Page 157 of Pucking Tangled
Mia coughed and kept her eyes firmly on the floor.
“Plenty of room,” Owen said smoothly. “Very…accommodating.”
Celia handed him a spatula. “Good. Casey and Waylon, set the table. Mia, honey, want tea or coffee?”
“Coffee, please,” Mia said gratefully, taking the mug Celia poured for her. Waylon brushed past her but not before he bumped her hip with his, then dropped a quick kiss to her cheek.
After everything they’d discovered the night before, she’d wondered if the glow might fade. If someone might pull away, retreat into themselves with uncertainty or second thoughts.
But no.
They werestill here.Just as present. Just as soft. Just ashers.
She looked around the kitchen as the guys moved like a well-oiled machine—Waylon scrambling eggs, Owen stacking pancakes, Casey stealing bites of bacon while Luca fished the syrup out from the fridge. It felt so natural. Soundeniably them.
Celia passed her a plate and winked. “Are they always this helpful at home?”
Mia laughed. “No, there’s usually wrestling involved.”
“Boys will be boys,” Celia said, shaking her head, her expression fond.
Dean chuckled quietly from his corner. “More like wolves. Always circling.”
“I heard that,” Waylon called.
They settled in around the kitchen table, plates piled high, juice glasses clinking as the morning sun poured through the windows. Casey draped himself halfway over Owen’s shoulder, stealing bites from his plate. Luca sat beside Mia, knee brushing hers under the table. Waylon, directly across from her, kept giving her slow, lazy smirks every time she caught his eye.
“It sounds like you really enjoyed the cabin. What did you say the name of that Airbnb was again in case I want to recommend it to my friends?”
Mia’s hand that was holding her fork paused mid-air. She glanced at the guys, who had all suddenly become very focused on their food. “Uhm. Luca?”
His face turned bright red. “The Fox Den,” he whispered.
That was all it took for Waylon to lose it. He started laughing so hard that tears eventually rolled down his cheeks. Owen and Casey both bit their lips, tryingnot tolaugh.
“Oh, for Christ’s sake. Luca Dean Blackford. You did not,” his father coughed. “Isn’t that one of thoseadultcabins?”
“I didn’t know!” Luca defended himself.
“It promised a hot tub with vineyard views,”Waylon said in a mocking tone of voice, still somehow laughing as he spoke.
Mia glanced Celia’s way to find the older woman watching them with a puzzled expression on her face, like she was trying to piece together what was so funny. Mia could tell the moment she caught on because her jaw dropped. “Oh. My,” she giggled. “Dean, thatispart of thatsexresort they just opened isn’t it?”
Casey’s whole body shook with amusement. “Sure is, Celia.”
“Is it nice?” Celia asked, glancing at her son, her expression turning gleeful. “Your father and I were thinking about maybe booking an overnight stay there. You know, to keep the spark alive. And support a local business.”
Luca’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Mom!”
“We might be old, but we’re not dead,” Dean added, clearly entertained by his son’s situation.
“Yep. This is way worse than realizing the kind of cabin I booked.” Luca looked up at the ceiling and dragged his hands over his face.
Conversation drifted back to lighter…less sexual things—each person’s favorite breakfast food, Luca’s embarrassing teenage band, the vineyard tour they had planned for later that day.
Mia laughed until her stomach hurt as they told jokes and carried on like they’d known Luca’s parents their whole lives.
When breakfast was done, Celia ushered Dean outside to help unload some garden supplies. Casey, Owen, and Waylon immediately followed to help, leaving Mia alone with Luca, washing the dishes.
