Page 95 of Taming the CEO

"Don't bother, Gran," Nick said jovially. "I can go."

"Young man, I am not that old. I can walk around my own house."

He held his hands up. "Damn, you're testy. I would have thought that Cami being here would soften you up."

Jeannie shook her head before walking out of the room at a brisk pace.

Once she left, Nick asked, "Anyone know why she's so cranky?"

"I heard that," Jeannie's voice resounded from the hallway.

"Crap," Nick said in a lower voice.

"I think she's just annoyed with Grandfather's friend," Cade said. Or was it Spencer? Oh yeah, it was Spencer, because he was the one with the toddler. He looked adorable on his dad's arm. And his eyes were fixed on me.

"Well," I said, rolling my shoulders, "let's make sure we keep her entertained. I can already tell that I'm the major distraction for the day."

Maddox stared at me, clearly stunned. "You catch on very fast."

"That's why we sort of encouraged this meeting," Gabe said.

Maddox turned to him. "That’s your excuse? You encouraged it? You ran your mouth, didn't you?"

"Obviously, man. I'm not even sure how I do that. But when I talk to Gran, one thing leads to another, and before I know it—"

"He tells her anything that's on his mind," Colton added, and everyone started to laugh.

Meredith and Natalie kept looking at each other, clearly having a silent conversation.

God, I loved being here with this group. Since I didn't have any siblings, I didn't know what it was like to have such a bond with anyone besides my dad.

I considered Miriam my sister, but I wouldn't mind if I was closer to these women. They seemed amazing.

As Jeannie came back, the guys attempted to tone down the laughter. An elderly gentleman followed her and came straight to me.

"Cami, I’m Abe Whitley."

"Nice to meet you," I replied as he shook my hand.

"All right, now that we’re all here, let’s set the table," Jeannie said.

A flurry of activity followed her words. We all went to the kitchen, bringing plates as well as a ton of food.

And here I thought we were just coming by for coffee.

“Thank you for coming early and helping me set all this up,” Jeannie told Colton, Zoey, Jake, and Natalie. Cade and Meredith also nodded at her.

“No problem,” Zoey said. “Our pleasure.”

"What's that?" Maddox asked once Jeannie went back to the kitchen.

Meredith smiled. "Remember how your gran hated all our ideas to help her out? Catering? Ordering takeout?”

Maddox nodded before glancing at me. "We were trying to protect Gran from herself. She likes to cook food for a hundred people whenever we come over, and it’s really too much for her."

"She made all this?" I pointed at the table.

"That's where we came in," Natalie said.

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