers, mine, hers.
“And what about with my family? Anything I should be aware of?”
I look away.
“You do know something! Tell me.” When I won’t look at her, she grabs me by the shoulders and shakes me. “You can’t withhold information about my own family from me, Jameson Huxley!”
This wild and loud creature is causing a scene, and I’m just trying not to laugh. Life hasn’t been nearly as bright without Madison in it.
“All right, all right, get your claws out of my arm before I catch your rabies.” She smiles deeply, like she’s been waiting for me to say something like that all night. It’s the kind of teasing we’ve done for years. A barrier of my own making, because if I don’t tease and annoy her, I’ll accidentally worship her.
I lean in a little closer and drop my voice. “I heard from the new barista at the coffee shop that Annie has been ordering . . .” I look over my shoulder and then back. “Decaf.”
Madison sits back, a shocked expression smashing her in the face. “Decaf?”
I nod. “And at family dinner the other night, I caught her pouring out her wine in the sink.”
“Oh my god. That means she’s—”
“Maybe. But hey . . . no one else in the family has seemed to catch on to it. And maybe she doesn’t want anyone to know. So don’t . . .” I trail off.
“Don’t what?”
I picture Madison with a secret in her pocket and can’t help but smile. “Don’t go run your big mouth.” I bump her knee with mine and she bumps mine back, harder.
“Please. You have the bigger mouth between the two of us!” As if to confirm, her eyes connect with my lips. My stomach clenches.
“You’re wrong. You have no idea how many secrets I’m keeping currently.”
A sly grin unfolds across her face. “And I got you to crack in mere seconds. I bet I could pluck each one from you in one hour tops.”
I bet you could.
The urge to kiss her, right here, right now at the bar unfurls in my chest like a beast coming to life. I want to slide my hand against the back of her jaw and pull her to me. I want to grip her bare thigh. I want to know what it’s like to taste her lip balm right at the source. To feel her sigh against my tongue.
“Madison Walker!” a loud female voice bellows from the bar’s entrance. We both turn to find Emily standing in the doorway.
“Ah, you’re home early!” Annie squeals, popping in next with Will, her husband, following right behind her. A shocked Amelia and smiling Noah surface next. The gang’s all here.
Madison practically rips her legs from where they were just touching mine, turning fully away from me.Right.Back to reality.
In the next moment, the three sisters (plus Amelia) are slamming into one another with hugs and squeals of delight, making quite the scene in the middle of the bar. There’s something so right about it. Like Rome has just sighed and relaxed, because . . . Madison Walker is home.
CHAPTER FIVE
