Page 111 of Maybe We Can Fake It

“Hi,” I say. Ever since the memorial, too—or really, since that next morning of slow, intimate sex—I get the urge to tell him I love him every time I see him. But obviously, this isn’t the right moment. I’ll find it soon. “It looked like you guys didn’t do too bad out here.”

Standing behind May, Elise puts her hand on her granddaughter’s shoulder. “This one had no trouble at all. I had to skip a couple poses, but it was fun.”

I eye Brenden’s body appreciatively and ask, “Think you’re gonna be a yoga convert?” I don’t want to be dragged to any classes, but I wouldn’t object to seeing him in these pants more often.

He pulls a face. “Doubtful.”

“Oh my gosh, did you see Dad fall over?” May asks gleefully.

“Hey! I did not fall over!” he counters indignantly. “I very gracefully decided to lie down for a moment, that’s all.”

Sarcastically, I tell him, “Yeah, that’s exactly what it looked like.” Because Iwaslucky enough to catch it.

His huff is cute, and I can’t help but reach for him, tugging him in against my side. He glances around us before relaxing. There are still some people lingering with yoga mats, and others milling around the green, but it doesn’t matter. I’ve let my guard down a lot when it comes to being with him.

I don’t plan on engaging in any major PDA, obviously. But I find myself always wanting to touch him now, and since he seems to love it when I do, I’m not going to worry too much about what the nosy townspeople might think.

It feels natural to let my hand rest on his hip. Natural to chat with Elise and Grant while Brenden tips his head onto my shoulder.

And maybe it’s crazy that it only took us a few weeks to get here. Or maybe this has been ten years in the making.

All I know is my life is suddenly looking much different than I ever expected it to, and I’m realizing I might not be such a loner after all. Turns out that having people around you isn’t so bad, as long as they’re the right people.

While May is saying something to her grandparents, I rub my thumb over the thin material of Brenden’s sweatpants and tilt my head down to whisper in his ear. “I really like these pants on you.”

“Oh yeah?” he whispers back, beaming.

“Mmhmm. Almost as much as I’ll like you out of them.”

He sucks in a breath, but before he can respond, Elise says, “What are you two whispering about over there?”

“Nothing,” Brenden squeaks, managing to make the one word sound entirely guilty. I shake my head fondly.

“Secrets are no fun, Dad,” May says with a teasing glint in her eyes.

He turns red, further giving us away, but I just laugh. Flirting with him is fun when he gets flustered so easily.

“We were just discussing the possibility of you guys all coming over to the diner to grab an early lunch,” I say in an attempt to save him. Plus I wouldn’t mind that.

“Yup, that’stotallywhat we were saying,” Brenden says, nodding like a bobblehead doll. I give his hip a squeeze and try to hold in my laughter this time.

There’s a hint of a smile on Elise’s face when she says, “We believe you, dear.”

“We did have breakfast before we left the inn, though,” Grant says, “so I’m not sure I could eat again so soon. But I’d be happy to sit and have a cup of coffee.”

“Well, it sounds good to me,” May chimes in. “I’m starving.”

Brenden makes a face at her. “Hey, I made you breakfast! Don’t act like I don’t feed you.”

“You ‘made’ cereal,” she says with air quotes.

“But I cut up a banana in it!”

I can’t resist giving him shit. “Awholebanana?”

He sends me a sheepish look. “Well, I put half in each of our bowls.”

“Okay, come on,” I tell him, using my grip on his hip to turn him with me. “I’m going to make you eat something with vegetables.”

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