KDBookOnline
Share Us
She held up her hand to stop me. “I owe you an apology. You’ve been a great friend to Poppy this past year, and I realized you didn’t mean anything offensive when you compared her with Skye. I feel terrible you left early last night.”
“If anyone put their foot in their mouth, it was me.”
“Can we just hug and forget it happened?”
I held open my arms, and she wrapped hers around my waist, squeezing tight. I only returned half the pressure when I bent down and embraced her, but knowing how much she hated being treated like something fragile, I lifted her slightly. She giggled like she always did when I erased the height difference between us. She used the same lavender shampoo as her sister and the smell felt like a punch to the stomach.
Poppy’s hair had been slightly damp when she stopped by this afternoon. Her sweet scent had equally calmed and frustrated me the entire time. Not to mention her ponderings on topless sculpting and the way she’d looked at me when I opened the door half dressed. I’d had to shove my hands in my pockets to stop myself from touching her.
“You give the best hugs,” Rowan said, squeezing me again after I placed her gently on the porch.
“The best, really?” Cal said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders the moment she stepped away from me.
She shrugged. “You can’t be best at everything, Caleb.”
“He’s certainly lacking on the emergency prep,” Aiden said as he shook ice melt onto the sidewalk.
“Would you mind salting Rowan’s sidewalk and steps after you do mine?” Cal asked.
“Chris has several bags of ice melt,” Aiden said, working his way up the staircase. “I know because I made sure he did in November. I texted him earlier to put it down. I assumed you were old enough to know how to prep for a storm. Guess I gave you too much credit.”
“I meant to,” Cal said.
Aiden rolled his eyes and dropped what was left of the bag by the door.
“How’s the apartment hunt going?” Rowan asked me.
“Nowhere,” I said as Cal held open the door for her. Skye let out a bark and galloped toward me. I opened my arms and caught her when she leaped at my chest. “How’s my girl?” I asked, nuzzling her ear. She licked my face and wiggled so much I had to put her down.
“You know,” Aiden said, from the opposite side of the porch where he’d pressed himself against the railing. “If you bought a house, you wouldn’t have to worry about pet policies and could get your own.”
“You’re letting out all the heat,” Cal shouted as he flopped on the couch and pulled Rowan onto his lap. Skye shot off toward them and did a few circles before collapsing at Cal’s feet with a contented sigh.
Aiden and I hung our coats in the closet by the door and kicked off our shoes. I liked that Cal never treated me as a guest in his house. Perhaps things would change once Rowan officially moved in, but I hoped not.
The coffee table was already set up with snacks and drinks. So far, the better food selection had been the only change to our game-watching nights since Rowan came into Cal’s life. I wasn’t complaining. The smell wafting from the kitchen made my mouth water. My stomach grumbled, and I realized I hadn’t eaten anything except a protein bar all day.
Rowan had started making different flavors of sparkling water for me whenever I visited, and I had to admit, I was looking forward to trying something new. At home, I stuck with tap water, but it’d be rude not to drink what Rowan set out. I poured myself a glass from the pitcher on the coffee table.
“To Logan,” Aiden said, raising his beer.
We all raised our drinks and sipped. The moment the water hit my tongue, I knew it was my new favorite.
“How is it?” Rowan asked as she slid off Cal’s lap to the cushion beside me.
“It tastes like summer.”
She smiled, and yet again, I was struck by the similarities between the Stevens sisters. Poppy didn’t smile as often, but when she did, the resemblance between her and Rowan was uncanny.
“It’s watermelon lime. I really love the flavor combination. I’m thinking of doing something in a custard.”
“That sounds amazing,” I said.
“Is that seven-layer dip?” Aiden asked, rubbing his hands together as he sank into his favorite chair.
“Yep,” Rowan said. “I even found those blue tortilla chips you like. There are meatballs in the slow cooker for subs later.”
“You didn’t need to do all this for us,” I said to cover the loud noise my stomach made.