Page 88 of Calamity Rayne Knocked Up

He met my stare, and we shared a smile, our expressions one of complete awe. “I love you,” he said leaning in for a kiss.

“I love you too.” I covered his mouth with my hand. “Did you smoke?”

“No.”

“Okay then. Kiss away!”

He gathered me in his arms and pressed his lips to mine. “Mmm.” He was such a good kisser. As soon as he let me go, I asked, “Is your father smoking?”

“We’re not doing this now, Rayne. It’s Thanksgiving. You’re off the clock.”

But Remington’s heart was on the clock. “Hale?—”

“No, Rayne.”

I huffed. “Fine. I’ll killhim tomorrow.”

“Come on.” He took my hand. “I’m taking you home to bed.”

“I need my coat.”

“I’ll get it. You warm up the car.” He handed me the keys and went to find our coats.

When I turned, the dark cherry of a cigar glowed on the other side of the window that framed the door. Xander watched form the shadows. How long had he been staring at us? He had to know I saw him.

Refusing to be intimidated, I walked back outside. “Goodnight, Xander.”

“Good night, Rayne. I’ll see you in the morning,” he said as if purposely ensuring I thought about him after this.

Blue Forty-Two! Rover Sit! Hut, Hut!

“Ithink we just walked onto the set of Downton Abby.”

My mother and I stopped several yards from the field where the men were warming up. “Who plays football in white?”

“Rich people.”

They looked like a bunch of ice cream cones. On the sidelines, lawn furniture had been set out. Not those collapsible stadium chairs soccer moms dragged to the edge of a field. These were natural wicker and teak pieces.

“I feel underdressed.”

I was still in my shopping clothes from that morning. My leggings were built for speed and thriftiness and my sweater was thefurthest thing from a fashion statement. Hale could have warned me this was a semi-formal affair. Everyone was dressed New England casual, which looked like they basically raided the set wardrobe ofSuccession.

“Rayne, there you are!” Seraphina called, holding a wide-brimmed hat on her head as she marched over to greet us in a flowy linen dress. “The game’s about to start.” She bent over the stroller and tickled Elara. “Hello, beautiful.”

My eyes searched for Hale. He paced what I assumed was a goal line as he strategized with several men about their plays. “How do they tell who’s on which team?”

“They wear designated sweater vests. You’ll see.”

Remington sat at a round table shaded by a canvas umbrella. A brunch buffet of refreshments and fruit sat beneath a canopy several feet away. Hugo operated an omelet station to its right. I was definitely getting an omelet.

“So I guess you guys don’t do soft pretzels and hot dogs.”

“No, but we have beer,” Phina joked, honestly believing those fancy German bottles represented some version of roughing it.

“Oh, a beer sounds nice,” my mom said, pushing the stroller toward the refreshments.

I sat beside Remington, offering a cold, “Good morning.”

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