Chapter 19
Nineteen
River
“What?!” I practically yell, my eyes wide. “When did this happen?”
Aspen continues to assemble her vegetable tray while keeping her mouth shut .
. . something she doesn’t do often. She always has something to say, and usually, it comes out in the form of a smart comment.
She’s straddling the line between being friends with Hannah and being her boss.
Plus, the fact that her mom is dating Hannah’s dad. Something I know can’t be easy for her.
Hannah looks at Aspen then back at me. “The night of Aspen’s wedding.”
“Two months! You two have been sneaking around for two months and you didn’t say anything?”
She shrugs as tears well in her eyes. “It wouldn’t be sneaking around if I told you. God, I’m so stupid. I knew his reputation, and I had to go and tumble into bed with an asshole.”
“Don’t do that,” Aspen pipes up, shaking her head. “You’re far from stupid.”
Hannah covers her face. I move around the island, pull out a stool, and sit down, wrapping my arms around her. “I’m sorry . . . guys are such jerks.”
She nods and wipes her face with the back of her hand.
Aspen looks over at us, and I wonder what she makes of all this—her assistant, who also happens to be the coach’s daughter, getting involved with one of her players.
This is so messy. Hannah cries into my shoulder, and I feel so awful for her.
She has the kindest heart, and I hate seeing her so sad.
“You know what you need, babe?”
“Better taste in men?”
“Besides that. You just need a good ol’ ‘get ‘em out of your system’ dance sesh. Don’t you think, Aspen?”
She giggles. “Oh, definitely. I’m here for it!”
“What are you two taking about?”
I walk over to my tablet sitting on the counter and look for a song on my playlist.
“Momma taught me that music is good for the three H’s: hurting, hating, and healing,” Aspen says.
“Yeah. Whenever I’d go through a break-up, Aspen would make me dance it out. Didn’t solve my problems, but it always made me feel better.”
Aspen wipes her hands on a towel. “Believe me, she went through a lot of them. I eventually ran out of songs.”
“Hey! Watch it. High school was rough. Ooh, this one’s actually perfect.”
Aspen looks over my shoulder and laughs. “Yeah. That’s pretty fitting.”
I connect the Bluetooth and turn the music all the way up. “Truth Hurts” blares from the speakers, and Aspen and I belt out the first line. I crook a finger at Hannah, and she laughs through the tears as I encourage her to join in.
“Come on, Hannah Bobannah. Don’t be shy,” I call out to her over the music.
She giggles and shakes her head. Grabbing her hand, I pull her off the stool, making her dance with us around the kitchen. She picks up a wooden spoon, using it as a mic, one arm up in the air, while she dances and sings at the top of her lungs with us.
“Yes, get it!” I call out.
God, this feels so good. I haven’t done this in years. When the song stops, Hannah throws her arms around me. “Thank you. I needed that.”
Our moment is interrupted by a round of applause.
I jump, startled by it, and spin around.
Standing at the entry to our living room is none other than Sean, along with Carter, Cal, Aiden, and Tucker.
Carter, Cal, and Tucker laugh, while Sean has his hands in his pockets looking down at the floor.
And Aiden, well . . . that’s weird, his eyes are shooting daggers at Sean.
I narrow my eyes at Carter. “How long have y’all been standing there?”
“Uh . . .” He looks around at the guys. “Not long—”
“Since the intro,” Cal interjects, earning a glare from his own wife.
“Carter . . . sweetheart?” I begin to walk toward him, glancing around at our company. “Can we talk privately . . . please?”
Carter hands the groceries off to the guys. Grabbing my hand, he pulls me into his bedroom, and I close the door behind us.
Throwing my hands out at my side, I whisper yell, “What the fuck?”
“What do you mean, what the fuck?” he whispers back, eyes wide.
I begin to pace back and forth at the foot of his bed, wearing his dark gray rug smooth the hell out.
“You invited Sean after everything you told me? Seriously? You knew Hannah would be here!”
“How would I know that?”
My brows shoot up, and my hand flies toward the door. “Oh, I don’t know . . . maybe because it’s Friendsgiving and she’s one of my best friends!”
“And he’s one of my friends. All of his family lives in Nevada. He doesn't have anyone here.”
“Good fucking gravy, Carter.”
“Did . . . did you just say good gravy? Where in God’s name did you come from?”
I roll my eyes. We stare at each other a few beats.
Then, we both burst out laughing at the irony of this entire situation.
Running a hand through my hair, I groan. “This is gonna be a complete shit show.”
“Want me to pop the popcorn?”
I snort a laugh and sit down on the edge of the bed. Carter takes the spot next to me. I look around his room, nibbling on my bottom lip.
“Did she tell you anything?” he asks.
“She told me they’ve been hooking up since the wedding. Do you know how hard it was to act like I didn’t already know?” I run my fingers through my hair. “Maybe we should keep them away from each other. He’s really doing a number on her.”
“Baby, their shit is not our shit. Alright? We’ll go out there and be good hosts, but I’m not making special accommodations for anyone.”
“I don’t see what the big deal is. Just take the guys to the game room and play pool or something.”
He takes my hand in his, toying with my wedding ring.
“I don’t want to be on the other side of the house where you’re not. In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m kind of obsessed.”
“Ya big ol’ baby.” I laugh, bumping my shoulder against his arm, then without thinking, lean up and press my lips to his.
Carter hesitates, leaning back a fraction, a silent question in his expression.
His minty breath feathers across my lips as we stare at each other.
His eyes close, and his mouth parts on a sigh.
Pressing his forehead against mine, he guides my back to the mattress, and hovers over me, teasing and nipping at my lips.
His tongue peeks out, caressing mine, before he sucks my bottom lip into his mouth.
His kiss is slow and sensual, like our lips are caught up in a dance and he’s memorizing every movement.
Carter's mouth skims down my jaw and my neck, and I grind myself against his thigh.
He dusts a kiss over my lips and whispers, “Mine.”
“Ivan and Evie are here,” Aspen interrupts from behind the door.
He looks at the door, then back at me and groans. “What did I do in my past life to get punished in this one? Be there in a sec,” he calls out.
I giggle as he pushes up from the bed to stand. Reaching down, he grabs my hands, pulling me with him. The minute we walk out of his room, the smell of popcorn hits me in the face.
I chuckle to myself. Maybe someone had the same idea as Carter.
As we walk into the living room, our hands break apart.
Carter joins the rest of the guys, lounging around, watching football, and I saunter into the kitchen.
Aspen stands at the counter, placing foil over a casserole, and Evie holds Ivy at the table.
I wash my hands, then give Evie a hug before taking her sweet baby from her arms.
“Hi, sweet girl. Look at you getting so big.” I kiss her chubby cheeks and rub my hand over her pretty curls. “I could keep you here with me forever and ever.”
“Or you and Carter can have one of your own,” Evie sasses.
“Your mommy thinks she’s funny. I’ll just play with you. Yes, I will.” I coo at Ivy, pressing my forehead against hers, then turn to Aspen and ask, “Why does it smell like popcorn in here?”
She lifts a brow.
“What?” I ask, rocking Ivy in my arms, swaying side to side.
“You know those accidental calls you made to me over the past few weeks? Well, after you went to your room, you called Hannah.”
“What?”
“Don’t worry, she and Aiden went for a walk, and she left her phone here on the counter. You really need to fix whatever is wrong with that damn thing.”
Ivy shifts on my hip and begins fussing, so I hand her back to Evie and ask Aspen, “How much did you hear?”
“Carter’s popcorn is on the counter. I’m about to start on the good fucking gravy.”
“You smartass, eavesdropping, little hussy.”
She tilts her head back and laughs. “Fix your phone! Or better yet, buy a new one.”
Fine. Whatever.
Dinner wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be.
But as we all sit in the living room with the guys on one side, the women on the other, and a white board on an easel in front of us to play Pictionary, things begin to get a little tense, especially when it’s time for Aiden to draw and he turns to Sean.
“Mac, you should be able to get this one.”
I laugh, but Carter shoots me a look, shaking his head, and the laughter dies on my lips.
Aiden draws several stick figures on the whiteboard: some standing, some bent over. Then, of course because it’s fucking Aiden, he adds boobs. I look around the room as voices carry from all directions, yelling out things like: “orgy” and “doggie style.”
What the hell kind of Pictionary have we started playing here?
Aiden continues by drawing another stick figure, this one standing up-right, with a large and erect penis. He points to the man and then draws arrows to each of the women. Thankfully, the boys are upstairs playing pool.
“Come on Hannah,” Aiden says. “You should know this one too.”
“Ooh. Ooh. Ooh,” Hannah yells out. “Player.”
“Hell yes!” Aiden says, then strides over to Hannah, giving her a high five.
Oh. My. God. Well, this is awkward as fuck. “Hey, now. Let’s play a clean game,” Carter says, erasing the white board.
Aiden holds up his hands in surrender. “It was all in good fun.”
Needing an excuse to leave the room, I stand and make my way to the fridge. “Anyone else want a drink?”