Page 82 of Make it Real
Hard to tell in the firelight, but pretty sure June blushed scarlet.
“That’s not a bad idea.” Ty pulled her even closer, nuzzling against her neck. “But just drop the meals and leave, no socializing.”
“So, no different from a regular visit to your house,” Booker said. Eden sat next to him in a camp chair, her legs draped across his lap.
“What if I feel a deep need to talk about horses or home decorating?” Eliza asked.
June looped her arms around Ty’s as though any chance existed he might get away. “You heard the man. No socializing.”
A breeze picked up, sending my hair into my eyes and a chill over my skin. I flipped up the blanket we lay on so it covered my lower legs, wishing I’d brought a sweatshirt with me.
“Are you cold?” Jed asked at my ear.
“Just a touch.” The summer night wasn’t anything like chilly, but the breeze could make me forget the heat of the day pretty quick.
“Do you want me to get you an extra blanket? Or would you rather snuggle for warmth?”
My eyes snapped to his. The heat in his gaze set my skin on fire, tingling down my arms and up my back. What was it with this man and hot looks? Had he learned them somewhere, or had he popped out of the womb knowing how to smolder?
He waited, his offer both flirty and genuine. I could have opted for the blanket. Stayed on the path of smarts and safety instead of veering off onto the risky road of PDA cuddles. Could have…but I knew what I wanted the second he’d asked.
“Snuggle, please.”
His answering smile turned me inside out. In a second, he’d moved to sit behind me, his legs on either side of mine, his arms tight around me as I leaned back against him. His body blocked out the chill, and he ran his hands over my arms to chase away the goosebumps. Only now, the shiver that ran across my skin came from his touch, not the breeze.
“Better?” he whispered.
“So much better.”
New dream house goal unlocked: backyard fire pit for cozy Jed snuggles.
“Callie, Jed told me about that tableau building game you like, with all the little animals,” Harper said. “Please invite me to play sometime, I’ve been dying to get in on that one.”
“The one with the tree where you send out armies of bunnies and hedgehogs?” Sam said at her side. “Mark me down for that, too.”
“Oh, I haven’t played it yet,” I said. “I don’t even have it, I just thought it sounded like a lot of fun.”
Harper made a weird face. “But Jed said he bought it.”
“Jed said he—” I twisted to try to face him, but we weren’t positioned right for it. “You bought it?”
He shrugged. “I thought I’d have it ready for a date-night in sometime.”
My poor little heart skipped and bounced around over his man. He’d bought the game I’d mentioned once in passing so we could play? I could have kissed his face off right then and there to show him just how I felt about that. But to do it, I’d have to spin around and pretty much sit spider-style in his lap—goodness gracious, yes, let’s—but figured that would be just a touch awkward considering where we were.
I met my impulse in the middle, snuggling deeper against his chest and letting the back of my head rest on his shoulder.
“We’ll have a game night sometime,” I said to Harper. “It might take a couple of rounds to really figure out.”
“It’s crazy complex,” Jed said. “I’ve been in military maneuvers with shorter instructions.”
I tilted my head to try to see him better. “You’ve been reading the instructions, too?”
“After the way you shamelessly cheated at Pit, seemed like I should come to our next match better prepared.”
The way he grinned down at me, spinning around to kiss those gorgeous lips was still on the table.
“Wait, how does someone cheat at Pit?” Wade asked.
