Page 104 of Resisting the Temptation
“Nice to meet you, Luke.”
Luke bows, and I chuckle.
They follow me inside and take off their shoes before meeting the rest of us in the kitchen. We do more introductions with Iris, Axel, and Ben.
My cousins all do a double-take when they see Ben, and Elli waggles her eyebrows at me, mouthing,“He’s hot.”
“I know,”I mouth back.
Wes playfully grabs Elli by the hips and tries to shove her away from him while covering her eyes.
She rolls her eyes and goes up on her tiptoes to give him a chaste kiss on the cheek, then says something only he can hear while pointing to her engagement ring.
“Oh my God! I totally forgot to congratulate you two! Let me see it!” I grab Elli’s left hand and inspect the ring. It’s an oval shaped diamond on a simple gold band, but it fits Elli’s personality perfectly. “It’s beautiful. Good job, Wes.” I nudge him with my elbow.
Wes’s fair cheeks turn a little pink. “Thank you. It was my mom’s, actually.”
My heart lurches. Wes’s mom passed away when he was a teenager, so I know it must mean a lot to have his girl wearing his mom’s ring. “Oh, that’s lovely. Have you guys set a date yet?”
Elli shakes her head. “No. There’s talk of another tour, and Wes has an album to record, so we’re waiting until things die down a bit.”
“Well, I’m happy for you. I’m glad you have time to plan so you can have the wedding of your dreams.”
“Thanks, Emma.”
Hannah comes down the stairs with three bags and drops them at the bottom before giving Elli and Izzy hugs and greeting Wes and Luke.
Hannah and Morgan take the girls out to the car to say goodbye while Izzy chatters on about college and how difficult the commute is from where they live in San Marcos. They’re thinking of renting a place of their own in San Antonio.
When Hannah and Morgan return, they start pulling out salads, garlic bread, and what looks like homemade lasagna.
Talmage arrives right as we’re about to dish up, apologizing for being late. He got caught up at work then got stuck in traffic.
He looks like he hasn’t slept at all since yesterday. There are dark bags under his eyes, and it doesn’t look like he’s had time to shave, but he still gives us his golden boy smile like nothing’s wrong.
Maybe I can see through it because I’m used to wearing my own smile as a mask, even when I’m feeling down.
We dish up the food buffet style and sit down at the large farmhouse table in the dining area attached to the kitchen before we dig in.
Chapter 50
Emma
After dinner, where everyone took turns giving updates on their lives, my cousins and I clean up the kitchen while the guys run to grab ice cream for dessert.
I know they’re giving us privacy so us girls and Talmage can catch up with each other, but I can’t help the way my heart twinges when Ben walks out the door.
I also can’t help the bitter sting of jealousy watching Wes kiss Elli, Luke give Izzy a kiss on the cheek, and Morgan give Hannah a forehead kiss before they leave. Ben gave my arm a quick squeeze, and I could tell my cousins have questions about it.
Sure enough, as soon we see the headlights retreat from the driveway, Elli whips around and says, “Spill it, Emma.”
I sigh from where I’m putting dirty dishes in the dishwasher.
I avoided talking about how Ben and I met and our rocky history at dinner because I’m embarrassed. Notof Ben and not of our kinky sex life but of how cautious—let’s be real, scared—I am. How I’m lying to people by saying he’s my boyfriend when I don’t even know what we are.
“Yeah, what’s the deal with you two?” Izzy asks.
“We’re not actually dating. We’re just coworkers… having fun?” I know Izzy is almost nineteen, but the last time I saw her she wasn’t even a teenager, so I don’t know how explicit I can be.
