The Best Man Plan - Jaci Burton Page 0,41
not the time to argue with her sister, she went into her office to grab her purse, then stopped in the bathroom to check her face. She was dressed casual today, in capris and a button-down short-sleeve white cotton shirt, with her hair up in a messy bun. But she had makeup on, so she decided she didn’t need any fixing up.
Besides, it was just margaritas and dinner. She didn’t need much sprucing up for that anyway.
She walked outside and, true to his word, Jason was leaning against the side of his truck, one hand casually tucked in his front pocket, one leg hooked in front of the other, looking like a tree she wanted to climb.
She sighed in appreciation.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Definitely ready.”
They caught up on their weeks during dinner, Jason filling her in on his surgeries and some of the animals he’d seen, while Erin told him about some of the wedding swaps.
He took a bite of his food, then a swallow of beer. “Does that happen a lot?”
“No, fortunately. Most people stick to the dates they choose. This is kind of an anomaly.”
“You’ll make it work. If anyone can juggle weddings, you and your sisters can.”
“Thank you. I appreciate the vote of confidence.”
“You’ve always had good organizational skills. Remember when we built the fort out behind the vineyards?”
She laughed. “I haven’t thought about that in years. It was all of us girls, then you and Owen and Clay. How old were we then? About nine or ten?”
“I think so. And we spent weeks building that thing.”
“Yeah. And we borrowed—and I use the word ‘borrowed’ loosely—old pieces of wood from behind the barn.”
“The guys liberated tools from home, plus nails. We’d spend every day—”
“All day,” she added.
He laughed. “Yeah, all day working on it.”
“And Louise would bring lunch out to us, and we’d sit on the ground eating sandwiches and talk about how we were going to decorate on the inside.”
“No, you and Honor and Brenna would talk decorating. Clay and Owen and I would discuss various ways we’d defend it.”
“I beg to differ. I discussed having enough windows to overlook all defense points. Brenna was the one who wanted curtains.”
“Oh, right. And then Owen wanted to boot you off our team because you were a girl, and the two of you argued sexism for at least an hour.”
She grinned. “I believe I made my point clear. That was a fun day.”
His lips curved. “Not for Owen it wasn’t. If I remember right, as punishment, you made him go into the house with Honor to help her search for the plastic dishes and the curtains.”
“He was so miserable.”
“And you loved every minute of it.”
Thinking about Owen’s misery—even past misery—made her happy at the moment. “I did. I believe that was the day he became a feminist.”
Jason laughed. “He definitely believed in equal rights for women all his adult life. You obviously made him see the light.”
She leaned back in her chair and sipped her water. “See? If men and women could just build a fort in their backyards more often, there’d be less arguing over equal rights.”
“You think that’s the way to solve arguments?”
She shrugged. “It’s a start. Maybe a tree house could be the answer as well. Neutral ground, have a tea party.”
“Put up some curtains.”
“Develop common ground for enemy vantage points.”
He laughed. “I can see the benefits.”
“Defeating common enemies can bring about world peace. Or at least end an argument. Though nothing could beat our first fort.”
Jason nodded. “That one was the best.”
Erin could clearly visualize exactly what their fort had looked like—a serious disaster. But oh, how they’d loved the finished product. To their child imaginations, it was a castle. And they’d played in there the entire summer. Though they never had put drapes up in it. Their mother had balked when she’d found Brenna rooting through the linen closet, and had absolutely denied Brenna’s request for fort drapes.
Well, they couldn’t have everything. But they had managed to sneak out some rugs and pillows. And Louise always made them a big pitcher of lemonade, perfect for hot summer days.
“I guess I’ll have to build a fort or a tree house in my backyard. Next time you and I have a disagreement, we’ll take it to the fort.”
She looked up at him. “Or maybe we could keep our arguments to a minimum?”
“You’re ruining my fun, Erin. I was looking forward to building that tree house. You know I have that great big oak tree out back. It’s