Total pages in book: 54
Estimated words: 52100 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 261(@200wpm)___ 208(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52100 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 261(@200wpm)___ 208(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
I forced myself to look away, paying attention instead to the introductions Grady and Avon were making. All of the groomsmen had grown up in the Beard, so I knew them.
Bess’s husband, Harry, was sitting on a porch swing, looking happy as always. Bess went over to sit with him.
“The hot tub fits sixteen people,” Avon said. “So it’s the perfect size.”
Bess laughed and waved a hand. “Make that fourteen. Harry and I will be in bed by nine.”
I exhaled hard, my stomach swirling with nervousness. Sitting in a hot tub with Holt? Other people or not, that sounded downright dangerous.
“You can hot tub anytime,” Grady said. “Get in right now if you want to.”
Harry started to stand up, but Bess said, “No thank you. We’re too old for swimsuits.”
The other women in the wedding party arrived and got drinks. One of them, Carmen, immediately made a beeline for Holt. I couldn’t watch another woman flirting with him, so I went into the kitchen to work on some snacks I had packed for Grady to bring.
I’d prechopped a bunch of veggies and bagged them up. I arranged them on a huge platter and added meats, cheeses, grapes and crackers.
I heard the sliding glass doors from the deck to the house open when I was searching the refrigerator for the dips I made.
“Hey,” a deep voice said. “Let me help with that.”
It was Holt, his presence making my pulse pound.
“It’s okay, I can do it. I just need to find these dips. Maybe I should get out some more crackers. That doesn’t look like enough.”
“Shea.” He walked over and set his beer on the kitchen counter.
“Hmm?” I busied myself searching for the dips.
He came closer, not stopping until he was right next to me and my heart was beating so hard I was sure he’d be able to see it from the outside.
“You’ve been avoiding me. Did I say something to offend you?”
I gaped at him. “No, I’ve just been busy.”
“Shea...”
“There it is!” I took the container of olive dip out of the fridge. “Now I just need to find the dish I packed to serve it in.”
I didn’t want to have this conversation with Holt. My feelings were a tangled mess, and I didn’t want things to get even more awkward when we were here together for an entire weekend.
“Hey there,” Carmen said, grinning at Holt as she opened the sliding glass doors and walked in. “Some of us are getting in the hot tub. You should put on your suit and join us.”
I exhaled through my nose. Not only did I have to spend this whole weekend with Holt and pretend I didn’t have feelings for him, but I also had to watch Carmen Thompson blatantly trying to reel him in.
“I’d rather hang out with Shea,” Holt said.
“Sure, just come out whenever,” Carmen said.
I turned to face Holt. “Hey, you don’t have to—”
He covered my lips with his fingertips. “I’m here because I want to be.”
His touch sent a bolt of sensation to my lips, making me break out in goose bumps. My eyes were locked on his, unable to look at anything else until the sound of people coming in made me jolt.
He dropped his hand and I cleared my throat, putting olive dip into a serving dish.
“Hey, I’m putting out snacks if anyone’s hungry,” I said.
“Ooh, that looks amazing,” Allie said, grabbing a carrot from the tray. “What can I do to help?”
“Nothing at all.”
“Hey,” Grady said, pointing at me from across the room. “Remember what I told you—you aren’t feeding and cleaning up after us this weekend.”
I put my hands up in mock surrender. “I know! You vetoed the meals I wanted to make. At least give me a few snacks, for crying out loud. And one breakfast.”
“Sadly, the ingredients for your breakfast were left behind,” he said, grinning. “These snacks are the only work you’re doing this weekend.”
I gave him a dirty look, aggravated he’d deliberately left behind the ingredients for my sausage and egg casserole and cinnamon rolls.
Everyone went to their bedrooms and bathrooms to change, leaving me alone with Holt in the kitchen.
“Looks like you’re gonna have to hot tub,” he said.
I looked away, unsure how to respond.
“It’s hard for you to let go and unwind, isn’t it?” he asked softly. “You’re so used to being busy and doing things for other people that you don’t take much time for yourself.”
I shrugged, feeling seen and not sure I liked it.
“Even that night on the lawn, you came there for Spence. Because he invited you.”
“Of course I did.”
“Just try it,” he said. “You’re with friends here. Let go and don’t do a single thing for another person. Don’t wash dishes or pour drinks. Just be. And have some fun.”
He didn’t realize how much he was asking of me. I’d never been a partier. I went from high school to cooking classes, then culinary school. Hospitality was a natural fit for me because I loved taking care of others.