“Pleased to meet you.” Brock shook the woman’s hand gently, though her grip was stronger than he’d expected from her.
“Good to meet you.” She stepped over to her husband who likewise draped his arm around her waist. Brock looked back out in the direction of Lyons, wondering how Brianna was getting along. Was she playing for the other contestants already? He wished he could be there instead of here. He’d never had anyone get under his skin quite so fast or so thoroughly before. Was it just because he was having a case of the feels related to Sean’s anniversary?
“…should be getting here any minute, so let’s get lunch ready, California,” Arden was saying to Kyle. “I’m glad you stopped by, Badger.”
“Me too.” He gave her a smile, and she smiled back, all traces of her sadness gone, probably in anticipation of her arriving guests. Sean had told him that she loved nothing better than hosting a houseful of people.
The doorbell rang and Arden brightened further. “Perfect timing! Kyle, offer our guests a beverage, would you? I have fresh lemonade in the fridge.” She practically sprinted to the front door.
“Got my marching orders,” Kyle said, chuckling. He clapped his hands and whistled and Camo bolted from the nearby trees a moment later and joined them. They all went inside. Brock gave one last look toward Lyons on his way in.
* * *
“This issogood!” Rachael Collins exclaimed after she took another bite of peach cobbler. She sat on the outdoor couch beside her husband, Jake, one of Kyle’s former co-workers from Watchdog Security in Los Angeles. The sunlight flashed on her dark hair like a raven’s wing.
Brock was still a little bit in awe that she was sitting a few feet away, casually enjoying dessert. Her first hit was tied to a new Netflix series and you couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing ‘Blue Sky’s the Limit’ declared the song of the summer. He’d expected a primadonna despite what Kyle had told him about her, but the real Rachael was a down-to-earth, ‘Nebraska girl’ as she called herself. He realized he was relieved on Brianna’s part—sometimes it’s best not to meet your heroes, but in Rachael’s case, it would be a pleasure.
His attention had drifted again and he missed part of the conversation until Wolf addressed him directly.
“Sorry, what?”
“You okay, Badger?” Arden asked. Her eyes had gone soft, probably thinking he was dwelling on Sean.
He smiled. “Yeah, just fine. I’m thinking about tomorrow, that’s all.”
Jake grinned. “That the name of your woman?”
“What?”
“Is her name Tomorrow? Because every time I see a look like that on a guy’s face he’s thinking about his woman.”
Rachael shook her head and clucked her tongue. “Jake, be nice.”
“What? I’m just making conversation.”
Kyle chuckled. “No, no, I think you’re onto something, Jake. My brother here has been acting distracted since he showed up on the front porch.” He leaned forward. “Come on, Badge, spill it. You’ve been uncharacteristically quiet today. What’s her name?”
Dammit. He glanced at Rachael then back to Kyle. “You guys are reading way more into it than there actually is.”
Kyle clapped his hands together then his arms shot up in the air like he’d just won a race. “Called it. Badger’s met a woman.”
“Finally,” Arden added, smiling.
“What do you mean, finally? I’ve only been out here, what? A month and a half?”
“Yes, but you deserve to be with someone who supports you.”
That stung and Brock hid the pain, knowing Arden meant no harm. “Like I said, it’s nothing. I don’t think I should even talk about her.” He took a sip of his lemonade, hoping that would signal the end of the discussion.
“Oh, come on,” Jake said. “Give us something to talk about.”
“Bonnie Raitt,” Rachael said, rolling her eyes at her husband.
“Got it in one.” He kissed her cheek.
“Forgive us,” she said to Brock. We’re song lyric nerds.”
“That seems appropriate, given your career. So, how does it feel to have a hit song?”
