into a large teacup and pointed at a dish of tea sachets. “All morning blends. If you can’t have caffeine, I suggest the one with the purple tag. It’s a decaf version of Dawn Thunder.”
The tea was perfect. So was a warm, fresh-from-the-oven cinnamon roll.
“What’s going on?” Summer asked when a delivery service trooped in carrying all sorts of stuff in boxes, bags, and coolers.
“Just getting ready for tonight.”
“What’s happening tonight?” She sipped her tea and absently followed along until Mrs. Estrada had an announcement she did not see coming.
“Are you serious?” Mrs. Estrada made an angry snort. “Why are men so clueless? At the very least, the guest of honor at a family celebration should get a heads-up. It was number three’s idea.”
Coughing when a sip went down the wrong pipe, Summer hastily wiped her mouth on a napkin and said, “Guest of honor?”
The poor housekeeper looked like she wanted to throttle someone, and Summer knew who the someone was.
She sniffed to express her displeasure, stood, threw her napkin down, and said, “Excuse me, Mrs. Estrada. I have to go kill somebody.”
The housekeeper’s amused laughter followed her as she stomped from the room.
Luckily, the baby was wide-awake and on Arnie’s shoulder when she marched into the den and lit into him.
“What is wrong with you?” she exclaimed. “What part of don’t leave me out of the loop don’t you understand?”
Arnie’s jaw dropped. “What?”
“Don’t play dumb,” she snapped. “Is there something you want to tell me about tonight?” She crossed her arms and glared at him.
“Oh. That.” He cringed in the face of her annoyed displeasure and asked her to sit down so he could explain.
“After seeing what you did to Giselle, it makes me nervous when you do your tough lady thing.”
Huffing, she sat down and arched a brow. “I’m waiting.”
“You’re not out of the loop. I just haven’t had a chance to explain yet. It’s just dinner. With family. My father and Stan are coming.”
Mrs. Estrada was right. Men were clueless. It wasn’t nine o’clock in the morning yet, so there was no way the housekeeper learned about the dinner, called around to order stuff, and then had it all delivered.
“When did you decide this?”
He tried to play it off, but she saw him grimace. “Last night.”
“And you couldn’t tell me this, why?”
The cheeky Adonis smirked. “Well, in my defense, I did try, but there was this sexy nymph with an unquenchable thirst for cock who …”
She smacked him on the arm. “Not in front of the baby.”
His grin made her panties melt. “What would you say if I asked you to ink my initials on your ass?”
“You mean like a mark of ownership?”
“Either my initials or trespassers will be shot.”
“Stop it,” she chided. “You’re changing the subject, and I’m still mad.”
Once again, he grinned. “Okay, so what’s the over under on how long I have to tell you something? Is it an hour? Same day? Is there a grace period?”
“Arnie,” she warned.
“Summer.” He chuckled.
Arrogant shithead. She sniffed. “I need a dress. Nothing I brought is suitable for a dinner.”
“In about an hour, a team of stylists and a selection of dresses will be arriving. Hair, makeup, wardrobe.”
Of course he had an answer for everything.
“This is me spoiling you because I can. Get used to it, sunshine girl, and don’t hold back. I see you, Summer. In here,” he told her with a hand on his chest above his heart. “You want this. You want me to take control. If I didn’t, you’d get bored with me in no time.”
He was right. The last thing she needed was a wishy-washy mate.
Things moved faster as the day wore on. Arnie kept a running checklist front and center in his brain so he didn’t forget anything.
With Summer enjoying a pre-event spa experience, he was on dad duty. He kept up a running dialogue with Ari, telling her what he was thinking and keeping her informed as his plan came together. She was a great sounding board and let him know when he became too excited or went too far.
By midafternoon, his dad arrived, and he’d heard from Dottie. There was a snafu with LAPD requiring King to call in some favors. Nothing for him to worry about, but it meant she was delayed in leaving Los Angeles and didn’t know if she’d make it in time for dinner.
He told her to charter a helicopter. She chuckled and informed him she already had but just wanted him to think it was