Page 76 of Hollywood Comes Home

He laughed then furrowed his brow, reaching into his pocket, taking out his phone. “Ian.”

Hey.

Yeah, at the park with Amber. What’s up?

Okay.

Mmhmm.

Okay, we’ll nap and then be over later.

He hung up, putting his phone away as we stood.

“What’s going on? You look concerned.”

“They want us to come over for dinner and swimming later.”

Folding my arms over my chest, I chewed the inside of my bottom lip. “That’s weird. He knows I have to work tonight.”

Shaking his head, he pulled me in for a side hug, kissing the top of my head as we strolled toward his house. “According to him, you’re taking the night off.”

15

THE AGREEMENT

AMBER

The Knight’s mansion was perfect for any occasion. The smell of grilled food, fresh cut grass, and music from the backyard welcomed us as we got out of the car. Entering the home through the front door, we were greeted by Mac weaving between our legs, meowing for attention.

After bending down to give him a scratch on the head, we made our way to the backyard where our friends and their kids were. Strands of multi-color Edison bulbs hung across the yard, draped from the trees; though it wasn’t dark enough for them to have their full effect on the warm evening.

Ian and Tyler stood by the grill, sipping beers while Ian flipped burgers and hot dogs. Luke took turns tossing the older kids into the pool from the diving board. Joyous laughter filled the air as Dylan squealed, watching with Jenna, Jade, and Mila in the shallow end.

“Hey, hey,” Tyler greeted us as we stepped onto the patio, handing Chance a beer.

“Hi,” we replied together.

Without turning his back, Ian lifted the grill tongs with a hot dog pinned between them. “Hi, I’d show you where everything is, but you can get it yourself. You’re not guests.”

Chance tugged me against him, kissing the top of my head. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to sayhito them.” He lifted his chin toward the pool.

Luke stepped off the diving board, laughing as Jade’s daughter hit the water with a large, painful belly flop. “Maddie! Are you okay?”

She came up to the surface, her drenched long blonde hair glued to her head. “Ouch! That felt like a thousand million trillion bee stings!”

Jade swam over to her, helping her to the wall. “Why don’t you get out and rest?”

“No way! I want to do that again!”

Madison climbed the pool wall. Luke reached over, pulling her out by the arms and standing her next to the edge. She reached up to him, and he immediately picked her up, tossing her back into the water.

It never ceased to amaze me when I saw Ian or Luke being fatherly and interacting with kids the way they did. It was something I never expected to see. Then again, before Jenna and I became friends, I never saw them as anything other than my superiors at work and they were frightening. Amused at the fun everyone was having, I kicked off my sandals and perched on the side of the shallow end, lowering my legs into the water. Jenna winced, holding her stomach.

“Jen?” I hopped in the pool, not bothering to remove my clothes.

“Oh, crap.” She squeezed my arm, panting.

“Oh, no!” I gasped. “Ian!”

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