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My baby sister grins, and she pulls me into a fierce hug. “I love you, big sister. Thank you for being with me every step of the way.” She pulls back and shifts her purse up higher on her shoulder. “I want this for you, Court. I want you to know what it’s like to be this in love.”
“I’m not some old spinster. There’s still time. I’m not going to be a single cat lady yet,” I tease.
“Stop.” She chuckles. “Be safe. I’ll see you later at Mom and Dad’s.”
“You too. Love you.”
“Love you!” she calls out, moving toward her car.
I do the same and rush to roll down the windows and blast the air conditioning. I should have started the car to let it cool down while we were chatting. Once the cool air starts to circulate, I roll up my windows and call Merrick via my Bluetooth as I pull out of the lot.
“Hey,” he answers. “How was the dress fitting?”
“She’s beautiful.” My baby sister is going to be a beautiful bride.
“If she’s anything like her older sister, she is. Are you done?”
His words wrap themselves around my heart and tug at the strings. Does he even realize how sweet he is? How do his words make me feel as though I’m precious to him? I’m sure he doesn’t, which is why I need to keep reminding myself this is all for show, and Merrick is just one of those guys who can easily dish out compliments. It’s part of his charisma. “We are. We just had lunch.”
“I just got back too. I went over to Rushton’s. He got Caden a Power Wheels truck, and I had to be there to see him drive it. That kid is a trip. He’s fearless. We had to stop him from hitting several trees and the swing set.” He snickers. “Crosby made burgers on the grill.”
“Are you going fishing tonight?” I ask him.
“Nah, the twins got shots yesterday and they’ve been fussy. Ramsey is taking Ada for the night, and Leo has an ear infection.”
“That’s terrible. I feel bad for them. Is there anything that I can do?”
“Nah, we’re all set. They’re getting loved on as they should be. Are you free tonight?” he asks.
“Well, about that. My mom invited us to their place for s’mores. It’s something we used to do a lot as kids, and she was feeling nostalgic today. Chloe and I told her we’d be there. You’re welcome, of course, but I told her you had plans, so you have an easy out.”
“You’re going to be there.”
“I am,” I confirm. I’m not sure what he’s saying because I just told him I was going.
“If that’s where you’re going to be, then I’m there. I mean, unless you don’t want me to go.”
“No.” I rush to assure him. “I want you to come, but it’s my parents, and I know you didn’t sign up for all of this, and I wanted you to know that they think you have plans, so you’re off the hook.”
“First of all, we said we’d hang out, something we’ve been doing a lot of since the very beginning, and I’m not mad about it. Second, we started this to convince your family to give you a break. Third, I don’t feel obligated to spend time with you, Courtney. There is a lot that happened between us, and that wasn’t how either of us saw this playing out, but I’m not mad about that either.”
He’s right. I’m letting old insecurities that still linger cloud my judgment. It might also be a little bit about my heart. The more he’s immersed in my world with my family, the harder it’s going to hit me and hurt my fragile heart when this ends, but I push all of that to the back of my mind for now.
“Merrick, would you like to head to my parents’ later this evening for a bonfire and s’mores?”
“Tell me what time to pick you up?”
“I’m free the rest of the day. We’ll probably get to my parents’ place around seven or so. I know my mom, and she’ll be planning dinner as well.”
“That’s like five whole hours from now.”
I glance at the clock and see that it’s a few minutes before two in the afternoon. “We can go later if we need to.”
“Come to my place now. We can chill until it’s time to leave.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask him if he’s sure, but that’s the old self-conscious Courtney. I know he wants me there, or he wouldn’t have asked. “I’m on my way.” I hit my signal to turn left for his place instead of right for mine.
“Be safe, babe. I’ll see you soon.” The line goes dead, and I don’t dare allow myself to glance in the rearview mirror to see the smile I know is on my face. I refuse to acknowledge that something deeper is happening between us. It’s the only armor I have to protect my heart, because even though I’ve never felt it at this level before, I’m certain I’m falling in love with Merrick Kincaid.
