Page 43 of Lucky in Love
Brody nodded. “Sounds fun.”
It was nice to be included, and even nicer that it didn’t feel like a courtesy invite.
As they chatted, Brody stole glances at Alex. Not that he was going to fall in love with her or anything. But the romance writers had a point about her being independent and smart and beautiful. If he hadn’t sworn off women and wasn’t here solely to get his life together, she’d be exactly the type of woman he’d go for.
But he had, and he was, so that was that.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Monday afternoon, Alex ran into Brody at the office. He was lurking on the front porch, stealing the Wi-Fi. Since he was more resident than guest now, she didn’t harass him about it.
“It’s safe to be out, right?” he asked.
She knew immediately what he meant. “Yes, they’re gone. Last one checked out this morning.”
“They had loads of nerve, didn’t they?” Brody said. “Trying to pry out all of our deep, dark secrets?”
“They were very tenacious, yes,” Alex agreed. “This week’s guests should be better behaved. There’s a big family reunion this weekend, and several of the families are coming early. Later today, in fact. They’ll probably spend a lot of time in the rec cabin. Just FYI.”
“Sounds good. I’ve got work to do anyway. And I’ll be gone for the weekend.”
She didn’t really care what he did with his time, but supposed he was just being polite, telling her his plans.
The families who came for the reunion collectively brought a slew of children, which gave the place new life. Alex didn’t have to worry about feeding Daisy. Every time she went to do so, she found a gaggle of kids already there, throwing breadcrumbs and trying to coax her out of her little house to play.
Brody kept to himself, presumably writing—or moping—and Alex didn’t see him again until Friday morning. She was walking to the parking lot from the dock when an ancient blue pickupstopped in her path. It took her a second to register who sat behind the wheel.
“Hey,” Brody greeted. “No boot. Your ankle feeling better?”
“Yeah,” Alex said. “Still got a little hitch in my giddy-up, but I’m tired of that stupid thing.”
“It’s only been two weeks. I thought the doctor said it would take you a month to heal.”
“What can I say?” She shrugged. “I’m an overachiever. Whose truck is this?”
“Mine now,” Brody said. “I bought it yesterday from a guy I met at The Tool Shed. For a thousand bucks. Can you believe that deal? He even followed me to the rental place to turn in my car.”
“Wow. That’s some commitment. You really are here for a while then, huh?”
“At least through the end of the year. I’ll reevaluate after that.”
“Nice beard,” she said. It wasn’t as full as when she’d first met him, but probably a week’s worth of growth.
“Tess suggested it.” He stroked his chin. “Said it might help keep me warm this weekend.”
“That where you’re headed now?”
“Yep. Wish me luck.”
“Whatever you do, don’t cry,” Alex warned. “You’ll never live it down. And Tess won’t go easy on you just because you know her.”
“I’ll do my best.”
The next day, she was about to head out to Faith’s to watch Maddie’s show when there was a knock at her door.
Thinking Juliet had assumed she needed a ride, Alex yelled at her to come in.
Only when the door opened, it wasn’t Juliet. And Alex immediately wished she could claw back the hearty welcome. Dang it. She finally gets rid of the pain in her foot, and a pain in the ass shows up on her doorstep.
