Chapter 55
FIFTY-FIVE
olivia
“I’m questioning my sanity as we speak.”
Sophie rolled her eyes. “Every year you complain about this party, yet you still send out the invitations. I know you, my friend. You fucking love this.”
“I love being able to do this for Cooper. But man, I could do without Maddy and the Vipers.”
“They come to every party—”
“Because they hope I fail.”
The doorbell rang—the caterers had arrived. “You finish getting dressed; I know the drill.”
I smiled at her appreciatively. “Reason number 9602 that you’re my best friend.”
“What time are the boys getting home?”
My stomach flipped at the thought of seeing Nate again. “They land at 3:00 pm. I’m hopeful they’ll be here within the hour.”
“You’re blushing.”
“I’m flushed from stress.” I lied.
“You still can’t handle talking about your feelings…”
“Going to put on my makeup—”
Sophie’s laughter continued to ring out as I headed to my bedroom to finish my hair and makeup. While I normally wore the skimpiest suit possible when I was alone in my backyard, I had a modest one-piece with a matching skirt that I bought for this party.
Nate: Boarded and headed back to you.
Me: Fly safe. I wish I could fast-forward to the end of the day.
Nate:
I debated straightening my hair, but settled on wearing it up—there was nothing worse than spending hours on your hair only to have a quick dip in the pool wipe that away.
I’m sure the Vipers would wear their skimpy suits, not because they planned to swim, but because they wanted to be admired.
Come on, ladies, this is a family pool party—not reality TV.
We finished setting up barely in time before the first guests arrived.
“Damn, wish we’d had time to pre-game,” Sophie said under her breath. “Are you going to let Nate drink tonight?”
Of course, she asked that right as Maddy arrived with her boys and her sister in tow. “Watch your back, Soph. I owe you a swim.”
Her evil cackle was meant as a challenge—and I was good at holding a grudge.
Maddy introduced me to her sister. “Olivia, meet Mackenzie.” Mackenzie had barely reached out to shake my hand when Maddy continued. “Are the guys here?”
Mackenzie stared at her sister in wide-eyed disbelief.
“Not yet. They’ll be back soon. They played last night.” I seethed inside, not because Maddy said or did anything yet, but because Mackenzie was gorgeous. And she was Nate’s age.
“Go on in and make yourself at home. Drinks and appetizers are out. If you can’t find something you like, let me know.”
Go on, get out of my way, please.
“Oh, you know me, I’m easy to please—”
I bit back a laugh. I’d been at a team dinner with her once, and I’m surprised someone from the kitchen didn’t spit in our food. She found a way to be a pain in the ass everywhere she went.
Mackenzie rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you’re super low maintenance—right?”
If her sole purpose at this party wasn’t to steal my man, I might actually like the woman. Maddy followed the line to the drinks, and Mackenzie headed off to where her nephews were playing instead. Interesting.
If there was one reason to be thankful for all the work I did for this party, it was that I had everything done beforehand—no running around during the party. The kids were having a blast; the lifeguards were on duty, and the moms were getting wine drunk.
Last year, the party continued well into the night. God, I hoped it would be over before midnight this year. I was desperate to hold Nate. Ha! Hold him—against me. I almost giggled out loud at the ridiculous pun. Ohp, maybe I should slow down on the wine.
There was a bit of a stir when Nate and Austin arrived, and I was thankful that it took some attention away from Lindy’s arrival.
Man, that woman had struggled to hold her head high in this town.
It had taken a lot to convince her to come to this party.
The gossiping queens in town had loved tearing her apart, but as I reminded her, she had to get back to work.
Her podcast put her in the public eye, and that meant she had to handle everything out in the open.
And she was doing a decent job of it. I mean, how many of us could watch their world crumble, all while having people cheering on the sidelines for your pain?
But Lindy needed to provide for her daughters because, with this incident, her husband’s contract was in question.
She hadn’t wavered on the divorce, but there might be less in the pot than expected when they split their assets.
Trying to pretend as though Nate’s presence hadn’t set every nerve in my body on fire became more of a struggle with the wine I’d already consumed. When he sidled up next to me, I pretended I hadn’t noticed him and stared out at the party, not making eye contact as we spoke.
“I missed you.” He spoke low, and I almost missed what he’d said.
“In about five minutes, I’m going to accidentally spill this wine on my suit. When I go to my room to change, will you be waiting for me?”
Nate’s eyes darted to me, and then to the crowd of people in my backyard. “I’ll find a way.”
“I won’t need foreplay. So do what you need to get yourself ready before I arrive.”