“Amazing how quickly you’ve come to know your sister.” Lucas chuckled and accepted the bottle. “Thanks, man.”
“Thanks for coming, bro!” Calliope called out from across the room, where she stood by a man he’d never seen before. Her eyes fell to the bottle of vodka. “What the hell?” She started their way like a bull seeing red. “I told you no gifts.”
“Settle down, darlin’.” Lucas held up his hand, and she stopped. “It’s an early housewarming gift.”
“Oh, well, then … thanks!” She smiled and returned to her conversation.
“The man she’s talking to is her dad, Gabriel Daniels. The one over there, on the left, talking to Cole, is Jacob Daniels, her granddad. They’re fascinating guys.” There was deep respect in his voice when he spoke of them. “I’m sure they’ll want to meet you.”
“How long are they in town for?” Boone had been so busy since leaving the military, relocating for his job with Dark Ops and getting his house livable, that he hadn’t had the chance to meet them in person yet. Though, thanks to all the fascinating stories Calliope had shared, he felt like he already knew them.
“They flew in for the party yesterday and will be heading home in a couple of days.” Lucas chuckled. “Jacob worries about his girls.”
“His girls?” Boone wondered if Calliope’s granddad might be a ladies’ man.
“His chickens.” Lucas snickered. “Even though Gabriel’s girlfriend is staying at the house and taking care of them, Jacob still frets about them.”
“It’s great they could both be here for her birthday party.” Mission-dependent, Boone hoped to make it home for his mom’s birthday in a couple of months.
Now, more than ever, he was anxious to spend some time with his folks.
Maybe Luna would be interested in going with him.
Whoa, Nelly.It’s a little early in the game to be thinking about taking her to meet your parents, don’tyou think?
“All the drinks are in the kitchen. Why don’t you take this with you?” Lucas smirked and handed him back the bottle of vodka. “It’ll give you a good excuse to go in there.” He clapped him on the back, then walked over to Calliope and curved his arm around her lower back.
Boone didn’t need an excuse to see Luna. After all, it wasn’t like he’d been hiding his interest in her over the last few weeks. He was just taking things slow, letting her get used to him, and easing her into the idea of giving him a shot. A shot at what, he wasn’t sure. But he was beginning to accept that he wanted more than just friendship with her.
He headed toward the back of the house, and the sound of female voices and laughter filtered down the hall. Before he could make his presence known, he overheard them talking about their day at his ranch a few weeks back.
“I had so much fun,” Charlotte said, excitement filling her voice.
“The horses were so beautiful, too, weren’t they?” He recognized Marigold’s voice. “Of course, Sassy looked a lot smaller when Viking got in the saddle.”
“Well, yeah. He’s like, what … almost seven feet tall?” Charlotte teased.
“Six foot eight, thank you very much.” Marigold’s exaggerated indignation on her behalf of her fiancé was charming.
“Hey, you’re the one that calls him Sasquatch,” Luna said, and they all laughed.
Boone didn’t want to risk hearing something he shouldn’t, so he cleared his throat before stepping into the small kitchen.
“Hi, Boone!” Charlotte gave him a little wave before returning to arranging raw vegetables on a platter.
“Hey!” Marigold looked up from whatever kind of dip or spread she was stirring. “We were just talking about how much fun we all had at your place.”
“I’m glad you had a good time.” Boone turned his attention to Luna. “Hey.”
“Hey.” Holy hell, the way she blushed every time she looked at him did dangerous things to his libido.
“You look nice.” Understatement of the year—she looked fucking amazing.
“Thanks.” Her hand stopped midway through spreading chocolate frosting on a cupcake.
She wore a pair of dark jeans that were tucked into knee-high boots, and she had on this lavender sweater that looked soft and made his fingers tingle with the need to touch her. It fit her sweet little body like a glove and made her eyes stand out like bright, ice-blue diamonds.
Boone stepped closer, and their eyes connected.
