Page 83 of The Backup Bride Proposal

“I might be in love with you.”

“Don’t make me fight you, girl,” Tess said, squinting. “I might be older, but I can still kick butt.”

Mae laughed. “I believe you. I’ll be sure to maintain my distance, then.”

Donna sat back and took a sip of her iced tea. “Oh, I don’t know. Been a while since I had two women fighting over me. I’m kind of enjoying this.”

Tess rolled her eyes and Kane smirked.

Kane’s grandpa cleared his throat. “Yeah, well, while you’re enjoying the attention, why don’t you serve up that peach cobbler.”

Donna arched a brow. “Patience, old man. And while I’m getting dessert ready you can all clear the table.”

It was obvious who was in charge of the kitchen, because everyone got up and took their dishes into the kitchen, then put leftovers away while Donna served up the cobbler, along with oh, sweet lord, vanilla ice cream.

Mae got her scoops of both and sat at the table, resisting the urge to shove her entire face into the cobbler and ice cream. Instead, she took small, petite bites, enjoying the delicious melty peach and vanilla flavor on her tongue. She couldn’t resist the moan that escaped her throat.

Kane leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Fan of cobbler, huh?”

She nodded. “And ice cream. I really like ice cream.”

“Hmm.” He straightened, then gave her a hot smile. “Noted.”

She wanted to inquire about that smile he’d given her, but the table was filled with people. Instead, she looked over at Donna and said, “This cobbler is amazing. And the ice cream? Oh my God.”

Donna grinned. “Thanks. I’m kind of a fan of ice cream myself. I even make it in the winter, though Grandpa and I are the only ones who like it. Tess is more of a hot chocolate girl.”

“Yeah, ice cream is a summer thing only for me,” Tess said.

“Not summer now,” Kane said. “And you’re having ice cream.”

Tess shrugged, licking ice cream off her spoon. “It was warm today.”

“Hey, it’s always a good time for anything Donna makes for dessert,” Grandpa said. “Marrying Donna was the best thing Tess ever did.”

“Damn straight,” Tess said.

After dessert, they cleared the plates and put away the cobbler and ice cream. Once again, Donna kicked them out of the kitchen. Everyone else moved into the living room with their drinks. Mae pulled up a spot on the sofa and Kane snuggled in right next to her, his hand on her leg. She liked that he didn’t seem concerned about showing affection in front of his family. In fact, when Donna came back in, she took a spot on the other sofa next to Tess, rubbing her neck as they all carried on conversations.

“When is James coming in?” Donna asked.

“Tomorrow afternoon,” Tess said.

Kane’s hand gripped her leg tighter. Mae put her hand over his, and when he looked at her, she gave him an encouraging smile.

He was worried about his dad. Or maybe worried about talking to him about what was going on. She couldn’t blame him.

After a short while everyone headed to bed. Once upstairs, Mae took off her boots and wriggled her toes, stretching her calves, then lay back on the bed, utterly exhausted from the day’s work.

Kane climbed on the bed and loomed above her. “I promised you a massage.”

She reached up and swept her fingers over his jaw, loving the feel of a day’s growth of beard on his face. “So you did.”

“Let’s get you undressed.” He popped open the button of her jeans, then drew the zipper down, drawing them down her legs. He pulled her socks off and she sat up, removing her top and bra, then rolled over onto her stomach.

Kane took a few minutes to undress, then climbed onto the bed, straddling her, his fingers lightly sliding upward along her spine, making goose bumps pop up.

“Time to relax, Mae,” he said, his voice low and sensual as he moved his hands slowly over her back, then added some pressure.

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