Page 55 of The Wedding Engagement

Maya brandished a vibrant-looking hard-boiled egg from her pocket, the shell painted in bright colors by Jack’s hand. “Here he is. We call him Egg Sheeran.”

Liv snorted, realizing why the top of the shell was colored orange, to represent the mop of red hair sported by the egg’s human pop-sensation equivalent.

Maya snatched Egg Sheeran away as if Liv were trying to grab it. “Hey. No trying topoachhim, now.” She winked at Liv, clearly pleased with her own egg-related pun.

Liv raised her eyebrow, bringing out her glitter-adorned egg. “Don’t need to. He’s no match for Scarlett Yolk-hansson.”

Maya chuckled. “Nice.” She shifted Jack on her hip. “Shall we go and take our places?”

Liv’s heart sank. “Arran and Jayce aren’t here yet. I hope they’re still coming.”

Maya gestured over Liv’s shoulder. “That’s them coming now.”

Her pulse spiking, Liv turned to see Arran holding Jayce’s hand as they came through the ski center’s back entrance. She lifted her hand to wave, a smile on her face, but before she managed to catch Arran’s eye someone grabbed her from behind and lifted her up.

“Hey, ladies.” Brodie’s voice sounded behind her.

He set her down again and Liv turned to flash him a smile. He hugged her, then Maya. “Hope you guys don’t think you’re going to beat me,” he told them, brandishing his egg, which was painted in an abstract manner.

“Nice,” Liv said, bumping his shoulder. She lifted her head to see if Arran was on his way over but was disappointed to find that he was nowhere in sight.

Brodie slid his arm around her shoulders. “Come on. Let’s get our places at the starting line.”

They started walking up the hill, Maya and Jack next to them. Brodie glanced at Maya. “Is Ben here today?” he asked, scanning the crowd.

“Yeah, somewhere,” Maya replied. “He’s been stomping around like a grumpy git, criticizing everything.” She rolled her eyes. “We need to find him a new boyfriend, stat.”

Brodie’s eyes seemed to widen for a moment, then he smiled. “Maybe a bit of egg rolling will cheer him up.”

“Hope so,” Maya muttered, as they neared where Sam stood chatting to said grumpy Big Boss Ben.

Ben was running a hand through his dark, silver-streaked hair as Sam placed his hand on his shoulder to give it a squeeze.

“Hey, dudes,” Maya said, reaching them first. She kissed Sam’s cheek, then nudged Ben’s arm. “All right, Triple B?”

Ben huffed out a breath and Sam surreptitiously shot them a “yikes” expression.

“I will be, when this thing is over,” Ben told them, his mouth drawn into a tight line.

“ ’S’up?” Liv asked him. “Not a fan of Easter-themed activities?”

“Nope,” Ben replied, folding his arms. “This whole thing has been a pain in the arse to organize.”

“Okay,” Sam said in a slow breath, putting an arm around Ben’s shoulders. “Why don’t you go get a coffee, and I’ll sort all of this out. No need to worry.”

Ben scanned the large crowd. “Don’t you need my help?”

Maya handed Jack to Sam, stepping closer to Ben. “Look into my eyes…” She gestured around her face, then snapped her fingers, as if hypnotizing Ben. “And you’re under. You’re no longer a stressed-out boss, but a happy chappie off to enjoy a coffee in the café…” She snapped her fingers again. “And you’re back in the room.”

A smile was tugging hard at Ben’s mouth.

Maya turned him around to face down the hill and gave him a gentle push. “Now, off you pop! Only one shot, though—can’t have you jacked up too high on caffeine.”

Shaking his head, Ben started out down the slope toward the café, and Liv was sure she heard a low chuckle escape his lips as he went. When she glanced back at the others, Brodie was watching Ben go.

“Right,” Sam said. “Let’s get this show on the road.” He set Jack down with Liv and Maya, then went to grab his megaphone.

“Good afternoon, everybody! Welcome to the first annual Glenavie egg-rolling event. Please take your places at the starting line.”

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