"You just said she likes him."
"But she's not ready to admit it. And until she is, she'll play hard to get."
"That's stupid. They're old. They don't have time to play hard to get."
"That's just her generation. They take things slow. Actually, women of all generations play hard to get."
"You didn't." He nudges my side as he turns the faucet off. "You practically threw yourself at me."
I huff. "I did not!"
"Really?" He smirks. "All those times your hand brushed against me in the garage? Or when I was explaining stuff about the car and you'd come stand beside me, getting really close, pretending you were just trying to see the engine?"
"I WAS trying to see it. I was trying to see what you were talking about."
"And trying to see if I'd kiss you." He walks back to the coffeemaker.
I watch him pour the water in, my hands on my hips. "I was NOT trying to get you to kiss me."
"Liar." He pushes the start button on the coffeemaker.
"Are you saying you didn't want to kiss me?"
He strolls over to me with that undeniably sexy grin of his. "I wanted to kiss you the moment I laid eyes on you."
"But you wouldn't let yourself."
"Nope."
"But then you did, making up some lame excuse about how I needed to be kissed."
"You did." He stands in front of me and I wait for him to kiss me but he doesn't.
"Aren't you going to kiss me?"
"Not now."
"Why not?"
He leans down and talks in my ear, "Because I'm still recovering from the kiss we just had."
I glance down and see the bulge in the front of his black dress pants.
"If I kiss you again," he says in a whisper that sends a tingle through me. "We're going to have to go upstairs and take care of this before lunch."
I smile. "Okay."
He stands up straight. "Meaning we're going upstairs?"
"No!" I laugh. "Meaning we won't kiss." I motion to his pants. "Calm that thing down, then go tell our grandparents it's time for lunch."
I go to the cupboard and pull out some plates.
"It could be awhile," I hear Tyler say.
"What do you mean?"
"Your ass looks really good in that dress."
Turning around, I see him staring at me with a hot hungry look that makes me feel those tingles again. I'm wearing a red knit dress that clings to my butt and hips and hits a few inches above my knees. Grams would say it's too sexy for Sunday lunch but I love this dress. It's easy to move in and if I spill on it, it's easy to wash. Plus, I knew Tyler would like it.
"And your legs?? he continues. "You sure you don't want to go upstairs quick?"
"Later." I smile at him. "Or maybe we'll meet outside again tonight." I wave him away. "Go tell them it's time to eat."
He goes out to the living room while I finish setting up.
The dining room is just off the kitchen. The table is old with scratches so I covered it with a tablecloth. I put flowers from Walter's garden in a vase to serve as a centerpiece.
"This looks lovely," Grams says as she walks over to the table.
"Nice flowers," Walter kids. He didn't know I took him.
"I hope you don't mind. I needed a centerpiece."
"Faith Elizabeth," Grams scolds. "Don't tell me you took those without asking."
"I thought Walter might be taking a nap. I didn't want to knock on his door and disturb him."
"Don't be silly," Walter says. "You're welcome in my gardens anytime. You never have to ask. Feel free to help yourself. I'd rather have someone enjoy the flowers than have them just die out there." He pulls a chair out and motions Grams to sit down. "Cora?"
She takes a seat and he pushes her chair in.
"Where would you like me to sit?" he asks.
"Over there," I say, pointing to the seat across from Grams.
She looks at me, annoyed. I pretend not to notice.
"Tyler, you sit next to Walter," I say as I hurry to the kitchen to get the food. In addition to the egg casserole and muffins, I made a fruit salad. It's nothing fancy but this brunch isn't about the food.
When we're seated and eating our meal, I ask Grams about church but she doesn't say much. She's usually more talkative. If it were just her and me, she'd be telling me all the town gossip she got from the church ladies but today she skips the gossip and says something about the sermon and