The Best Man Plan - Jaci Burton Page 0,62
Remind me to steer clear of you when you have a knife in your hand.”
He kissed the side of her neck, lingering for a few seconds, which was long enough to banish those non-wedding demons.
She turned to face him. “And how about you? Got that fish ready to fry?”
“Like the master fryer I am.”
“Good to know.”
Summer handed him a tray. “Here. Take these snacks outside, master fryer.”
“Will do.”
He took the tray from Summer, laid his beer on it, then leaned over and brushed his lips across Erin’s. “Later, master potato-salad maker.”
She rolled her eyes and laughed. “Get out.”
After he left, she checked on the potatoes. They were boiling, so she’d have to keep a close eye to make sure they didn’t overcook.
“Jason’s got it bad for you, Erin.”
Erin looked over at Daria. “We’re just good friends.”
“Honey, there’s way more than friendship going on.”
“Agree,” Summer said, pouring more wine into her glass. “I can practically see hearts floating out of his eyes when he looks at you.”
“Oh, stop. You cannot.”
“There are three looks a man gives a woman,” Daria said. “Friendship, lust and love. Trust me, he’s looking at you with his love eyes.”
Erin shifted her gaze to Summer, who nodded and said, “It’s definitely love.”
She shook her head, needing to deny what they thought they saw. “He doesn’t love me. We’re having fun. And sex. And nothing more.”
Summer tilted her head. “Is that all you feel for him? Just friendship?”
“I . . . I don’t know. A few weeks ago I was supposed to get married.”
Daria blinked. “Wait. What? You were getting married?”
“What happened?” Summer asked.
“It’s kind of a long story.”
“And we’ve got several bottles of wine,” Daria said. “Plus tequila and vodka. Pull up a chair here, honey. I’m ready to hear that story.”
“Okay, but let me take care of these potatoes first.”
After Erin drained the potatoes and set them out to cool, she poured herself a glass of wine and spilled the details of Owen breaking up with her, and then her decision to have a revenge fling with Jason at her non-wedding that had somehow turned into weeks of fun and games.
“Maybe you think you’re just having some fun and sex with Jason,” Daria said. “But I see something a lot deeper in how he looks at you.”
“I agree,” Summer said. “It’s in every move he makes with you. The way he talks to you and touches you.”
She didn’t see it. She knew they were all friends with Jason, so maybe they were just being overprotective. She’d made it clear to Jason that she wasn’t looking for a relationship. She needed to protect her heart. But she also needed to protect his. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt him.
Maybe it was time to gently back away from this relationship, to cool things down a bit before it got completely out of control.
She had to think, and she couldn’t do it here with this crazy party atmosphere, so she let it go for now, instead diving into the fun, letting herself go with the flow of fun people, great food and a really good night.
They prepped the food, the guys cooked, they had dinner and it was all fantastic. Then they sat outside on the deck and watched the sun set, and just hung out and talked and listened to some amazing music.
And when they said their good nights, she hugged Summer and Daria with the promise they’d get together soon, because she really liked her new friends and wanted to stay in touch.
“Come see me at the vineyard,” she said. “We’ll do a wine tour.”
“I want to come to a wedding,” Daria said. “As you can probably imagine, I’m kind of obsessed with weddings right now.”
Erin laughed. “I’ll see what I can do about sneaking you into one.”
“You’re the best.”
They packed up their stuff and climbed into Jason’s truck, then headed back to town.
She yawned.
“Tired?” he asked.
“Very. It was a long day.”
“Want to come home with me and snuggle? Or something else?”
She wanted that very much, but then she remembered the conversation she’d had with Summer and Daria, and her plan for a cooling-off period. “I think I’ll just go home.”
He waited a beat before answering. “Sure.”
He was probably disappointed that she didn’t want to spend the night with him. To be honest, so was she. She liked being alone with him. She liked having sex with him. The first thought that popped into her head was climbing into the shower with him, and