Stunned, I took the offered beer, releasing Isla when Jasper snatched her out of my arms and brought her inside. I shot a confused look at Brewer, but Vegas interrupted my train of thought.
“Weirdest hook up place. Parking lot of a church or mall bathroom?”
“Uh… First one?”
Wraith, who apparently had been sucked into the conversation, made a face. “You’re more likely to get caught at a mall.”
“Yeah, but the question was the weirdest place, not most likely to get caught,” Brewer argued. “I bet tons of teens hook up at the mall all the time. That’s where they gather, right?”
He gave me a look, but I just shrugged. “Beats me. I don’t have to worry about that for a few years yet. Why are we talking about this?”
“Because I like winning,” Vegas said simply. “What about you? Weirdest place.”
Pursing my lips, I thought about it. I couldn’t decide between the laundry room and the car in the driveway. Simone and I had needed to get creative and both were a first for me.
“Uh, I guess the back seat of a car, but in my own driveway.”
All three guys looked confused. “Wait… If you were in your own driveway, why not go inside?”
I shrugged, tipping my head toward the house where Jasper had disappeared with Isla and Xander. “Kids in the house. My room is right next to Jasper’s and he doesn’t go to bed until late. We had to get creative.”
Snorting, Vegas tipped his bottle at me. “Alright, fine. You win. That’s fuckin’ weird.”
The normalcy of the conversation, the ease of it all, it tugged at something in my chest and it felt for the first time in over a week like I could breathe. I relaxed into it, enjoying my beer and helped Wraith start a fire once the sun went down. The food Simone brought wasn’t the only thing offered, and when Axel showed up with some nice steaks, I actually groaned, my mouth watering at the sight. I couldn’t be trusted to cook steak. The two times I’d tried since Jasper and Isla showed up, it ended up being really chewy.
The boys came outside eventually, Isla on Jasper’s hip, giant two liter bottles of soda as their drinks that seemed like a lot of sugar all at once. I didn’t comment on it. If I could enjoy myself, then so could Jasper. It was just one night.
Wraith put his arm out when Xander joined our little circle, squeezing his shoulder affectionately. “Thanks for this. It was a good idea.”
Xander shrugged, but he looked pleased with the praise. “It wasn’t just my idea. Jasper and I planned it together.”
Sucking in a breath, I looked at my cousin. He grimaced, like he wasn’t comfortable with the recognition, but when he glanced at me, I saw the emotion there. He must’ve seen how upset I was and decided he was going to help. I beamed at him.
“Thank you. This is exactly what I needed.”
He shrugged, looking anywhere but at me. “It’s whatever. Are you and Mel related? Because she’s burning stuff in the kitchen a lot like you.”
Wraith, who’d just taken a sip of his beer, choked on it, jerking his attention to the house. “Someone let Mel cook?” He shot an incredulous look at Xander. “And you didn’t stop her?”
Xander’s grin was too wide when he admitted, “She wanted to surprise you. I thought she’d be fine with two other adults inside.”
I looked at Jasper, who shrugged again. “Ms. Brooks is helping her. That’s why Isla’s with me. I don’t need her getting smoke inhalation. Between the two of you, she’s gonna have smoker’s lungs before she even becomes an adult.”
“Hey!” I argued. My tone was definitely pouting when I pointed out, “I haven’t burned anything in…”
“Three days,” Jasper answered for me. “You tried to cook that special dinner for Ms. Brooks on Sunday, remember?”
I winced. I’d forgotten about that. We ended up going out to eat instead with all the windows open to air out the house.Brewer barked out a laugh when he saw my expression, shaking his head at me.
“I should’ve known you’d be a menace in the kitchen. You’ve been paying guys at the clubhouse to cook for you for years.”
It was my turn to shrug. “It was easier. And I didn’t risk getting reamed by Butch if I burned anything.”
Sierra came out of the house carrying a tray, Simone and Mel following after her. I raised my eyebrows at the treats, wondering if the lack of decent lighting was why they looked tasty. “I thought dessert was burnt?”
Mel gave a mock scowl to Xander, who gave her an innocent smile. “We salvaged it.”
Shaking his head, Wraith pulled her closer, smacking a kiss on her lips. “Baby, what the hell were you doing in the kitchen? You know better.”
