“Hey, I didn’t realize you were out here.” Landry calls. Because of course he’d choose that particular moment to notice me. He halts the spray as he turns to shoot me a friendly smile and adjusts the backward cap on his head. “Everything okay?” he asks once he takes in my strange expression.
“Yep,” I squeak. “Fine. Just … you know, keeping everyone hydrated.”
He chuckles softly. “Speaking of, mind grabbing me a water from inside? It’s not easy to drink from the hose with a nozzle on there. Plus, it feels a little like eating off a stick.”
“No problem,” I manage before I scramble inside and return with a cold bottle. He’s waiting at the edge of the porch when I walk outside again, and I nearly lose my own footing when he props one leg on the first step and brings his arm up to swipe at his forehead.
He takes the bottle and thanks me before unscrewing the cap and tilting his head back, his throat bobbing as he downs it within seconds. Then he lets loose a guttural, inherently masculineahh, and my hand flies up to cover my mouth when I whimper quietly in response.
No need to look for a basal body temperature rise this month—peak ovulation day has just been confirmed.
My eyes run down his chest and catch on the edges of his lightly defined hip vee. The athletic shorts he’s wearing are slung low enough to reveal the waistband of his boxers, and I shiver at the reminder that this man is technically bound to me. Well, legally bound, at least.
He furrows his brow when he catches me staring. “Don’t worry, I’m going straight to the shower once I’m finished out here. I promise I won’t get swamp ass on the couch.”
I blink away the sudden image of Landry’s face under the stream of water before my ovaries get a peek at him below the neck.
“Oh, um, you’re fine,” I choke out, and he looks amused. “I mean, I grew up on a farm, remember? I’m immune to the smell of hard work.”
He chuckles. “Why does the image of Rowan shoveling horse shit and feeding pigs seem so hilarious to me?”
For the first time ever, I’m actually grateful when he shifts the conversation to mention my brother.
“We all had to do it,” I say with a smile. “Even Dr. Athanasius.”
Landry shakes his head. “And I always forget about his first name. Poor kid.”
“My parents figured the more obscure the saint name, the closer to heaven, I guess.” I shrug, and he laughs again.
He hands me the empty bottle and steps back, resting his hands on his hips, and it takes all of my willpower to keep from gawking again. “Hey, you got anything going on today?”
I shake my head quickly. “Nope. Free as a bird,” I say, cringing inwardly. “Well, I’m supposed to be studying for my certification exam, but that’s all.”
“Great, because I was thinking we could hang out. You know, watch a movie, paint each other’s toenails,” he proposes with a sly grin.
I scoff and toss the empty water bottle at him. It bounces off his chest and hits the steps. “Very funny.”
“Nah, but seriously … wanna come with me to see the twins in a little bit?” he offers instead.
“Really?” I can’t help the way my face lights up.
“Lo said she and Blake have an appointment with the priest or something, so we could take the day shift in the NICU,” he continues, his smile growing more genuine.
I nod vehemently, suppressing a full-on squeal. I’ve only gotten to see videos and photos of Penny and Charley so far, but I absolutely adore them already.
“And after that, I was thinking we could grab some takeout. It’s your turn to pay, if memory serves me.”
“Okay,” I agree, reaching up to tuck my hair behind my ears. My night’s getting better by the second.
Landry takes a step up, and his eyelids lower. “Then, when we get home, there’s something I really think we should do … together,” he drawls, pausing to lick his lips. “Something I’m sure you haven’t done with anyone else before. But I really think you need to try it with a partner at least once, and who better to teach you than your husband?”
My lips part as I take in a shuddery breath, and my heart feels like it’s trying to do a somersault in my chest. “Yeah?”
Okay, Iknowhe’s just messing with me. Even though he’s not usually this suggestive, I’m not stupid enough to think he’s setting me up for anything more than the punchline of a joke. But I’m also desperate, so I play along, just in case.
His brows draw together as he leans in to whisper, “Daisy, will you let me help you study for your certification test?”
“You—youcanaillelittle … jerk!” I shriek, reaching out to shove him back. He absorbs my push off and barely budges as he tosses his head back and laughs. I cringe and shake out my sweat-covered hands.
