Page 43 of Christmas in Coconut Creek

The only time Mateo needed my opinion on something was figuring out what takeout we were going to order for dinner. He was always entirely sure of himself and overly stubborn—a decision maker, through and through. Which is why he earned that Captain nickname in Delta. Our whole unit knew he was the leader without having to be told. So Mateo needing my opinion on something, especially involving Tally, had to be important.

“Are you doing it?” My mouth widened into a grin.

He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me toward the front door. “Yeah, brother. I think I am.”

I patted him on the back, laughing. “Well if I’m losing you, we’re going out with a fucking bang.”

“Vegas?” he suggested.

“Over Tally’s dead body,” I joked.

“We’ll all just have to go together.”

God, shit was about to get so much crazier.

13

“Thisplaceisreallynice.” My voice carried over the sloshing of water at my feet.

The boutique spa we ended up at was bright and airy, desert-toned walls warming the space as the natural light of the day basked through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Lush greenery hung from macrame baskets and overflowed from oversized potted ceramic in every corner of the room. Soft whispers of instrumental strings played as we soaked our feet under warm jets tinted in aromatic lavender incense.

“I got a massage and facial here once as a surprise from Mateo. Best three hundred dollars he’s ever spent. That man didn’t walk ten feet in the house without me dropping to my knees for a week.”

“I’m surprised he’d even have to spend the money.”

Nat swatted my arm across the leather chair and popped a complimentary chocolate-covered acai berry into her mouth. “Some people say your twenties are your prime, but I feel like the older we get the more unrelentingly horny we become.”

I hid a laugh behind my fist and looked down at the two women working at our feet. One thing I'd always loved about Natalia was her unhinged transparency. Nothing seemed to make her blush or cringe. Growing up surrounded by three other hard-headed, outspoken sisters seemed to have done that to her. At home she constantly battled for attention, but in the real world that brazen confidence got her everything and anything she wanted.

My phone vibrated and I slid it open to read a new text from Frankie.

Frankie <3:What’s your favorite color?

Ophelia:Like an aqua blue, turquoise-ish

Frankie <3:ish?

Ophelia:Why does it matter?

Frankie <3:Curiosity

Ophelia:What’s yours?

Frankie <3:Green-ish

I made a humored noise that earned a flashing glance from the woman painting my nails.

Frankie <3:How many siblings do you have?

Ophelia:Aren’t you a little old for Twenty Questions?

Frankie <3:I didn’t peg you as an ageist, O. Is it not fun to do things that make you happy before you inevitably die?

Ophelia:An ageist and a cynic playing Twenty Questions sounds like the start to a terrible joke

Frankie <3:Are you done, smartass?

Ophelia:For now. I have five younger half-siblings. My dad and his wife have Leo, and the twins Stella and Daisy, and then my mom and her husband have Gavin and Laila

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