Page 20 of Her Hidden Smile

“And it was fucking cold!”

“Are you still bitching about the cold?” I asked Jase.

“Damn right I am. How long before she’s going to dump his ass?”

“I’m just praying she doesn’t get pregnant. I heard from Elani that Sandy’s put off having a family until douche-boy keeps a job for longer than six months.”

“That’s our girl.” I heard relief in Jase’s words.

“Still, it was fun to have the whole family together, even with you bitching the entire time about how cold it was.” I laughed.

“Yeah, it really was. It would have been better to have Grandma Maureen there. I know she said she didn’t want to fly, but Angelique said she could arrange a private plane for her. Hell, I offered to drive her up there.”

“So did I.”

“So did Malik.” Jase chuckled.

“She still wouldn’t go. I hate to think of her getting older. But she is in her upper eighties.”

“You wouldn’t guess it when she’s around her great grandkids. She’ll get right down on the floor and start playing with them.” I heard the smile in Jase’s voice.

“Have you taken Bonnie, Lachlan, and Amber to Springfield yet?” I asked.

“Yeah, the kids won over everyone, and Dad said Bonnie was a keeper.”

“Of course, he did.”

“What about you? Is there more keeping you in Jasper Creek than just Simon’s dilapidated cabin and the Southern cooking?”

I thought about Millie and everything Drake had said. She and I had traded a couple of texts, and I’d coaxed her into taking a few phone calls from me.

“Renzo? You listening to me?”

“I am. So, is there a wedding in your future?”

“Damn right there is. I swear to God, Amber wants to be the wedding planner, but she seems to be most interested in the wedding gown, the cake, and the flowers. Lord save me from seven-year-olds that are smarter than me.”

“Isn’t the cake, flowers, and dress everything?” I wanted to know.

“Fuck if I know. I asked Bonnie if we could have it in Springfield and she was all for it. It’s set for October. You’re going to be my best man, just so you know.”

I sat up in the cabin’s shitty recliner. “What? I don’t do that kind of thing. Ask Malik to be your best man.”

“I’m asking you.”

“You’re telling me, and I’m saying ask Malik.”

“No can do. You’re my man.”

“What about one of your teammates?”

“You do realize this is supposed to be an honor, right?”

I cricked my neck and looked up at the ceiling. “Yeah, I know, Jase, and I am honored. But I suck at making toasts and holding onto rings and fitting into tuxes. You know that.”

“That’s a load of bullshit. I know better. I saw you escort Angelica on that red carpet deal, two years ago. She had you looking like a movie star.”

“I didn’t have a choice. I’d just beat the shit out of her asshole boyfriend and threw him out of her condo. She needed a date at the last minute.”