Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 57866 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 231(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57866 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 231(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
A pretty woman with long, dark hair lunged toward me first.
“Hi, I’m Fiona. Should I take you directly to Beau’s embarrassing childhood photos or do you want to grab a drink first?”
She reminded me of Marlowe. I liked her immediately.
“Hey,” Beau said, waving. “Anyone planning to acknowledge me?”
A tall handsome man who looked a lot like Beau scoffed as he approached me. “We’ve been acknowledging you your entire life, you diva. We want to talk to Shelby. I’m Asher, by the way. Beau’s wiser older brother.”
It was a whirlwind of introductions. I met his younger siblings, Isaac and Genevieve, Fiona’s husband Adrian, Asher’s wife Claire and their children Anderson and Amara, his paternal grandma, Sophia, his Aunt Gabrielle and Uncle Steve, and finally, his dad, Henry.
“Do you work, Shelby?” Claire asked as I stood in the kitchen between her and her husband. “Or are you still in school?”
“I’m an attorney.”
Henry grinned, an older version of his son, and put a hand on my shoulder. “Finally, someone I can talk shop with. What sort of law do you practice?”
“I own my own legal research business.”
He nodded, looking impressed. “Do you specialize in anything, or just take the cases that interest you most?”
I shrugged. “A little of both, actually. I took a break from corporate bankruptcy because I like being able to stay awake until the end of the workday.”
He chuckled, his eyes sparkling as he looked at his wife. “I like her.”
“I think we all do,” Claire said. “We’re so glad you joined us, Shelby. I’m sorry I can’t spend more time getting to know you since I’m busy in the kitchen, but I hope we can sit down later and chat.”
She was so warm and welcoming. My instinct was to sit down, try to blend in, and say as little as possible, but Claire made me want to try something else.
“Can I help in the kitchen?” I asked her.
“She’s way better than the help you’re used to,” Beau said. “She made the most amazing homemade cinnamon rolls the other day.”
Fiona’s expression turned dreamy. “Oh my god, the baby has been craving cinnamon rolls. I’ll have to get the recipe from you.”
Isaac cringed. “Or not. Remember when you started an oven fire?”
She rolled her eyes. “Like any of you will ever let me forget it. That was more than a decade ago.”
Genevieve laughed. “Right, but wasn’t it…just last Thanksgiving when you made those god-awful mashed potatoes?”
Everyone groaned.
“They were like porridge,” Asher said. “Not even gravy could help.”
“You guys, how was I supposed to know you can only make mashed potatoes with certain kinds of potatoes? I thought a potato was a potato,” Fiona said, sitting down and opening a can of seltzer water.
“And that’s why we’re on a first-name basis with so many Uber Eats drivers,” Adrian said.
Beau, Asher, Genevieve, and Isaac ignored his comment. I got the impression it was okay with them that they make fun of their sister, but they didn’t think her husband should jump on the bandwagon.
“What can I help with?” I asked Claire.
“If you’re sure you want to help, I have ten pounds of potatoes that need to be peeled.”
“Sure, Beau and I will do that.”
Beau arched a brow at me, amused. “We will?”
“Yep.”
Isaac made a whip cracking sound and Beau gave him the finger. I passed Beau a knife and took another one from the block on the island for myself.
Potatoes were a safe bet. I’d noticed that smelling and looking at certain foods made me feel sick, sometimes to the point I didn’t even want to eat anymore.
“So Shelby, how did you and Beau meet?” Claire asked as she stirred something on the stove.
I met Beau’s gaze, wide-eyed. We should have gotten our story straight before this. I couldn’t exactly tell them about the binder and my efforts to help him jerk off into a cup.
“We met at Mountain Top after one of my games,” he said. “She saw me signing the tits of The Foxes and knew I was something special.”
“Oh, Beau,” his mom said disapprovingly. “You’re still doing that?”
He shrugged and grinned playfully. “They ask me to, Mom.”
“I recall teaching you the word no.”
“They’re all your age or older. I’m not getting my rocks off, trust me.”
Asher snorted from the living room, which was open to the kitchen. “I bet they are, though. Beau’s making their old lady bits tingly.”
“Boys,” Henry said, giving Asher a disapproving look over the rim of his dark-framed glasses. “Can we not be so lewd when we have company?”
“Daddy, what’s old lady bits?” Anderson asked Asher.
Asher looked at his wife, who shook her head and said, “Don’t look at me. That’s all you.”
“You’re not old enough for the answer to that question yet,” Asher said.
Isaac intervened. “You guys shouldn’t teach them that anything is too shameful to talk about.”