Page 88 of Treat

Neither did she. “Okay, but hurry up. I still have to wash my hair.”

“Here.” He grabbed the shampoo off the shelf and shoved it at her. “Multi-task.”

Ten minutes turned into twenty,even with the multi-tasking. Still, they managed to make it to Tuck and Esme’s house only thirty minutes behind schedule, a miracle that Brynn attributed to Jude’s ability to get her off quickly and her ability to do her makeup in a moving car.

Any nerves Brynn had about spending the holiday with Jude’s friends were immediately eased by Esme’s warm welcome and Tuck’s entirely inappropriate teasing about the reason they were late. As it turned out, they weren’t the only couple that showed up late, evidently for the same reasons, so there was plenty of teasing to go around.

She played with the puppy, a new addition to Tuck and Esme’s household, laughing when Tuck relayed the story of how, thanks to the dog, he’d ended up spending Thanksgiving morning in search of an emergency replacement turkey. It made her miss Tilly.

She chatted with Jude’s friends, all of whom had brought a date with them this year. She loved hearing how Spence and Maddie—who was technically his stepsister—had met, and though Spence pretended to be annoyed at the retelling, she could see the humor and affection in his dark eyes when he looked at Maddie.

Evan and Colin’s story was just as fascinating, their romance coming after a decade of friendship. She hadn’t known that last year’s orgy had been the catalyst for their relationship changing, and made a note to ask Jude more about that later.

They gathered around Tuck and Esme’s dining room table—with a card table added at the end to handle the overflow—and ate turkey and drank wine and laughed at the stories being thrown around. Tuck, Esme, Colin, Evan, and Spence had all known each other since college, with Jude joining the group only after he’d met Tuck and Esme at the swingers club. But they integrated Maddie and Brynn into the group without hesitation, and it felt as though they’d all known each other all along.

At the end of the meal, when everyone was pushed back from the table and groaning that they couldn’t possibly eat another bite, Tuck got to his feet and raised a glass. “I’d like to propose a toast.”

“Tuck, behave,” Esme warned from her seat beside him.

He patted her shoulder. “Relax, babe. I was just going to say that though this year’s Thanksgiving is much different than last year’s?—”

A chorus of groans, boos, and laughter erupted around the table, and Esme, blushing furiously, grabbed her fork from the table and tried to jab her husband in the thigh.

Laughing, Tuck managed to sidestep and avoid being stabbed. “I was just going to say that this Thanksgiving is better!”

“Sure you were,” Esme muttered and tried to stab him again, but he stepped out of reach. “Spence, smack him for me, will you?”

“Happy to,” Spence growled and reached out with one long arm to smack Tuck in the head.

“Last Thanksgiving was great,” Jude put in, and everyone turned to look at him. “One for the books. But I’ve got to agree with Tuck.”

He looked at Brynn, sitting next to him, and took her hand. “This one is better.”

“I’m with Jude and Tuck,” Colin chimed in, smiling at Evan.

“Same,” Spence rumbled, winking at Maddie across the table. Then he looked at Esme. “No offense.”

“None taken,” she said, beaming. “I think this year is better, too.”

“Well, nowI’moffended,” Evan complained, grinning.

“Oh, shut up.” Esme lifted her glass. “To this Thanksgiving.”

“And all the ones to come,” Jude murmured, lifting his glass.

“I’ll drink to that,” Tuck boomed.

And they all lived happily ever after.

The End