Page 193 of Between Regrets and Promises

“Fine! I’m selling my…flowerpot. Happy?” Maddie flashes a snarky smile. “To the biggest…water hose.”

Hunter nearly chokes on his food as he coughs, then tries swallowing it down with his drink. Lennon laughs as she slaps his back. “Water hose trip you up?”

“You’ve been saying you’re gonna ‘sell it off’ for months,” I say, rolling my eyes at her. “Either do it or quit whining about it.”

Maddie responds with a glare. “I’ll be twenty-one soon, and then I’m gonna get…”

Lennon clears her throat and motions to Allie with her eyes as a reminder to watch her words.

“Gonna drink some happy juice.” Maddie grins, wide and taunting. “And get very, very happy. Then I’m gonna pick my water hose and be a full-blown bloomed flower.”

I snort, shaking my head at her. “Just wait until you find the right person. It makes it extra special,” I say with a dreamy sigh. “Trust me.”

“Except you didn’t wait, so why should I trust you?” she fires.

“Because I wish I would have!” I point my fork at her, daring her to keep challenging my older sister knowledge.

“Isn’t it so much better when it’s with someone amazing?” Lennon says, looking at Hunter like he hung the moon.

“It really is,” I agree.

“All you two are missing are the floating hearts above your heads and cartoon stars in your eyes.” Maddie groans, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

“Take it from me, Mads,” Hunter intervenes, grabbing a container of food and dumping it on his plate. “I had a lot of meaningless one-night stands, and they made me feel empty and gross. Then Lennon happened, and it was nothing like I’d ever experienced before. It was beyond special, and it meant everything. I knew I loved her for years before, but getting to experience that shared love is indescribable.”

“Aww, baby…” Lennon coos.

Maddie mimics a gagging noise, and I snicker.

“You two are relationship goals,” I tell Hunter and Lennon. The moment they finally got together, I knew I wanted what they had. Lennon had a second chance at love after Brandon died, and I’m so happy she took the risk. Hunter’s perfect for her and Allie.

Once we finish eating and clean up, Hunter offers to give Allie her bath and get her ready for bed so Lennon can socialize with us. Lennon gives him a deep, passionate kiss.

“Didn’t know we were getting dinneranda show,” Maddie blurts.

“Hey, you be quiet!” Lennon scowls before releasing Hunter, then he walks down the hallway so we can finally talk.

“Baby kicking?” I ask as she takes a seat on the couch next to me. I rub her bump and beg for movement. “Ooh, was that it?”

“Let me feel!” Maddie pushes me aside.

“Relax,” Lennon says, laughing. “Pretty sure that was gas. I have a food baby in there too.”

Lennon kicks her feet up on the coffee table, and I chat about Mason and me. I want to be respectful of the intimate details of our relationship and knew I wanted to take things slow after the incident with Dalton.

“It was…amazing,” I tell them with a dreamy sigh. “Friday was completely unplanned. Serena was there being overly touchy with Mason, and I flipped out. Once she and Liam left, he cooked dinner, but we weren’t really talking about what happened. He was acting a little too giddy for the way I told off his friend, and then he called me out for saying he was myboyfriend. Something changed for me that night. I didn’t want to wait any longer because being with him felt right. I love him so much, and I wanted us to share something special. We ended the night, he kissed me, and we went to our separate rooms.”

“And then what? He snuck into your bedroom and jumped you, right?” Maddie waggles her brows.

“Actually, it was the other way around.” I blush. “I snuck into his room and told him I was ready.”

“Then you spent the entire weekend naked and didn’t come up for air until this morning. Amiright?” Lennon smirks.

“Basically!” I laugh. “I couldn’t get enough, and neither could he. We ate and refueled in between.”

“And now I want to barf,” Maddie says dramatically. Lennon narrows her eyes at her, which causes me to smile. “I’m happy for the two of you, but I hate being the only sister who can’t contribute to these stories.”

I pat her leg. “You will one day. Then it’ll be ‘Maddie’s Sex Stories’ nonstop.”

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