“Ugh!” She balled her fists and stomped a foot. The floorboard reacted with silent indifference. She glared before she remembered the real source of her frustration. “Paul Dean Hughes…”
“Yes?”
“Ugh! Just… ugh! Sometimes I don’t like you very much.”
“Is now one of those times?”
She crossed her arms under her breasts, which made her cleavage deeper. She caught me looking and balled her fists instead. Then she smoothed invisible fabric over her legs.
“Relax, Little Bit,” I said gently. “It’ll happen when it happens.”
“I know, but… it’s driving me crazy! I don’t think you understand,” she wheedled, “how much I want this.”
“And you’ll get it. When I’m ready.”
“Stupid patience,” she grumbled under her breath.
“Relax,” I said again. “Let’s just enjoy our picnic. We’ll eat first, ’cause I know you’re starving. Then we’ll do the survey and measurements. It shouldn’t take long, maybe thirty minutes. After that, we can relax and enjoy the afternoon together. And, who knows… maybe tonight at the party…?”
Her attitude changed abruptly, a complete one-eighty. “Yes? Tonight? What’s going to happen?”
“You’ll see,” I said slyly. “In the meantime, come over here.”
She unbuckled her seatbelt and slid across. I put my arm around her.
“You know I love you,” I said, and she nodded. “I want to spend my life with you.” Another nod. “I want to have a family with you. And I want to grow old with you.”
“I know,” she said softly. “Me too.”
“Now, with all that ahead of us, forty or fifty years, do you think you can wait four or five hours?”
“It doesn’t sound so bad when you put it that way.”
“It isn’t.”
“I know. Only…” She sighed and leaned into me. “I’ll be patient. I won’t like it, though.”
I laughed. “I’d be surprised if you did.”
* * *
Wren had packed quite a spread, roast chicken, potato salad, carrot and raisin salad, and even blackberry cobbler for dessert. None of it had been in the kitchen the night before—we would’ve eaten it if it had—which meant she’d made everything fresh, just for us.
She’d even added a couple of bottles of wine, although she’d been smart enough not to include any of the champagne we’d bought for the party. That would’ve been a dead giveaway that we might have something to celebrate.
“What’s so funny?” Christy asked idly.
She was lying on her back with her head on my hip. My hand rested lightly on her breast, but we weren’t in the mood for sex. We were both stuffed from lunch, content to listen to the sound of the waterfall and watch the clouds float by.
“Nothing,” I fibbed. “Wren. How she takes care of us. Well, how she takes care of you.”
“She takes care of you too.”
“Yeah, but it isn’t the same.”
“I’m not going to argue with you.”
“Because you know I’m right,” I chuckled. “You’re the center of the universe.”
“That isn’t a very nice thing to say.”
“I meant it as a compliment.”
“Still…”
“You’re center of my universe.”
“Better.”
“The center of hers, too. She loves Trip, but…”
“It’s different,” Christy agreed.
“You’re the center of Brooke’s universe.”
“Mmm.”
“You don’t think so?”
“She… isn’t like Wren,” Christy said after a moment. “She’s more like me.”
“How do you mean?”
“Only that we like guys better.”
I nodded. Wren had said as much.
“And Brooke’s more… I dunno… open-minded. Don’t get me wrong, I love Wren, but sometimes she drives me crazy.”
“Same with Trip and me,” I agreed.
We fell silent, each lost in our own thoughts.
“I do love them, though,” Christy said at last. “I can’t imagine life without them.”
“Me neither.”
“Leah and Mark, too. I really like her. She’s funnier than I thought she’d be.”
“She’s a lot like her dad,” I said. “He has a wisecrack for everything.”
“Mmm. And Mark’s perfect for her. He’s so cool. Nothing bothers him.” She laughed. “I get the feeling he’s a little bit… um… bi?” She glanced up to judge my reaction, and I didn’t deny it. “I thought so. My radar. I don’t know if he’d ever do anything about it—”
“I don’t think so,” I said.
“—but he definitely isn’t bothered by the thought of it. Brooke told me how she played with you guys. How she rubbed you together, I mean.” She glanced up again to check my reaction. “And she told me about the ‘pregnant bedspread’ thing.”
“Oh, that. Friendly fire.”
“Trip was freaked out, wasn’t he? By all of it, I mean.”
“A little bit,” I admitted.
“You and Mark were fine with it, though, weren’t you?”
“Yeah. I can’t really complain about getting a little semen on me, even if it isn’t mine.”
“Especially when you expect me to wear it proudly.”
“I thought you liked—?”
“I do. I love it. But it helps that you aren’t a hypocrite about it. And you don’t make me feel dirty that I like it.” She sighed happily. “One of the million-billion things I love about you.”
“And one of the things I love about you,” I agreed.
“If only you had a way to show it,” she said faux-wistfully. “Like, with some kind of symbol.” She laughed before I could say anything. “Sorry, I’ll behave. You’ll ask when you’re ready.”
“Mmm.”
“I still need to give you a hard time about it, though. Brooke thinks I’m nuts. Only, she doesn’t know you like I do. Besides, she’s way too serious. Erin thinks I need to tease you more.”
“Oh, she does, does she?”
“Of course! She’s your sister. That’s what sisters do.” She sighed. “I wish we could do something before she leaves, but… Oh, well. We’ll plan something for later. It’ll be a surprise.”
“Can I bug you about it till it happens?”
“Funny, ha ha,” Christy said. “But I don’t think you understand. I meant what I said to Leah last night… or this morning… or whenever.” She waved away the specifics—they weren’t important. “I must’ve thought about you and Erin, like, a million times since you told me. The same with Laurence and me. Now we have the chance to do it for real? Oh my gosh, Paul!”
I chuckled. “Anything to make you happy.”
“Thank you, Mr. Sarcasm.”
“You’re right,” I said. “I’ll be more serious. I would do anything to make you happy.”
“Thank you,” she said in earnest. “I know you think I’m just being silly, but…” She shrugged and changed directions. “I’m very lucky. To have you, I mean.”
“I feel the same about you.”
“I’m excited too. And not just about tonight. This is our future, isn’t it? The group, I mean, everyone here now.”
“I hope so.”
“Me too.”
I caressed her shoulder, and she kissed the back of my hand.
“I love you,” she said. “Very, very much.”
“I love you too.”
We fell silent. The waterfall splashed into the lake below, and the clouds floated serenely above. Christy sighed, and I knew she was reliving the past couple of days, although she surprised me with a derisive snort.
“Dilettante.”
“What?”
“I can’t believe they thought I was some kind of dilettante,” she complained.
“Well, you have to admit that Catholics don’t become swingers very often. Even lapsed ones.”
“I’m not lapsed. Only, I sort of am, but not in my heart. Besides, Catholics are like everyone—some are prudes, some are perverts. Most are in the middle, like my mom. I always thought she was a good Catholic, but she’s the one who wanted me on birth control. And she’s known all along that we were sleeping together.”