“Still nauseous?”
She nodded, facing away from me in her float.
Discreetly, I pushed her farther from the shore where the kids were playing and kicked my feet underwater.
“I know what you’re trying to do,” she said softly, still not looking at me.
I stayed silent, playing dumb.
“It’s not going to work.”
When we were on the far side of the boat, away from Celine and the kids, I spun her so she was facing me. “I’m just enjoying a beautiful day with some lovely company.”
“Your niece seems to adore you. Is it true you go to every one of her soccer games?”
“She’s a goalie. Super talented,” I boasted. “The best part, though, is watching all the moms lose their minds around Finn. I love to tease him about it.”
“Huh,” she said, her tone mostly nonchalant. “I’d expect the soccer moms to be flirting with you.”
“Me? Nah. Finn is the hot brother.”
“I disagree,” she said, running her fingers over the surface of the water. “You’ve done a hell of a lot of growing up since we were kids. Have you spent the last two years mixing testosterone with your morning protein shakes?”
My chest puffed with pride. I liked where this was going. Really liked it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said with a smirk.
She scowled, obviously annoyed at me for playing dumb. “You know you’ve got that sexy lumberjack charm. You look like you could climb a tree and rescue a litter of kittens while simultaneously building a house and delivering multiple orgasms with a single wink of those ocean-blue eyes.”
“Why, Dragonfly, are you flirting with me? And for the record, I can do all those things and more. Come over later, and I’ll show you.”
She slid her sunglasses down her nose and glared at me. “No, thank you.”
“Like you should talk. You’ve only gotten sexier in the past twenty years. You in that bathing suit right now?” I said, putting a hand to my heart. “Makes it hard to breathe.”
She dipped her head back and laughed. “Hardly. I used to be so cute. Now I’m just pear shaped.”
I paddled closer, my noodle hooked under my arms, and angled in close to her. “Pears are my favorite fruit. So sweet on the tongue. The best part is when the pear is so juicy a little bit dribbles down my chin.”
A blush bloomed on her cheeks and traveled down to her chest. Her mouth opened a tiny bit, and a small gasp escaped her.
Hell yeah. I felt like I’d won the lottery.
She was thinking about it, our night together. Thank fuck, because I hadn’t been able to get it out of my head.
She narrowed her eyes, even as her chest rose and fell rapidly. “You need to stop flirting with me. I mean it.”
“Okay,” I said, arching a brow. “I’ll behave. But in exchange, you have to let me take you out this week.”
“Like a date?” She said the word like it was infected.
“No. No dates. You said that yourself. I just want to show you something special. Can you clear a day for me?”
For a long moment, she was silent, making me sweat it out. With her hands in the water again, she paddled away from me, toward the kids near the beach.
“Fine,” she huffed. “But you have to be on your best behavior.”
Chapter 21Chloe
When I agreed to let Gus take me out, I had no idea his plan would involve a plane.
But when I arrived at the address he’d texted, along with a large backpack Karl had packed for me and insisted I not open, I found a yellow float plane tied up at a massive dock. He and Gus had established some kind of understanding, and I disliked it immensely. I was beginning to feel like Karl was trying to throw me in his path.
Gus stood on the dock with Finn. Although Finn was a little taller and had lighter, longer hair, they had the same blue eyes and similar sharp, rugged features.
“Good to see you, Chloe,” Finn said, his tone friendly and warm.
His brother, on the other hand, was frozen in place, staring at me. And, dammit, was he wearing aviator sunglasses? Asshole. He had to know that aviators instantly raised a man’s hot factor.
“This is my baby,” Finn said, holding an arm out toward the plane. “Well, one of my babies. I put the pontoons on for the summer season.”
I hefted the backpack over my shoulder. What the hell was in here? Bricks?
“Looks great,” I said. I was going for friendly, but the pregnancy nausea made it impossible not to cringe as I spoke. I’d already had eggs, toast, and an apple with peanut butter. Thankfully, I’d stashed a few granola bars in my car. So far, the only thing that helped the nausea was eating.
Gus motioned me over with a wave of one arm. “I can see your house from here.”
