Page 19 of Curves and Cradles

“Kevin, this is my sister, Kathleen.”

He stands slightly to lean across the table and shake her hand, all smiles and gorgeousness.

“Where’s Michael?” I ask.

“Not here yet.”

“Yes!” I pump my fist. “I’m not the last one for once.”

Mom comes in and sits. She takes one look at me andtsks. “For heaven’s sake, Jane. You could have at least put on some makeup.”

“For our family grill out? Why?”

Mom’s eyes widen, and her gaze moves back and forth between Kevin and me. “You need some color, dear. You look tired.”

“Iamtired. I have a toddler and a full-time job, so yeah, pretty damn tired.”

Her mother’s lips pinch together before she speaks again. “Well, you could have at least put some lipstick on for your friend here.” She holds her hand out to Kevin, and they exchange names.

I roll my eyes. “This isn’t a date. He’s Stella’s dad.”

Fuckity fuck!The words fell out of my mouth without me even thinking about it. I hadn’t planned to tell them. At least not today.

“Holy shit, Jane! I know you said he was hot, but I thought, you know, like, hot... for you.”

“Thanks, Kathleen.” I hold up my hands. “Okay, I didn’t mean to out him quite like that, so let’s get this over with. Yes, Kevin is Stella’s dad. No, she doesn’t know yet, and we’re not going to talk about it today. He’s getting to know her, spending time with her, and sadly that means getting to know y’all, too. Be nice, don’t give him a hard time, and don’t ask too many questions. Got it?”

Kevin squeezes the back of my neck. “Relax, Janie. I’m fine.”

God, why do his hands have to feel so good on my skin? And why do my damn nipples react no matter where he touches me? It’s a Pavlovian response, nothing more. My body recognizes that he’s a sex unicorn and responds. I sigh.

“So, are y’all together now?” Kathleen asks.

“Working on it,” Kevin says at the same time I say, “No.” We exchange looks, and he winks at me.

“It’s complicated,” he says.

Kathleen smiles and nods. “Does he know what a hot mess you are yet?”

“Mess, I’m not so sure about, but she’s definitely hot,” Kevin says.

My cheeks flame.Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Don’t make eye contact.

“Cute. But that’s not what I meant,” Kathleen continues. “Jane, here, has always been an original. She used to wear two different-colored shoes to school.”

“They were both Chucks, and they matched the rest of my outfit,” I say. I know my sister means it all in good fun, but I’m tired of being the oddball—the awkward, weird one.

“Oh, or Halloween.” Kathleen grins broadly. “While all the other girls were dressing up like sexy kittens or unicorns, this one”—she points at me—“dressed up as something from that wizard book.”

“The Golden Snitch,” I provide.

“Yeah?” Kevin asks, his lips kicking up in a grin. “I love those books. Golden Snitch is pretty creative.”

“Another year, she was one of those troll guys with the hairy feet.” My sister is on a roll.

“Oh, yes. That Froggy character,” my mother says.

“Frodo,” I correct. “But I was actually Sam.”

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