“See? Isn’t this so much better than sitting on that nasty old rotten one that still stank from what’s-his-face’s cooties?”
Beth choked on a laugh, pressing her hand to her mouth.
“Bryce! You’re making it sound like I had some grand romance.”
He just wiggled his brows, proud of himself. “What? I’m just saying. You deserve better, so I’m setting the bar higher. Better seating, better romance, and…” he paused, letting the quiet clink of forks around them fade into the moment, then leaned in and whispered, “…better kisses.”
Beth shook her head, still giggling as he brushed a kiss against her cheek. She turned toward him just enough to whisper,
“You’re unbelievable.”
He grinned. “Yeah, but you love me.”
Her lips found his once more, before whispering, “Yeah. I do.”
CHAPTER 41
Lynn strode across the lawn with purpose and zero apology, cutting off whatever conversation Brock was having with her dad.
“Hey, Father Stu,” Lynn said with a grin. “It’s time for us to win the award for Best Man and Best Bridesmaid.”
“Huh, pretty sure I already won that,” Brock added casually. “I was the only guy up there.”
“Yeah, yeah. Technicality.”
“CaroLynn?” Donald interjected, blinking at the interruption.
“Yeah, Daddy?”
“What do you need? I don’t think Bryce’s brother understands what it is you need. Or that you joke so much.”
Lynn grinned. “Daddy, Brock is fluent in sarcasm and I’m getting to what I need.”
Donald turned his attention to Brock. “Are you fluent in sarcasm? Lynn says that’s a sarcastic way of implying someone understands and uses sarcasm regularly. It is not a literal language.”
Brock chuckled. “Yes, sir. Native speaker.”
“Good. CaroLynn’s sarcasm can be a bit much for people who don’t understand it.”
Lynn rolled her eyes and gave her dad a playful smack on the arm. “Thanks Dad, I think. But for the record, Bonhoeffer here can handle himself.”
Donald gave a satisfied nod. “Very good. Then I’ll leave you two to your rudeness and go find your mother.”
Lynn turned back to Brock with a sigh.
“What’s up, Annie?”
“Original. Never heard that one before,” she rolled her eyes.
“You’ve called me every famous or fictional pastor known to man, and I can’t drop a character name?”
Lynn stood taller, wagging her finger at him. “A – I don’t drop character names. I use them to creatively insult people.”
Brock held up a finger. “Wait. So how is calling me names of amazing men of God an insult?”
“Because all of you annoy me. And B – you can’t just picka character based on their hair and call someone that. It’s lazy.”
“What if I picked it based on your spunky personality?”
