Page 33 of Let It Breathe
Reese folded her arms over her chest and considered, not for the first time, how much more convenient it would be to hate an ex-husband the way most divorced women did.
Eric grinned at her, still talking into the phone.
“So we’ll meet you there?” he said. “Later!”
He clicked off and gave Reese a smug look. “See? You’re getting out. You can thank me later.”
“A few of us are getting together? You make it sound like a party instead of a ridiculous attempt by my ex-husband to fix me up with his loser friend.”
“Bob’s not a loser. He’s a financial analyst. I think you’ll really like him. So you want to meet us there, or drive yourself?”
Reese sighed, resigned to her fate. “I’m driving myself, and I’m bringing Larissa. Assuming she doesn’t already have a date.”
“That’s not a safe assumption. Doesn’t she always have a date?”
“Sometimes she gives herself the night off to line up new dates.”
“Of course she does.”
“Okay, fine.” She was going to regret this, wasn’t she? “I’ll go on this date, but only because I’m hungry and I really like their crab-stuffed mushroom caps. And because I want to ask Sheila to proof some labels the next time she heads up to Portland.”
“I’m sure she won’t mind. Belmont has her working a double on Thursday to fill in for another forensic nurse. Same print shop you used that time?”
“That’s the one.”
“So we’ll see you at Vineyard Grill in an hour?
“Fine.”
Reese trudged back across the lawn and let herself into the house. She spotted the breakfast plates in the sink and remembered yanking the dishrag out of Clay’s hand and insisting she’d wash them later.
At the thought of Clay, her mind veered into dangerous territory.
The feel of Clay’s arm around her waist as he’d saved her from toppling over the bar.
The heat of his fingertips against her cheek.
The way his muscles rippled under her palms as he touched and stroked and drove her mindless with his?—
She grabbed her phone off the counter and dialed Larissa’s cell.
“Hello, my third-favorite cousin,” Larissa answered.
“Hey, ’Riss—look, I need a favor.”
“You need help doing something different with your hair?”
“No, I?—”
“You want to borrow a top that shows off your rack?”
“No, I?—”
“You want seduction tips for sales reps? Come on, we’re reaching the end of my skills list here.”
Reese rolled her eyes. “Why do I bother?”
“Because you love me. And also because I make you smile.”
