“Still means,” I corrected him. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for that girl.”
“About that, I should give you a heads-up that?—”
“Jaxon. Well, isn’t this an unexpected surprise?” Arizona’s voice sliced through his sentence, drawing my attention over toward the glass patio doors, where she stood with Lily beside her, looking wide-eyed and equally as stunned.
“I-I can go and come back another time,” I offered, even though it was the last thing I wanted.
“I don’t think that’s necessary,” Ari said, looking at Lily for reassurance, who offered her a supportive smile in return. “Perfect, we’ve got plenty of food, and I see you brought beer. It’s like you knew your brother was manning the grill.”
And just like that, all the tension in my body loosened.
While none of us saw this coming, I could see from the moment we locked eyes that her shoulders weren’t as tight, her posture more open, lighter. It was subtle but undeniable only because I knew her. Whatever weight she’d been carrying last week, after I left her to explore the dock, that had her second-guessing herself around me had seemingly lifted.
“Help me outside?” Jameson asked, jutting out his chin as if he were issuing a challenge.
“You mean babysit you while you play with fire? Ironic, considering you’re supposed to be the one who puts fires out, not starts them,” I shot back with a smirk.
He rolled his eyes. “It’s called a controlled burn, genius. Totally different.”
“Uh-huh. Just don’t make me call in your crew if the burgers get too well done.”
“Keep talking like that, and you’re on veggie duty, ass-hat.”
With that, I grabbed two beers from the case I’d placed on the counter and followed Jameson outside to the backyard, but not before I caught a whiff of a scent that was unmistakably hers—lilies and honey. It hit me like muscle memory, pulling me closer without any effort. It took every ounce of willpower I had left in the tank not to lean down and breathe her in, bury my face in her neck, and lose myself in all things Lily.
Honestly, I deserved a damn medal for the restraint, especially with her standing there in those short, ripped denim shortsand innocent white cropped hoodie that exposed a sliver of her toned stomach, looking unfairly cute. She was an absolute vision of perfection without even trying. Flawless from her messy blond topknot, makeup-free face and down to her painted white toes.
Baby steps, I told myself—one step at a time.
The first step was showing up and being present. Getting to know her all over again, and not as the girl whose ponytail I tugged, wanting to wrap it around my fist when our friendship transitioned to more, but as the woman she was now.
I needed her to understand I wouldn’t judge her actions because I’d come to accept that whatever happened in the past, there had to be one hell of a good reason, one that made sense toher, even if it ripped me apart.
I made a silent promise to Lily on New Year’s Eve while she slept in my arms that I wouldn’t hold it against her. Arizona’s warning had only fueled that pledge.
And if it only led to a friendship, I’d take it because I’d do anything just to be in her life again.
“I gotta hand it to you, bro, these burgers are damn good.” I reached for a second serving.
“Right!” Arizona squeaked. “But how can he eat that weight in food and still maintain those sculpted abs? It’s maddening.”
“Babe, abs are made in the kitchen.”
“And the bedroom,” she quickly followed up, her voice jumping an octave higher than she likely meant.
But when she covered her mouth and her eyes widened with embarrassment, I suspected she’d meant the comment as an inside thought.
“Best place to get that cardio in, I tell you, but you also know how much I love it when we work out together, me standing, your legs wrapped around my waist and?—”
“Sheesh, some of us are trying to eat here.” I held my hand up to stop that sentence.
“What? Get your mind out of the gutter. I was going to say, ‘do your sit-ups.’” He chuckled, shrugging his shoulders with a smile like a giddy little kid. “What, I get a reward with each ab crunch—a kiss on the lips or nose.”
“I’m certain that’s not all you get.”Lucky fucker.
“Fucking right it isn’t. Have you seen my wife? I happily get down on my knees every day for her—multiple times, in fact. How else do you think I got her pregnant in record time?”
“Jesus,” I muttered under my breath and hung my head down toward my plate. It took a second to dawn on me the back half of his comment before my head snapped back up. “Wait, what! You’re pregnant?” I asked, my gaze ricocheting between the happy couple, who were so deep in googly-eyed bliss they made falling in love look like the easiest thing in the world.