Page 70 of More Than Words
Delaney and I exchanged a glance, both of us smiling.
Damn.
I couldn’t even say that I’d missed the kind of easy comfort of a Sunday morning in the kitchen because I didn’t think I’d ever had it.
Everything about having Delaney in the house felt easy, like we’d been doing it forever already.Like everything was already in place.
I slid the eggs from a pan into the bowl and handed them to Delaney before plating the bacon and joining them at the table.
“This is…”
“Nice,” I finished for Quinn with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah.”She shrugged.“I mean, I was gonna say cool.But I guess nice is a perfectlyokayword, too.”
Delaney laughed and reached for a piece of toast.“I agree,” she said.“It’s very cool.”She winked at me.“And pretty nice, too.”
Over the breakfast table, conversation flowed effortlessly.Quinn filled us in on some of the latest gossip among the sixth-grade class before moving into negotiations on how early wastooearly for a Christmas tree.
“Not until December.”
“No fair.”Quinn scowled.
“You can enjoy all of Delaney’s decorations for another month,” I told her.“But no tree until atleastDecember first around here.”
Delaney and Quinn exchanged a glance.I got the distinct feeling that the conversation wasn’t over, and I’d probably be on the losing end of whatever the two of them decided.
When we were done eating, I pushed my plate back.“You’re going to be on your own for dinner tomorrow night, kiddo.I have the community meeting.”I looked at Delaney.“I guesswehave it.”
“Not me.”She shook her head.“I need to run out to the city and see what happened with my last holiday inventory order that was delayed.The shipping hub called and told me they received it, but the paperwork is all messed up.I need to go sort it out in person if I want my full stock in time for the holidays.”
“That’s a pain.”
“You’re telling me.”Delaney grabbed the plates and took them to the sink.
“Can I come?I doubt my homework will be?—”
“No,” we both said at the same time.I shook my head and added, “Homework comes first.You know that.”
“Besides,” Delaney added.“The meetings are usually pretty boring.You’re not missing much.Budget talks and maybe one or two proposal permits.Tilley Beckett will no doubt have some sort of update on whatever festival is coming up next, but…” She shrugged.“Pretty dull.”
“Sounds like it.”Quinn pushed away from the table and helped Delaney clean up.“But I was asking if I could come to the city.”
“No deal, kiddo,” I said smoothly.“You have to go to school.”I exchanged smiles with Delaney.“If it’s not too much trouble, though…”
She tilted her head.“What?You have errands you need me to run?”
It was pretty common when someone was making the trek to the city for them to pick up a few things for friends.
“I actually have some label samples from a new supplier that I’d love to grab.They were going to throw them in the mail, but?—”
“No problem.Send me the address and I’ll save you the postage.But it’ll cost you.”She winked, Quinn groaned again, and we all laughed.
I thought briefly about the patio proposal I’d submitted.And for a moment, I considered mentioning it to Delaney.It was on the docket for tomorrow night, but I doubted it would get much discussion.A few tables weren’t going to cause much controversy.Not when there were festivals to plan.It’s not like it was a big deal.
Delaney glanced over at me again, and I smiled without thinking.She smiled back and just like that, nothing else mattered.Especially not boring town meetings or permits.The only thing on my mind was Delaney and Quinn and how somehow, when I wasn’t looking for it, the start of something real between all three of us had started to grow.
Something that was starting to feel more and more like a family.
