“Theyshouldall be scared of me,” Addison said, dropping down into a chair and ripping open a bag of tortilla chips.
I followed Quinn into the family room and took a seat next to Luna. I didn’t know how or why, but she had a naturally calming vibe that always seeped into me each time we hung out. And god knew I could use a bit of that tonight—could’ve used it all week.
She turned to me with a smile and passed me a margarita. “I’m so glad Quinn talked you into coming.”
“Me too.”
“Of course, I always want to see you,” she said, bumping her shoulder into mine. “But I also wanted to introduce Chloe to some friendly faces.”
“Then why did you bring Addison?” Quinn said, laughing when her sister-in-law lobbed a chip at her.
“How dare you,” Addison said. “I’m only mean to my brothers. And they deserve it.”
Chloe grinned, accepting a margarita from Luna. “I know I’m new, but Addison won points with me with how fast she laid out this spread.”
“I don’t have time to fuck around. I’ve got about twelve minutes before I’ll need to run to the bathroom again.” Addison leaned back in the armchair, her plate full of tacos, guac, and chips balanced on her round stomach as she dug in.
I offered Chloe a warm smile, remembering just how overwhelming, albeit well-meaning, this group of women could be. “How long have you been in town?”
“Not long. Luna kept talking about how gorgeous it was up here in the fall, and I was itching for a change.” She shrugged. “So, here I am.”
Luna tipped her head toward Chloe. “This one’s like a tumbleweed, just rolling wherever the wind blows her.”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “I’m not that bad.”
“If you say so,” Luna said with a smile.
I took a long sip of my margarita. “How do you two know each other?”
“We worked at the same massage studio in North Carolina,” Chloe said.
“You’re a massage therapist?” I asked.
“Yes…” she said, trailing off.
Luna laughed and shook her head. “She means ‘Yes, and…’”
“What kind of code language is that?” Addison asked, splitting her gaze between Luna and Chloe. “Pregnancy brain is a real thing. Don’t make me feel dumber than I already do.”
Chloe laughed. “Luna just means I’m notonlya massage therapist.”
“What else do you do?” Quinn asked.
“Whatdoesn’tshe do?” Luna said, bumping her shoulder into Chloe’s.
“Guilty as charged.” Chloe grinned. “I’ve been a personal chef, a dog walker, a makeup artist, an au pair for a count in Monaco, a photographer, and a bunch of other things that only lasted a month or two.”
Luna tipped her margarita glass toward Chloe. “And don’t forget about the artisanal soaps.”
“How could I?” she said with a laugh. “I still have all the supplies somewhere.”
I glanced at her with raised brows. “Wow, that is an eclectic resume.”
She shrugged. “I get bored easily. Besides, I don’t have any commitments tying me down. So I figure, if I don’t do this now, when will I? Starlight Cove is so cute, though! I think I’ll stay for a little while,” Chloe said.
“You’ll probably fall in love like everyone else.”
“I wouldn’t count on that, but it’ll be nice while it lasts,” she said. “You just moved here a couple of months ago, too, right?”
