Page 70 of Chase Lovett Wants Me

In the lobby, we pick up Gage and his family.

Barbie and Annabelle almost lose their minds when they realize Tristan Stiles is with us. He signs a few hats and shirtswhile Rix acts like his tiny bodyguard. Brody and Nate look bored.

Essie keeps stealing peeks in Nate’s direction.

Cammie slides her arm through mine. When I look down at her, she crooks her finger and I bend until my ear is at her lips. “Have you noticed howhugeTristan’s hands are?”

I glance in his direction. Until now, I hadn’t noticed. But now that she’s pointed them out… “They’re like baseball mitts.”

“Right? Like dinner plates even.” Her nose wrinkles. “Also, my sister is being weird, but we can talk about that later.” She squeezes my arm. “Your parents are cute.”

I smile down at her. “Your parents are also cute.”

“My mom approves,” Cammie assures me.

Rix and Essie step in and move our group along so we’re not stuck here until tomorrow afternoon.

I kiss Cammie on the cheek and join my parents in their car.

Fingers crossed lunch with the parents isn’t an embarrassment fest.

CHAPTER 26

CAMMIE

Ifigured my parents would meet Chase and his parents for like, five minutes, and then we would go out for lunch and they would ask me questions about them, and then Essie would make me go shopping and try to persuade me to add pastels to my wardrobe.

I did not expect to end up in a private room at some fancy restaurant—which I am sorely underdressed for—with our parents congregated at one end of the table and all the university students and siblings at the other. I ordered a ginger ale because I don’t think caffeine is a good idea when I’ve already sweat through my underpants thanks to the anxiety of all these freaking people.

“I’m going to grab another plate,” Tristan says for the third time. “You want anything else, Bea?”

“I’m good for now, thanks, babe.” She smiles up at him.

He does this thing with his enormous mitt of a hand that sort of makes it look like he’s holding her throat, but then he brushes his nose over hers. She sighs. I look away, because I feel like I’m an interloper on a private moment even though we’re in a restaurant.

Essie pulls her lip gloss out for the seven hundredth time in two hours.

During brunch there has been a lot of talk about Tristan and Rix’s upcoming wedding, hockey (this is not a surprise), and how we’re enjoying university. I mostly listen, fascinated by how obviously obsessed Tristan is with Rix. He’s always touching her. And the diamond on her finger is enormous. Just like Tristan’s hands. I’m also fascinated by Brody’s middle brother. He’s quiet, and broody, and ridiculously attractive. But the number of times I’ve seen him blush in the past two hours is a record breaker. I can’t wait to talk about this with Chase. When our parents go back to their hotel rooms tonight.

Tristan drops back in his chair with a heaping plate of food. “Look, Bea, they have cucumber salad.” He’s the only person who seems to call her this. Maybe it’s his little term of endearment.

Rix props her chin on her fingers and smiles at him. “You’ll have to tell me if the dressing is as good as mine.”

Essie’s fork clatters to her plate. Her eyes go wide and she slaps her chest. Her mouth opens and closes like a fish out of water.

“Ess? Are you okay?” I push my chair back.

She grabs at her throat.

“Oh my God!” Rix shoves her chair back. “She’s choking!”

Tristan and Nate both push their chairs back at the same time and rise. But Nate bolts around the table and shoves his older brother out of the way. “I got you.” He picks my sister up like she weighs nothing, turns her away from the table, and performs the Heimlich maneuver while Essie claws at her throat.

Everyone is freaking out.

A maraschino cherry shoots across the room and rolls behind a plant.

Essie sucks in gasping breaths. Nate sets her down and turns her around, his hands on her shoulders. And then he’s cuppingher face. I swear they have a moment. And then Essie bursts out laughing. It quickly dissolves into tears.

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