“Me too.”
“Still can't get my head around what you look like now.” Ethan shook his head. “Last time I saw you, you were a different man.”
“I was an asshole.” Brad hadn't realized just how much he wanted done with his life until EG had given him an out.
“So I'm guessing we need to do some more digging about this consortium dear old daddy is heading, and find out what they intend,” Annabelle said, and Brad was relieved to move the conversation off him for a while.
“It will include raping and pillaging the land for sure, and it's my guess he'll have a special interest as it's close to Ethan's hometown. When he finds out I'm here, that interest will double. Got any more coffee?” Brad added, standing. Annabelle waved him inside.
He found large, soft sofas and chairs, a low coffee table, and polished floors with thick rugs. The walls were neutral, but the furnishings vivid splashes of color. He didn't know much about his new sister-in-law, but he knew she liked color, so he guessed this was her doing.
The kitchen had more windows and plenty of modern appliances, and he saw Ethan's hand there. He remembered his brother liked to eat a great deal, and had made full use of his father's facilities when he was allowed. Brad had just located the coffeepot when he heard another voice.
“Hey there, Mr. and Mrs. Gelderman!”
Macy Reynolds was here, and his body suddenly fired to life. He saw her naked in the moonlight as she slid onto him, her silken skin and lush breasts.
“Get a grip,” he muttered, pouring the liquid into his cup.
“Brad!”
He looked up in time to see Billy erupt into the room.
“What's the hurry, Billy?”
“We're gonna have an after-wedding party, and we got soda and cake.”
“All that sugar's going to rot your teeth, surely?”
“I'm only allowed it sometimes, because Mom says I go a little crazy when I have too much.”
Brad smiled, the tension inside him easing as he looked into the open face. Kids, he'd learned since leaving his father's house, loved you no matter what you looked or sounded like.
“Yeah, it does that to me too, but I have to say that I'm a chocolate cake fan, Billy.”
He made himself straighten then and look at the woman walking toward him. Her eyes were guarded, making it hard for him to read what she was thinking.
Her shorts sat midthigh, and the top was off the shoulder, the color baby blue, and it seemed to float around her lovely curves as she moved.
“Hey, Macy.”
“Brad.” She nodded but no smile followed.
“Billy, you head on out and get that glass of soda, but only one, okay.”
“Okay, and Brad can sit with me when he comes outside.”
“We'll see, baby. Brad may be busy.”
The two adults watched the boy leave, and then the lovely sparks and reckless need they'd felt last night turned into tension. Brad jammed his hands in his pockets to stop from touching her. He wanted to, and kiss her, running his lips over her soft pink ones again to hear her little sighs.
“How are you today, Macy?”
She waved a hand about, which Brad guessed dismissed his words.
“I thought you were leaving Howling today?”
“I am, but I stopped by to see Ethan, and I'm still here.”
