Page 60 of Lee

“Well, come wash your hands, and we’ll put you to work,” Charli told her.

Once she’d washed up, Lee handed her a hand towel to dry her hands. Touching her back lightly, he guided her over to where pizza crusts were set out.

“We’re not doing fancy toppings,” Charli said. “Maybe in the future. But tonight, we’re sticking to the basics.”

Rori looked at the variety of toppings sitting on the counter and thought that her definition of basic clearly differed from Charli’s.

“Do you want to help me spread the sauce?” Lee asked. “The girls are in charge of the cheese.”

“Sure. Just tell me how much I need to put on.”

Lee’s arms brushed hers as he reached for a bowl that contained the sauce. Charli held out a couple of ladles, which Rori took from her. Rori gave one to Lee, then watched as he put a couple of spoonfuls on the pizza crust in front of him and then spread it around.

Rori was working on her first crust when Blake and Will came through the back door.

“I think the oven is hot enough,” Blake said. “Do we have a couple of pizzas ready to go in?”

“Just give us a couple of minutes,” Charli replied. “We’re working on them now.”

When Rori finished with the sauce on her pizza, she slid it to where Charli and the girls stood with the cheese. After they were done, Janessa added some pepperoni.

“There you go, love,” Janessa said as she turned to smile at Will. “Don’t burn them.”

“I make no promises,” Will told her as he took the pizza pan from her. “These first ones are an experiment.”

“Are we eating out there?” Blake asked as he took the second pizza from Janessa.

“I think it would be nice,” Charli said. “I’ll bring the plates and stuff out in a minute.”

They had just sent out the next two pizzas when more people arrived. Jay and Misha followed Peyton and Ciara into the kitchen, and Gareth and Aria weren’t far behind them with their son, Timothy.

Soon after, the two guys who’d been at the park with them showed up. Thankfully, the guys gravitated to the new pizza oven in the backyard, so the chaos in the kitchen didn’t increase too much.

Lee, however, stayed right at Rori’s side, even when Misha offered to take over so that he could hang out with the guys. After what had happened at the park, Rori hadn’t expected him to stick close to her, but she appreciated it. She was still getting used to being around this group of people.

With everyone pitched in, soon the whole gang was gathered around a large picnic table on the back deck. As they formed a circle, Lee came to stand next to her.

“Why don’t we hold hands as we say grace?” Gareth said as he reached out to Aria. She shifted Timothy so she could take her husband’s hand.

Rori wasn’t sure what to do, but when first Layla on her left, and then Lee on her right, held out their hands, she took them.

Even though there was no romantic purpose behind Lee holding her hand, butterflies still erupted in her stomach as she held it. She loved the strength in his grip, and what she loved even more was knowing that he would never use that strength against her.

His thumb brushed across the back of her hand as Gareth began to pray.

“Heavenly Father, thank you for bringing us together once again. I pray that you will bless those who aren’t here with us. Keep them safe in the palm of Your hand. Thank you for the food we’re about to eat and bless those who have prepared it for us. May our conversations bring honor and glory to You. In Jesus’ name.”

Everyone there chimed in with an amen.

Rori fought the urge to hang onto Lee’s hand even as everyone else let go. He gave her hand a squeeze, then his fingers slipped from hers as he turned to Janessa, who said something to him.

Clasping her hands together, Rori tried to keep hold of the warmth of Lee’s hand.

“Here you go, Rori,” Layla said as she held out a plate to her. “I can’t wait to try this pizza. Do you think it’ll be better than the restaurant stuff?”

“I think it will be. It looks and smells delicious.”

Layla nodded as they approached the pizzas that were all lined up on a table next to the pizza oven. Rori decided on a slice of cheese and a slice of pepperoni. After adding some salad to her plate, she looked around for a place to sit.

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