Page 28 of Beautiful Envy

“I’m not as good of a cook as Grayson. It’s edible, though,” he replied, turning off the burner and opening a drawer.

“I’m sure you’re underselling yourself,” I said. “Breakfast was great.”

“Yeah, well, that’s a bit easier.”

“What else do we need?” I asked, looking around the kitchen. Grayson had set the table in the dining room. He shouted for Bubba, who walked in, stopping when he noticed it.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Eating dinner,” he said, widening his eyes. “Like grownups.”

I moved over to the glasses, smiling as I filled them with the tea sitting out. It was obvious they were doing this for me. It was too sweet to tell them they didn’t have to.

Carrying two glasses over, I sat them down before returning for the other two. When I returned, I noticed how they were all standing, looking at one another.

“Are we going to sit?” I asked, not understanding.

“You first,” Brooks said, eyeing the others.

Narrowing my eyes, I took a seat, the others following immediately. There was a little shoving as they claimed the chairs, and I smiled bigger. Having a few guys fight over who sat next to you never hurt a girl's ego.

Bubba ignored Brooks and Grayson, taking a seat at the head of the table. Eventually, Brooks landed next to me, making Grayson sit across.

“This is better anyway,” he said, picking up his fork. “I can stare at Darcie’s beautiful face all night.”

Grinning, I winked, thanking him for the compliment. Brooks grumbled something but picked up the food and served us. It was such an odd experience; I didn’t know how to feel.

It had been so long since I’d had a family dinner. The last one hadn’t gone as planned. Since then, it mainly had been me on my own, so I ate wherever I wanted.

“Thank you,” I said, scooping some food onto my fork.

Dinner was quiet; the guys were clearly not used to sitting altogether. I asked them questions about their day, joining in when I had a funny moment to share about Bubba. By the end, even Bubba was smiling and relaxed as they shared. It felt nice and something I’d miss.

“Thank you for dinner. I’m going to do some research for a bit. I’ll do the dishes or whatever my chore is after, if that’s okay.”

Bubba watched me, an emotion I didn’t know crossing his face. “Of course. Dishes would be helpful. Thank you, Darcie.”

Nodding, I left the table, placing my dish in the sink. As I walked by, I found them huddled together, gossiping like school girls. They stopped when I neared, so I waved, continuing down the hallway.

Part of me wanted to stop and eavesdrop, but the more pressing matter of finding Maddox weighed on me, pushing me down the hall.

Diary #9

Dear Maddox,

I had a moment today where I wasn’t thinking about you, and it scared me. I didn’t expect to like where I am so much. These guys are showing me things I didn’t think I could feel anymore.

If you were here, it might just be perfect.

That might sound weird, but it would. I know things with us have been broken for a while, but I never stopped loving you. I don’t think I know how.

I didn’t expect to ever like anyone else the way I did you, but I’m starting to.

These guys are different. They’re good people. I think you’d get along great with them, honestly.

I might be wishing for too much, but since this is my diary and you’ll never read it, I can.

I rode again today, and it was marvelous. I’m going to do it again. I need to. I think stopping was a mistake.

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