AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Mother, you know that pearl choker is meant for me,” Mom said sternly.
After CeCe died, she meant. Brenda hated that kind of comment.
“If you want it, you should try to fit one of everything in your mouth!” Granny began filling a plate with morsels from each platter.
“Stop that. Your pearl choker is a statement piece and it shouldn’t be used to encourage uncouth behavior.”
“Maybe the statement is that I enjoy uncouth behavior.” CeCe smiled, unrepentant.
Brenda risked a glance at Galen and noticed that he was sweating. He ran a finger under his cashmere neckline. Was his jaw looking more red than before? “Granny, give it a rest. Galen was just joking. This isn’t the hotdog eating contest at the SweetSummer.”
Seizing on the tangent, her mother asked about the SweetSummer Fest. Brenda explained the festival, and what a success it had been this past summer, even though a billionaire’s boat had caught on fire and Jason had swum to his rescue.
Mom wanted to know all about that, of course. Billionaires were among her favorite topics, along with new diet trends and which member of the club was moving on to his third wife.
At least her parents were still together. She deeply appreciated that, because dealing with them separately would be a nightmare. Not that she didn’t love them; of course she did. But her mother was a handful and her stepfather was always working, unless he was networking, unless he was golfing, which was also networking, or unless he was reading the news, which was also working since he was usually keeping up with industry news.
CeCe continued the story of the billionaire’s burning boat, and Brenda took the opportunity to take a deep breath and steal another look at Galen. He was already looking her way so intently that she dropped her pickle fork.
“Here.” He slid his pickle fork toward her. “It’s too small for me. It’s like trying to stab something with a pine needle.” He lowered his voice. “Why is it so freaking small? I feel like I’m Alice in the rabbit hole.”
He was so adorably nonplussed by everything on their table. She suddenly wanted to eat him up, starting with his newly exposed earlobes and heading down to his reddened jaw. “Galen, will you help me with something in the kitchen for a second?”
“What?” Her mother’s head turned on a swivel. “Help with what?”
“Oh Laney, calm down,” said CeCe. “It’s probably the cupcakes, they still need to be iced. Did I tell you the best part about the Caldwells? Brent and his son Tyler are coming back to Lake Bittersweet for Christmas. Apparently he has fond feelings for us now that we saved their lives.”
“We? Really, you were there?”
“We’re a community, Laney. That’s what a community does.”
Never so happy to leave her squabbling elders, Brenda dragged Galen into the kitchen. When they were well out of sight from any prying eyes, she pinned Galen to the front of the refrigerator with one hand, while the other gestured at his face. “When did this happen? Why? Why’d you do it?”
His lips quirked. Did they used to do that behind all that facial hair, and she’d just never seen it? “I did it yesterday. Sunny Lee cut it. I’ve been wanting to for a while, but I couldn’t make it happen. I guess I finally had the motivation.”
“Meaning, my mother?”
“You, your mother, dinner. Your grandmother’s prank.”
She stared at him, conflicting emotions crashing like waves caught in a crosscurrent. “You look great. Sunny did a good job. But I liked your old look.”
“It wasn’t a ‘look.’ It was just me.”
“Well, I liked ‘just you.’”
“I’m still me.” Suddenly he looked worried. “Are you saying you aren’t comfortable with me anymore? It’s just hair. It’ll grow back. I’ll grow it back.”
His eagerness made her soften. “Don’t be silly. You should do exactly what you want with your hair.”
“I’m still trying to decide what to do with it.”
She frowned at him. “What do you mean? Like, grow it out or keep it this way?”
“No, I mean my old hair. I have it in a grocery bag in the truck.”
That was so…so Galen.
He was right. He was still Galen. Galen to the core. Still the man who’d stolen his way into her heart with his realness, his uniqueness, his kindness, his strength. That hadn’t changed one bit, and she was so relieved she wanted to laugh. Or cry. Instead she pulled his head down and kissed him hard on the lips.
