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She looked at him and went back to wiping chalk off the menu-board. How long had she been standing here?
“What?”
“Baby girl.” He paused, raising his brow. So dramatic. “I don’t know where you been the last ten minutes, but I wanna go there too.” He nodded for emphasis.
Katie laughed and picked up a piece of chalk.
“You’re blushing.” He pinched her cheek. “So I know where your mind was. You seeing that helluva fine man of yours today?”
Katie smiled. “Yeah. He should be here pretty soon.”
The sound of a throat clearing caused them both to turn around.
“Wow. Replaced me already? Or did you know I was standing here?” Cameron winked. “Hey, babe.”
Shit!
He stood at the counter with a couple of his teammates. And a couple cheerleaders. They looked like cheerleaders anyway. Cameron didn’t seem to be attached to either of them. He looked sad even through his smile. His dimples hardly showed.
Leo sauntered over to them and took their order while Katie readied the cups to prepare it. Why did she still feel bad about ending things with him? Now more than ever she knew that her decision was the right one, but she still felt like shit that she hurt him. Overhearing her and Leo, especially when they were trying to remain friends, was like pouring salt on the wound and that made her feel even worse.
“Stop it,” he said. She glanced up to find Cameron leaning against the counter, watching her steam milk for their lattes. “You have this look on your face like you just kicked a puppy.”
“I’m sorry, Cam. I…”
“It’s okay, babe. We’re still friends.”
She glanced up.
Double shit.
“Katie’s coming, isn’t she?”
Chloe stood at the island, mixing something in a bowl, baby Chandan attached to her with some kind of contraption. It couldn’t be very comfortable. He looked like he was about to cry.
“Yeah, I’m going to get her in a little bit.” Brendan plucked the baby out of the thing.
Everyone was coming over to Chloe, Jesse, and Taylor’s place today for a football Sunday potluck. Brendan was going to pick Katelyn up from work and bring her to the house first so they could whip up Italian meatball sliders as their contribution. That was another thing he loved about Sundays now. Having Katelyn in the kitchen with him. Cooking together. Sharing stories.
“I meant for Thanksgiving, Bren.”
Oh.
It’s not that he didn’t want to spend the holiday with her. He did. Brendan wanted to spend every minute of every day with her. But he couldn’t invite Katelyn without Kelly, and he didn’t think Kelly approved of their relationship very much. If it were anyone else, he wouldn’t give a shit what they thought. But Katelyn loved her aunt, so the woman’s opinion, and her approval, mattered to him.
“What do you think, Chandan?” The baby grinned up at him, displaying two bottom teeth, drool dribbling down his chin. “I’m not sure what her plans are, but I’ll ask her.”
“Yay!” Chloe clapped her hands together. “I love the holidays. We have to figure out who’s hosting this year.”
“I will,” he volunteered. “Me and Katelyn.”
Why not?
He was closing the club for the holiday weekend and Katelyn would be on break from school. They’d have all that time to spend together. In the kitchen. And perhaps other places. Besides, Linnea hosted the previous year. His house was first and going forward they could just go in a circle around Park Place.
Brendan liked an order to things.
And that meant next year Thanksgiving would be here at Chloe’s. He chuckled to himself. It would be another three before they had to worry about getting food poisoning from Sloan.
