Page 9 of Just One Promise (The Carter Brothers 3)
Looking down, I see it’s no other than a book I’ve seen my mom, Summer, and Quinn read. Try as a might, I can’t keep the laughter from bubbling up inside and coming out.
Audrey’s head pops up and she says, “What?”
“You’re going to fit right in, babe.” I leave it at that, her face has a look of wonder. When I don’t say anything, she returns to reading her book while in my arms.
14
Audrey
Waking up alone in Heath’s bed again for the second day in a row is getting annoying. I’ve noticed he’s an early riser, something I’m not much of. Last night we went to bed, skin on skin, nothing between us.
Getting out of the bed, I see Heath’s discarded shirt he had on yesterday and slide it over my naked body, along with a pair of panties I fish out of the drawer Heath cleaned out for me.
Walking down the stairs, I stop in the kitchen already knowing where the man of the hour, my man is.
I make a cup of coffee, adding lots of creamer and sugar, before walking to the back deck to watch Heath surf.
Getting lost in watching his body move with his board, the fluent way he moves, Heath was made for surfing, like it is for us walking.
I finish my cup while watching them. I’m ready for cup number two when I see all three brothers emerge from the water. Heath told me they’d be out here with him. When they reach the sand, they all put their boards down and slowly peel out of their wetsuits. Sure, his brothers look good, but my eyes never leave Heath.
He sees me watching him and his smile broadens, I smile and wave at him. I see the laugh he lets out, I do the same but feel like a total dork for waving, as if he didn’t see me.
I hurry into the kitchen to make myself another cup of coffee as well as a cup for Heath. When I return, I see all of them are now on Heath’s back deck.
“Audrey, want you to meet my brothers, Rome and Mason.”
“Hey, nice to meet you,” I reply and shake their hands, Heath moves me in closer to his side, like he’s asserting that I’m his.
Trying hard to hold my composure, I smile.
Listening to them talk about the plans they have going on for today, I tune them out and watch the waves crashing, hearing the noise of the beachgoers as they slowly start their day, it lulls me into a calm atmosphere.
“Babe, you okay with that?” Heath says.
“Huh, what? Sorry, I was completely zoned out,” I feel heat blossom on my cheeks.
Chuckling he says, “You and I going over to Rome’s tonight, the family will be there too.”
“Oh, uh, yeah. As long as that’s okay with you guys?” I respond.
“If Heath doesn’t bring you, Summer will have my head.” Rome responds.
“Not to mention Quinn, we’ll never hear the end of it,” Mason says.
“Then we’ll be there. What can we bring?” I ask.
“If you cook like Heath, chips and salsa. Store bought preferably. If you cook better than him, anything you want.” Rome is laughing after he tells me something I kind of figured out on my own.
“I can cook, but don’t tell Heath. He’ll never let me leave,” I wink. We all say our goodbyes, Rome and Mason grab their surfboards walking to their places.
“Audrey, if I had it my way, you wouldn’t leave,” giving me a soft kiss, he makes his way to his outdoor shower, much like he did yesterday.
“Yeah, I’m thinking I wouldn’t want to leave anyway,” I whisper to myself.
15
Heath
Audrey didn’t think I heard her, but fuck did I ever. I hated and loved that she met my brothers in nothing but my tee shirt. But knowing she was wearing something of mine, hair a mess from last night, with a soft glow surrounding her. It calmed me, plus my brothers didn’t even look at her in that way. No, it was more in a way of how I look at Summer and Quinn. Definitely more like a little sister.
We spent the morning lazing around until Audrey said, “If you think for one minute we’re showing up with chips and dip, you’re crazy,” her hand was on her hip, she meant business. I shook my head and said, “I’ll get dressed and we’ll head out.”
Now we’re at Rome’s, I place my truck in park, “Stay there, I’ll get your door.”
“Okay.” Audrey ended up going with a dip, but it’s some kind of seven-layer dip that had my stomach growling while she was making it. I kept trying to sneak some when she wasn’t looking, but she somehow saw me coming and would slap my hand.
“You ready for this?” I ask her, opening her door. She attempts to slide out with the platter in her hands. I take it from her before she can.
