“We just got talking about it.” He shrugged, putting his hands behind his head. “It sounds pretty good.”
“Is it crime fiction?”
Jesse laughed. “Not saying. You’ll have to ask her.”
I heard footsteps and caught the scent of Amber’s body cream that she was using to avoid stretch marks. Turning round, I saw her near the kitchen island, getting out a glass.
I wanted to rush over and do it for her, but I knew that would only cause her to get cross at me, because she wanted to be treated like she was pregnant and not an invalid.
“You okay?” I could ask that and stay on safe ground.
She nodded and smiled. “Had the most amazing sleep.”
“Did you not want to stay in bed longer?”
“No. I need to move – I’ll take it easy, don’t worry and before you ask, I’ve not had any more twinges.” She poured a glass of orange juice and brought it over, sitting down on the third sofa.
She was wearing a short robe, one that barely hit mid-thigh, and under it was one of my T-shirts. Her legs looked stupidly long and toned, and I was hyper aware that Jesse could see them too.
I glanced over at him to see if he was looking.
He was.
I threw a cushion at his head and hit the target easily.
“Man, what the fuck?”
I just glared. Jesse laughed and shook his head. “You’re so gone.”
Amber looked puzzled. I dropped my gaze to the rug, noticing a piece of Lego that Libbie hadn’t cleaned up, leaning down to swipe it up which also gave me a chance to hide my face.
“Are the girls allowed to watch you play tonight?” Amber had clearly been oblivious to either of us noticing her legs, which didn’t surprise me. She was down on herself because of what that idiot Levi Statham had done, which meant she didn’t realise how half the team had noticed her hair and her tits and her legs.
I nodded. The game was televised, which was always a bonus as long as you had a decent game. “Until half time, but Zara probably won’t make it past the first ten minutes.” Football made my current youngest sleep pretty much as soon as it started; I didn’t know if I should find that offensive or useful.
Probably useful.
“Will they want to watch?” Her eyes were dancing. “It is boring football.” She looked over at Jesse. “I only watch because I have to sometimes.”
I actually knew that was true. Amber had said she loved the sport, but recently she’d become a little bored of it. “They don’t have to watch. Although you might as well get used to it.” My grin was semi-evil now. “The chances are our boy’s going to be playing every week. Just think, having to watch games in the morning and in the afternoon on a Saturday, training twice after school and probably Sundays too.” I remembered my own schedule when I was a kid and playing football all the time. My mother had hated the sport, but luckily my dad loved it. He’d almost gone professional, being released from West Ham at seventeen. He’d then gone onto university and studied engineering, but it had been him who’d got me playing with a ball when I’d been a bit more than two. By the time I was four, it was all I wanted to do.
“You can take him to football. I’ll take Libbie to karate.” She smiled pleasantly. “Teach her how to beat up all the boys that annoy her.”
I wasn’t sure if that was a wind up or a threat in some way, but that wasn’t the point right now. “Libs wants to do karate?”
Amber nodded. “She asked me about it on Monday when I was here.”
“Cool. I’ll look at lessons for her.” I like the idea my girls wanted to do something sporty that would also help them to be confident to look after themselves.
I noticed Jesse looking at us in amusement, his eyes batting from me to Amber as we talked.
His eyes shifted as my sister came into the kitchen, lingering long enough on her to tell me he was definitely interested in something with her.
I coughed, loudly.
Jesse looked at me and for a moment, guilt spread across his face.
I just raised my brows.
