Page 103 of Out of the Shadow

“King and I have finally settled on a location,” I explain.

King picks up the conversation. “Yeah. Your sister dragged me all over the Hamptons checking out every single town. I finally made her see reason.”

We share a special look. He can be pretty persuasive when he wants to be. “I thought we should get away from Aroostook and start in a new place. But King’s fallen in love with the town, so we’ve been looking at every listing that comes up in our budget.”

“And the budget has been another bone of contention. We’ve finally settled on five-hundred to seven hundred fifty thousand,” he chokes the range out.

I place my hand on his back and pat. “There, there. I did tell you we’d be able to get a nice little place of our own in that price range. And I was right.”

“We haven’t found a house yet.”

“I’m sure you’ll find something you both love,” Juliana declares. “I can’t wait to come out and help you decorate it, like I did when you opened your agency.”

“Thanks,” I respond. “It’s been a culture shock to King, who’s used to multi-million dollar places on the ocean.”

“Maybe not a culture shock. More like a minor earthquake. A tremor.” Everybody laughs.

“Although,” Juliana adds, “you might have to do the painting by yourself. I shouldn’t be around those fumes while I’m pregnant.”

“You’re what? Oh my gosh!” I jump out of my seat and hug my sister and her husband, as does the rest of the family. Another baby—I can’t wait! My eyes trail to King, who meets my eyes, and I know we’ll add a few more to the mix someday.

Once all the hoopla dies down, Mama stands. “All right, let’s get the table cleared off.” She assigns each of us different duties, except for Juliana, who is exempt for the next nine months. I pulled dish drier, while King gets to move the dirty dishes to the kitchen.

I head to the kitchen with Leo, who will be loading the dishwasher. “He’s a good guy.” His chin points to King.

My stomach flutters. “He is.”

Leo leans his head closer to mine and whispers, “I think Dante would approve.”

Instead of making me cry, like it would have a couple of months ago, his comment fills me with happiness. “I think so, too.” I wrap my hand around my left wrist, letting my thumb rub against the lines of the inked heart.

King heads into the kitchen with a stack of dishes, and gooses me on his way out. I spin around, but he’s already left. I spend the next half-hour drying dishes and plotting how I’ll get him back for that. Because I will.

When everything is in order, Leo heads into the family room to watch the game and I slip my hand into the crook of Juliana’s arm. She returns us to the empty dining room for some privacy. “I’m so happy for you.”

“Thanks. We’re excited.” She brings her head closer to mine. “You two are doing great, right?”

“We are,” I affirm. “We have fun together, you know? We walk on the beach at night and crash bonfires. We stroll through the shops in town to browse. And we like working together, too.” I sigh. “He’s damn near perfect.”

“I’m so happy I was right all along,” she says with a grin.

I stop short. “You were the one who told me to go for a no-strings relationship!”

She giggles. “Well, you certainly went for it. And I knew you couldn’t do it. I felt you two were meant to be, so I gave you a little push. Well, shove.”

“I can’t believe you! You tricked me!”

King strolls back into the dining room. “Tricked you into what?”

I spin on my heel. “Having sex with you!” My hand slaps over my wayward mouth. Thankfully, it’s only us three in here. Well, three and a half.

He shifts all of his attention to my sister. Under his stare, she turns a light shade of pink.

I think Juliana and I are both surprised when he swoops in to kiss her on her cheek. “I owe you. Whatever you need, I’m your man.”

Wide-eyed, she looks at me. “Damn, girl.”

We all laugh.

---