“Oh, it’s downright awkward. It’s a good thing you’re so cool.”
“Yeah, sure.” I know she intended it as a compliment, but I can’t help that I’m getting tired of being Mr. Nice Guy.
“Wanna make it even weirder?” she poses with a bit too much excitement, and my brow lifts. “Let me set you up. Word on the street is you’ll be spending more time in Camellia, and I work with a few cute, single teachers. A couple of them are here tonight.”
I chuckle softly in relief. “I appreciate the offer, but I’m fine.”
She frowns. “Are my friends not good enough for you?”
“Of course they are,” I reply too quickly.
“I know what you must think of me, Rowan,” she says quietly as we continue swaying.
My stomach dips in panic. “I don’t think anything?—”
“Oh, stop,” she interrupts me, but she’s smiling. “You may have told me you wanted kids, but we both know you’re relieved after dodging this hyper-fertile bullet.”
I tilt my head to the side and attempt to match her playful tone. “Do I seem relieved? I was going for gracious.”
“And this is why things never would’ve worked out between us. You’re entirely too sweet, even when you have every right to be a jerk.”
I force a smile. I know she means well, but it’s a little embarrassing to get this speech from a woman I’ve already dated, especially after divulging how desperately I want a family shortly before said date was crashed by the guy with whom she’d already started a family of her own.
Loren’s grin grows wider as she leans over to catch a glimpse ofour siblings dancing together. “Then again, who would have thought that combination of salty and sweet would balance out this well?” she asks, nodding her head in Daisy and Landry’s direction.
“No kidding,” I agree, my expression softening.
She sighs wistfully as she watches them. “It may not be obvious to everyone else, but we both know he needed her even more than she needed him.” I nod, and she continues. “After everything he’s been through, he deserves to be loved by someone as good and kind as Daisy. But I’m just as grateful to you and the rest of your family for picking up our slack over the years.”
“Landry is one of the best people I’ve ever known. He’s been a loyal friend, and I’m honored to call him my brother now,” I tell her after swallowing down the unexpected emotion in my throat.
Loren’s brows draw together in a way that makes me self-conscious. “You really are perfect, aren’t you? You’re definitely too emotionally mature to go to waste. Are you sure I can’t set you up?”
My cheeks flush, and I force myself to look away, my gaze landing on Claire as she walks into the reception hall. “I’m far from perfect. Trust me.”
“Even better,” Loren replies. “Most women prefer their men morally gray.”
I let out a huff, thinking back to Claire labeling me as adangerous man. “So I’ve been told.”
“Maybe you are just like the rest of them, then,” Loren muses, nodding her head in Claire’s direction when she catches me staring. “I get it, though. She’s hot, and she’s a total badass, but I’m pretty sure she’s just gone through a divorce.”
“Yeah, but she’s—I mean—I don’t …” I stutter as my heart speeds up. If Loren or anyone else here were to find out about Claire and me, they might jump to conclusions and think we’d been having an actual affair. A knowing smile creeps across Loren’s face, making it even harder to regulate my breathing.
“But you don’t need me to tell you anything about Claire LeBlanc—or rather, ClaireBergeron. You already know her, don’t you?”
I gulp and force a shrug. “Sort of.”
Loren studies me carefully. “Do you …knowher, know her?”
I shake my head too quickly, dancing around another lie.
“Has Daisy introduced you?”
“This has nothing to do with my sister,” I blurt out defensively.
“Hmm. And I didn’t think she’d be your type, but …” She bounces her eyebrows suggestively, ignoring my tone.
“Neither did I,” I mumble to myself, and her grin widens when she catches it.
