Page 19 of Undeniable

Something in Adam’s face went tight and he quickly dropped his eyes, suddenly interested in what Teagan was doing.

“So what are your plans, Mad?” It was Steve again, asking me the question but watching Adam with interest.

“House hunting.” I grinned. For the first time in my life, I could actually put down roots.

“Here?” Kennedy asked, her eyes also drifting to Adam, and I looked over too, trying to figure out why they were suddenly so interested in him.

“Of course here,” I said. “Maybe find something little and cute, with some really poor acoustics.”

Steve looked confused and for the first time Adam smirked. “Yeah, earplugs don’t cut it in this house. I’ve spent a couple nights on the sofa.”

“I know, I wear them every night,” I said quickly and I watched the penny drop for Kennedy, her jaw dropping open as color crept up her cheeks.

“No…” She shook her head slowly.

“Yeah…” I grinned back at her. “There were a few things I didn’t want to know about you and my brother andthatwas definitely at the top of my list.”

Kennedy mumbled something from where she’d dropped her face into her hands, slowly shaking her head and for the first time in the weeks I’d had to listen to their sex noises, it was pretty damn funny.

When I finally stole a look at Steve he couldn’t meet my eyes, and Adam’s shoulders had begun to shake. Admirably, he seemed to keep the laughter on the inside, though he was shaking hard enough that it wiggled Teagan in his lap.

I wonder what sounds Adam makes.

Well, that was inappropriate. I sat up ramrod straight, my eyes wide. That thought had come out of nowhere and it was enough to start a brush fire in the pit of my belly, something that made me break out in a cold sweat as I looked across the table at the beautiful man holding my niece in his lap.

I want to trade spots with Teagan.

Holy shit, I really couldn’t get this runaway train under control, could I?

I pushed my chair back, the legs making an ungodly scraping noise against the floor as I jumped up and bolted across the kitchen to refill my water glass.

Kennedy caught my eye and though she kept the smirk off her face, I could tell she knewexactlywhat I was thinking. It was uncanny, the connection I had to this woman who wasn’t really my sister. She’d been able to see right through me since the first day Steve brought her home.

“Brace yourself.” Kennedy’s voice was low as I helped her rinse and load dishes into the dishwasher while Steve and Adam put Teagan in a little swing on the deck and sat out in the cool evening air. It was never this warm, this late into October and we were all soaking up every last morsel of summer before a brutal lake effect winter bowled us over.

“Brace myself?” I chuckled. “What, Kenny? You gonna tackle me? You looked like you were ready to wind up and throw me across the table into Adam’s lap.”

“Bitch, please.” Her tone was teasing. “Like you don’t want that.”

I blew out a big breath, because I had no response to that. She was right, after all. The unrequited crush I’d had on a boy all those years ago had come roaring back overnight for the man he was now.

“This is the last thing you’ll want to hear from me, but I’m warning you now…you’re in for it.”

I paused, water splashing off the plate I held in my hand and soaking the front of my shirt.

“Once you hit your forties, it’s like someone lights your ovaries on fire. I’m not going to say it means you’ll want to have kids, but it might turn you into a beast for a while.”

What in the hell was Kennedy trying to say? At least she had the good sense to look really uncomfortable.

“How long has it been, Mad?”

Oh, this was a question I didn’t like at all.

Too long.

“A while.” I leaned over the sink to gather the shirt in my hands, twist and squeeze.

“A while, meaning…months?”

---