Claire
Rowan
And just think, I considered gifting you a pack of my favorite boxers instead.
Claire
Thank you. I guess this was actually a very thoughtful gift, albeit completely unnecessary.
Rowan
You’re welcome, Claire Bear.
Claire
Who said you could call me that, anyway?
Rowan
I’m pretty sure Tante Verna approves.
I hope you have an amazing week, and I’m counting down the days until we run into one another again.
Claire
Yeah. You, too, you big weirdo.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
claire
“ThankGod my brother was here to turn off the water and call a plumber the next morning,” Daisy tells me as she lets me into her house, her service dog trailing closely behind.
“Yeah, lucky,” I agree, keeping my expression neutral. Part of me feels guilty for not volunteering my side of that story, but I guess Rowan has his reasons for omitting my role in his recount of the busted pipe fiasco a couple weeks back. “But other than that, the honeymoon was great, right?”
She bites her lip, and her cheeks flush as she plops down onto the couch. “Our cabin wasreallynice. And the view was amazing.”
“I bet you got a good look at the ceiling,” I say, laughing loudly as I make myself comfortable beside her.
“Sure did,” she confirms, stifling a grin. “Sturdy headboard, too.”
She earns another cackle and a nudge from me with that one. “So, um, speaking of your brother, what’s his deal, anyway?” I begin once our laughter dies down.
Daisy’s brow rises. “Were we talking about Rowan? I must have missed it.”
“We both know you were just waiting for an opportunity to bring him up,” I say, trying to downplay my interest after my transition wasn’t as smooth as I’d hoped.
“So you can explain why you never mentioned the fact that you knew him before?”
Dammit. Withholding the truth has been hard enough, but I’m afraid this is going to require an actual lie.
“I didn’t know he was your brother,” I say with a shrug. “Besides, I was still married when I met him.”
There.That wasn’t technically untrue.
“And what do you want to know now that you’re a single woman?” she asks as she tucks her feet beneath her. Juniper notices her position and takes it as a cue to relax.
“What’s wrong with him? He’s practically a walking green flag, yet he’s still single,” I point out.
