Page 55 of Twice as Tempting

Chapter 18

When they pulled up to the dock, the backyard was deserted.

“Why don’t you go in and say our goodbyes, and I’ll wait in your truck,” Kelly suggested, tugging her dress away from her breasts.

“No way. You’re not getting into my truck soaking wet. We’ll go in and dry off, and I’ll find you some other clothes to wear.”

Kelly opened her mouth to argue, but then Alex came out through the patio door to greet them.

“Oh dear, what happened to you?” Alex said.

“We accidentally fell in. Do you have anything that Kelly can wear for the drive home?”

“Of course. I have a closet full of clothes in the spare room that I haven’t worn in years. Follow me, dear.”

When they entered the house, Kelly expected to see Emma and Zack, but it was dead quiet. “Where did everybody go?” Kelly asked.

“Ava was getting fussy, so Zack and Emma took the girls home, and Joe was getting fussy too, so he went down for a nap.” Amused at her own description, Alex laughed loudly, and Kelly couldn’t help but join in.

Damian disappeared into the bathroom to change, and Kelly followed Alex into the spare room. When Alex opened up the closet doors, Kelly’s hands flew to her mouth. She had never seen such a vivid display of color in one place before! While she had admired Alex’s unique eye for fashion, nothing in this closet even came close to Kelly’s style. Oh well, beggars can’t be choosers, she thought as she perused her options.

“What about this?” Alex suggested, holding up a purple and blue paisley printed robe.

Even with the swirls of color, the robe was one of the least loud items in the closet. “Sure, that will be fine,” Kelly said.

Alex led her to the bathroom that Damian had vacated and said, “There are fresh towels on the shelf, and I’ll get you a plastic bag to put your wet clothes in.”

“Thank you so much,” Kelly said before Alex fluttered away.

Kelly couldn’t wait to get out of her wet clothes and into the dry robe, even though the pattern hurt her eyes to look at! She finger-combed her hair and then opened the bathroom door. Damian and Alex were nearby, talking in hushed tones, but as soon as they saw Kelly, their conversation ceased.

“Here you go, honey. Good as new,” Alex said and handed her a plastic bag.

Kelly shoved her wet clothes inside and gave them her best smile. She was embarrassed by the entire incident, but she tried not to show it.

Damian smiled at her and then held out his hand. “Ready to go?”

Hmm…why is he suddenly being so nice? “Yes,” she said and slipped her hand in his.

Alex walked them to the door, kissed them both, and said to Kelly, “Don’t worry about returning the robe. You can keep it.”

When they were pulling out of the driveway, Damian glanced at her robe and busted out laughing.

“Go ahead. Laugh all you want. It’s your mom’s robe, not mine.”

“Yeah, but now you get to keep it,” Damian said and laughed some more. Then suddenly his laughter died down, and he peered at the bag of wet clothes at her feet.

Kelly smirked as understanding dawned in his eyes.

“You don’t have anything on under there, do you?”

Kelly shook her head. “Nope. Not a thing.”

Damian swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat.

“Not so funny anymore, is it?” Kelly said smugly.

Damian was quiet for the rest of the short drive, until they pulled into the apartment complex. “Can I walk you up?” he asked once they had parked.