“I mean,” I said, clearing my throat. “I’m okay with it. As long as everyone else is, yeah, that’s cool. Your friend, Mack, can come here. To work on a project.”
She chewed the side of her lip, eyeing each one of us. “While I appreciate all yourpermission,you’re being weird. So, no.” She flicked Dean’s ear before heading into the kitchen.
With the open floor plan, I could still see her in the kitchen area without her knowing. Her shorts hugged her ass, and seriously, I couldn’t believe what I’d done last night. Confessing to her? She had to think I was a fucking creep.
The whole point of telling her was to make her feel better and to get it off my chest, but now I felt worse? This was why feelings were dumb. I should be laughing and eating with the boys instead of wondering how I could come up with an excuse to walk into the kitchen with her.
Idiot.Food. “I need food.”
Callum opened both eyes, smirking. “Thank god you have legs that can strut into the kitchen and hands to bring me back something.”
“You’re annoying.” I was tempted to push his legs off the couch so he’d fall, but I didn’t. Instead, I acted as naturally as possible as I stood up from the couch. Dean wasn’t staring at me with questions.Good.I was being smooth.
“Ask for C Dubs,” Dean said once I set foot in the kitchen.
“Wait, what?”
“C Dubs. She’ll know.”
I sighed. I had zero clue what the hell Dean said or what it meant, but I was glad he gave me something to do with my mouth because when she turned around and faced me, my brain turned into mush.
“Hey.” She licked the side of her lip as a slight blush crept up her cheeks. “Good morning.”
“C Dubs,” I blurted out.
“Fucking Dean.” She sucked her teeth before setting a banana on the counter. She laughed, whether to herself or me, I wasn’t sure.
She grabbed flour and syrup and baking soda. She then bent low and opened the bottom cabinets. Watching her work all around me was intoxicating, how she mumbled to herself and moved so fast between items. “Is there a waffle maker?”
“Um, why?”
Crouched down, she glanced over her shoulder and stared up at me. “C Dubs. Chicken and waffles. Lolo’s chicken and waffles. It’s a dumb nickname Dean’s called me since we were in junior high, and I owe him one.”
“You owe him… waffles?”
“Yes.” She glared beyond me, sneering. “It’s this weird language we have that honestly makes us sound nuts, so I’m not gonna get into it. But we each get one use of it a year, and mine involves waffles.”
“So, you’re going to make him chicken and waffles, no questions asked?”
“Not chicken. Waffles, yes. It’s the sibling rule we swore an oath to.” She shrugged and clapped. “Ah ha, there it is. I knew you were in here, you sexy grill.” She pulled out a large waffle iron and twirled it. “Oh, Dean?” she shouted.
“What?”
“Are you sure you’re turning in your C Dub card?”
“Yes. I’m desperate.”
“Okay, you’re done for the year.” Lorelei sighed and met my eyes. Amusement danced on her face, and she smiled. “Honestly, I’m glad he’s using it. He’s held it over my head all damn year, and I just knew he’d bring it out when I really couldn’t do it.”
“Having a sibling must be strange,” I said, an unfamiliar longing taking hold of me. I loved my grandma and my teammates, but this language and understanding between Dean and Lorelei fascinated me.
“It’s the best and worst. Dean is honestly a great guy.” She found measuring cups and pointed her chin toward the fridge. “Could you get some butter out for me?”
“Sure.” I brought her the ingredients, enjoying watching her more and more. She hummed to herself and moved like she listened to a beat in her own mind. I wanted to learn more about this language, the reason she was so happy, and to ensure her and I were okay. “So, listen—”
“You hungry?” she asked. She pulled out eggs and texted someone on her phone. “Mack’s coming over.”
“Waffles?” I asked.
