Page 70 of Summer Affair
“Maybe we can pick this back up after I finish my baking tonight. I just have three layers to bake, then I’m free.”
“I like the sound of that.” He pulled her against him, soaking the front of her sundress but she didn’t care. He cupped her face and kissed her again, this time hungrier. “I have to go back in there and not picture you naked in my bed, which will be impossible by the way. I’ll have to stay in the pool for the duration or everyone at the party will know just how badly I need to see you naked.”
“Sweet baby Jesus,” Piper said.
“I can’t look away,” Darcy agreed, and Jillian could only shake her head. But her gaze remained locked on the pool, which was packed with tanned, half-naked Easton men. All five incredibly fit Easton men, who were taking turns tossing the kids into the deep end like cannonballs.
Jillian didn’t know what was sexier, Clay’s body or the way he was with Sammy. Patient and engaged in a way she’d only ever seen Gage be with Sammy. No matter what was going on around him, when it came to her and Sammy, Clay was present.
Sammy swam to Clay, and he straightened out her son’s arms, teaching him how to do more than the doggy paddle. Sammy listened, enraptured with the gentle giant who was stealing her heart.
“Wow, look at Clay. He’s so happy and carefree. I’ve never seen him look so open before,” Darcy said.
Jillian shifted her gaze from the pool to her friends and they were staring back. “What’s with the look?”
“What do you mean ‘What’s with the look?’” Piper mimicked.
“I can testify that Clay did not look that way before I babysat last week,” Darcy said. “But now he does. And look at you and that relaxed smile. Then there’s the soaking sundress even though you haven’t been near the pool.”
Jillian gave a noncommittal shrug.
Piper narrowed her gaze. “For someone one who nearly waterboarded me to get info about Josh and me, you sure are tight-lipped when it’s your turn in the hot seat.”
“Now that I know how it feels, please accept my sincerest apologies,” she said, but knew it was useless. When her friends sank their teeth into something, they didn’t give up until the person spilled all their secrets. And for once, Jillian was the keeper of the secrets, multiple secrets, and a stupid smile snuck out.
“Well, that’s a start,” Piper said.
“I bet I know.” Darcy opened a bottle of tequila.
Tonight’s menu was burgers, salad, baked potatoes, and grilled corn on the cob. Darcy was on margarita duty, Piper was salting the glass rims, and Jillian was acting taste tester. While both women were in shorts and a wet swimsuit top, Jillian was still in her sundress. Sammy was outside having so much fun with Clay, she didn’t want to interrupt.
“It’s too new and I don’t want to jinx it.”
Piper made the sound of a game show buzzer. “Wrong answer. I said those exact words about Josh and the two of you made me spill my guts, then made me promise to be open to new things.”
Jillian set her glass down. “After which, I might add, you fell in love and are living your best life.”
Jillian thought she’d found her best life and it had blown up in her face. How could she make it work with a guy who lived in another state when her life and business were here? It wasn’t just a matter of different stages in life, it was a logistical nightmare waiting to happen.
The problem with proximity was that the further away two people lived, the easier it was to grow apart. They already had a conflict of goals to deal with. He would report back to Seattle soon, and she was about to sign a five-year lease on a storefront for her tasting room. It was as if the universe was telling her this was a huge mistake, but it was up to her to listen.
“Which brings us to you. Have you slept with him?” Piper always was the straightforward one of the three.
“What part of ‘I don’t want to jinx it’ are you missing?”
“The part when you practically shoved me at Josh,” Piper reminded her. “You got all up in my business about giving dating and love a chance.”
“Yeah. You’re the one who told me to give Gage a chance, even though I didn’t think he deserved one,” Darcy said, her smile dreamy. “He was clueless there for a while. A cute clueless man. Slow on the uptake, but quick on the follow-through.”
“Now it’s your turn,” Piper said.
“Whoa, don’t lump me in with you guys. I’m not looking for love. I’m looking for fun. And with Clay it’s fun. But he’s leaving in a few weeks, and we agreed to no feelings, no strings.”
“You’re a pretty loving and giving person. Do you think that you can compartmentalize like that?”
“I have to. I wasted the best years of my life with the wrong man. I refuse to invest myself in a relationship that is going nowhere. And I’d never do that to Clay,” she said. “I don’t want his heart or to fall in love, I just want a little bit of time with a guy who makes me feel like more than a stressed-out single mom.”
Her friends exchanged another cryptic look, then burst out laughing. Darcy snorted. “Has this included sexy time?”
