Page 125 of Holding On To Good

“You’re not horrible, Aunt Vee,” Ian said.

“Oh?” she asked, eyebrows raised. “Just mean and ugly?”

He seemed to think that through. Took his time about it, which had Reed ducking his head to hide his grin.

“No,” the kid finally said. “You’re nice. And pretty.”

She rolled her eyes but Reed noticed her lips were twitching. “Thanks. And because I’m overwhelmed by your sincere flattery, you can get two scoops.”

Reed couldn’t stop himself from leaning over to her. “What do I get if I tell you I think you’re pretty, too?”

She went pink, from her chest to her cheeks, all rosy and glowing, and he wanted to press the tips of his fingers against her skin, feel the warmth of that blush. Wanted to lay his palm against the base of her throat where her pulse fluttered.

“You can have however many scoops you want,” she said, looking anywhere but at him. “No need to lie to get extra.”

Before he could decide whether telling her he wouldn’t be lying would be the smartest thing he’d ever done—or the dumbest—the lady asked them if they were ready to order.

Ian obediently tried the lemon ice cream then promptly ordered two scoops of cookie dough. Verity sampled the honey and lavender—which sounded like a bar of soap, not an ice cream flavor—then ordered a scoop of it with a scoop of vanilla in a cone.

Reed skipped the sample, got a scoop of cookies and cream in a bowl.

While the lady dished up their orders, the door opened and a familiar-looking guy came in looking like he’d just stepped off a sailboat with his windswept brown hair, white polo, slim, yellow shorts, and designer sunglasses. But just because Reed couldn’t see his eyes, didn’t mean he missed the way the guy’s gaze zeroed in on Verity.

Or the slow up and down check-out the bastard gave her.

“Hey, Vee,” the guy said with a blindingly white, toothy grin. “How’s it going?”

Verity smiled. “Brandon! I didn’t know you were home.”

Then she hugged the asshole.

Brandon may be an asshole, but he wasn’t an idiot. He hugged her back, his hands settling on Verity’s lower back, just above her ass. “I got in Sunday night.”

She leaned back but Brandon kept her in his hold.

She didn’t seem to mind.

“How’s GW?” she asked.

“Good. Busy, but good.”

“We’re ready,” the kid who’d been sitting in the booth said as he joined them, the two girls hanging back.

Brandon let go of Verity with one hand, but only long enough to dig a set of keys out of his pocket and toss them to the kid. “Wait in the car. I’ll be out in a minute.”

The kid took the keys then motioned for the girls to follow him.

“My little brother,” Brandon said to Verity, settling his hand right back above her ass. “I’ve got to get them home, but I’ll be at the lake tonight. Catch up then?”

“Your ice cream’s ready,” Ian said, balancing his cone in one hand, tugging on Reed’s shirt to get his attention with the other.

Making Reed miss Verity’s answer to Brandon the Asshole.

He turned and paid for their ice cream. While he was shoving two dollars of his change into the tip jar, someone out in the parking lot beeped a car horn twice. By the time Reed turned back around, Brandon was walking out the door.

And Verity was pulling cash out of her front pocket.

“I already got it,” Reed told her, holding her cone out.

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