After the Climb (River Rain #1) - Kristen Ashley Page 0,80
sister.
Chloe looked her up and down as she did and said, “My God, please let me style you. This Free People stint is lasting too long and it…is…agony.”
“Shut up,” Sasha replied, wrapping her sis in a big hug.
Chloe hugged her back, hard, and long.
“Have you talked to Dad?” Chloe whispered.
“Yeah,” Sasha whispered back. “You?”
“Yeah.”
“He okay with you?”
“He’s pissed but hanging in there. You?”
“Same.”
“You know, you’re both insanely hot, but that’s not the only reason we can all hear you,” Gage shared.
The girls broke apart and they both looked to Gage.
But unsurprisingly, it was Chloe who spoke.
“Of course, you’re Bowie’s so you’re impeccable.”
“I’m what?” Gage asked.
“Impeccable. Flawless. Perfect. Sinfully handsome. A heartbreaker. Obviously, I’m going to have to get you in hand.”
Harvey grunted in amusement.
Beth swallowed a giggle.
Heddy snorted.
Gage looked to his father, and he proved his instincts were sharp, because he didn’t hide the fear.
“Honey,” Duncan started while pushing out of our chair, “how ’bout I make you a martini and you sit and chill out and not terrorize my sons?”
At that, she turned her attention to Sully and said, “I haven’t even fully taken you in yet. Good God, your father’s genes are practically criminal. You’re veritably illegal.”
“Could say the same about you,” Sul replied, strolling in to resume his lounge on the floor.
“Touché,” Chloe murmured, lips quirking.
“Pretty sure Judge feels the same way,” Harv chimed in.
Oh no.
Chloe’s gaze snapped to Harvey.
But Gage got there first. “Judge?”
Harv jerked his head at Chloe. “Him and this gal practically shouted the shoe and boot display down at the store. Got that on camera. We’ve all watched it about a hundred times. And it’s got no sound, it’s still awesome.”
“Her and Judge?” Sully asked, not hiding his shock.
“He’s vermin,” Chloe sniffed, picking her way through dogs and people to my chair so she could perch on the arm.
Killer came with her and perched on my lap.
“I so totally see him and you hooking up. I mean, Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock were a thing, weren’t they?” Gage asked.
“Dude, you’re so right,” Sul agreed.
“He does not look like Ryan Reynolds,” Chloe stated, though she did not deny she bore resemblance to Sandra Bullock.
Gage ignored her. “And they say opposites attract. Right?”
“Oh my God, she’s gonna send Judge around the bend. And he needs it. He just snaps,” Sully snapped his fingers, “and the babes come running.”
“Ma mère bien-aimée, make them cease speaking,” Chloe demanded.
“Darling, Momma’s had a bad day. Fight your own battles,” I begged.
“Who is this Judge?” Sasha asked, excited, as ever, that her sister had a crush, and all that excitement centered around having fodder to give her sister stick about said crush.
“You are not to go anywhere near him,” Chloe said quickly, then added as cover, “As I said, he’s vermin.”
“Don’t worry,” Sully put in smoothly. “She’s gorgeous, but she’s not his type. I think his last girlfriend did the weather or something. I don’t remember. But she was on TV down in Phoenix. He goes for those swanky types.” Pause, and then with faultless timing, “Like you.”
Dear Lord.
Duncan was handing Chloe a martini.
Then he shoved in again beside me (and Killer).
Whereupon I whispered, “You didn’t mention that part.”
“Sorry, baby, don’t keep track of Judge’s love life. I didn’t know that part. All I’ve seen is women throwin’ themselves at him, not the ones he’s caught. The boys, though, are tight with him. When they’re not in school, they’re both team leaders for Kids and Trails.”
“Hmm,” I hummed.
He grinned.
“No reply, Coco?” Sasha teased.
“I’m ignoring anyone who didn’t bring me a martini, which means the only person in this room is Bowie,” Chloe replied.
Sasha giggled.
Sully and Gage grinned at each other.
“I’ll bring your next one, gal, ’cause you’re a goddamned hoot and I wanna know you,” Harvey said.
“All right, I’m not ignoring you either,” Chloe allowed.
Harvey boomed with laughter.
“This is why I don’t care,” Duncan said in my ear.
I turned to him, and due to all the goings-on in that room, did it smiling.
“Sorry, honey?”
“This,” he tipped his head to the room, “is why all that shit doesn’t matter. Because we have this. In some form, we’ll always have this. And your ex, he also has this, and when you guys sort shit out, he’ll have this with us. So all that other, Genny, it doesn’t matter.”
He was very right.
I told him that by touching my mouth to his.
He got my message, if the sweet, warm look in his eyes I saw when I pulled away was any indication.