Page 48 of Never Kiss Your Brother's Best Friend

Peter and Linda were already here this morning, and they have come back again to help us clean up. “What’s up, Sterling?” Peter gives me a fist bump.

“Hey, just wrapping up here. What a day.” I point to the till.

“Nice, great work!"

Emma strolls over. How she still looks so good after baking in the sun all day I’ll never know, but she does. I won’t say anything though. No flirting. Ok, I’m gonna quickly whisper in Buddy’s ear to get it out of my system, but I’m definitely not telling her.

When she sees the cash box, she squeals and leaps into my arms, wrapping her legs around my waist. Ok, this is not fair.

“Sterling! Can you believe it?”

Uh, yeah, but which part? The copious amounts of money thing or the you’re wrapped around my body thing, which I thought we discussed was not an option.

I must have a shocked look on my face at her positioning; something signals her brain to disembark.

“Sorry,” she says sheepishly.

“Um, no problem, I didn’t mind actually.”

Her cheeks turn a shade of red I’ve never seen on someone before. Let’s call it tomato.

Mia and Zoe rush over after hearing Emma’s squeal just in time to see her climbing down from my body.

“Oh, that’s an interesting twist on a congratulatory hug,” Zoe lets slip.

Mia smacks her on the arm. “What? It is.”

Emma cheeks deepen in color, if that’s possible.

“I think this calls for a celebration,” Peter chimes in. “Sterling, what do you think of a little swim at your house? I’ll bring the cocktails. It feels like a margaritas all around type of night, am I right everyone?”

The girls cheer, except for Emma, who still looks like she wants to crawl in a hole.

“What do you think, Emma? Should we all go grab our suits?” Mia asks.

Emma looks at me, and I give her the universal ‘why not’ shrug, and she finally smiles.

“All right, let’s get this all cleaned up quickly then meet at my house around nine. I’ll grab a few appetizers on my way home to go with the drinks, and we’ll get this party going.”

I smile at Emma, then scoop up Buddy and take him to the car to wait for me.

***

Everyone shows up within a few minutes of each other, ready to celebrate. The girls arrive first and giggle their way to the back deck. Emma seems in better spirits; her friends always know how to get her in a good mood.

All three ladies immediately throw off their cover ups and head into the water, squealing the whole way. I am distracted by Emma—as any man would be—and her adorable polka dot bikini as I bring the appetizers outside.

But a knock and yell of “Hello” from inside catches my attention. “I’m out back,” I call to Peter and soon he and Linda come out, their hands full.

Pete’s got a blender and ice and Linda has the Margarita ingredients. I grab the limes from her, just as they are trying to get away, setting them down on the table.

When the drinks are ready, I call down to the girls and they wrap up in towels and join us on the deck. We all dig into the food.

We spend the next twenty minutes or so recapping the day for Peter and Linda. I thank Mia and Zoe for their help during the week. Mia’s baked goods were a hit, and the wedding cake vouchers were very popular, just like we thought they would be.

Then I tap my glass. “None of this would have been possible without Emma, though. It was her brainchild. And her organizational skills got the project off to the best start we could ask for, with even more to come.”

“Here, here!” everyone shouts.

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