“Promise?” I murmur in a low voice so no one can hear.
“Absolutely.”
“Good. I’m going to hold you to it. Because I love you. Forever and a day.”
She kisses me sweetly before pulling back and scanning over the ridiculous amount of food she and my sister had busied themselves preparing the past few days. Turkey. Baked ham. Cornbread dressing. Mashed potatoes. Buttermilk biscuits. Sautéed green beans with mushrooms. Fried okra. Sweet potato casserole. Deviled eggs. Homemade cranberry sauce. Macaroni and cheese, which Julia claimed she made for Imogene. But I notice her steal a healthy portion of it.
“I have to say,” Julia begins once everyone has filled every inch of their plates with food. “That may be your best toast yet, dear brother. You should have saved it for the masquerade ball on New Year’s Eve. Your midnight toast there is always epic.”
I feel Londyn tense beside me, and I give her a smile that’s a mixture of reassuring and apologetic.
“True.” I push my food around my plate, not looking directly at Julia. “But I won’t be attending this year.”
She scrunches her brow, taken aback by this news. “Why not?”
I’d intended to wait until after the holiday to share this with her and ask her to fill in for me, considering she’s on the board of my Homes for the Homeless charity. We’ve both been so busy — her with an offer to expand her bakery chain to the West Coast, as well as preparing for Thanksgiving, and me with breaking ground on a new hotel in Miami the firm is overseeing — I haven’t had time to bring it up.
I reach beside me, squeezing Londyn’s thigh, wordlessly telling her it’s okay. “The last thing I want to do is spend my first New Year’s Eve with Londyn at a masquerade ball.”
“You didn’t mind taking Brooklyn,” she reminds me. “Hell, we even moved it up to Boston that year.”
“This year’s different,” I respond firmly, hoping she picks up on my tone. But thanks to all the wine she drank while cooking today, she doesn’t, turning her attention to Londyn.
“You’d love it. And when I say that, I don’t do so lightly. I usually avoid these kinds of things like the plague. But the New Year’s Eve Masquerade Ball is the one social function I actually look forward to attending. Not to mention it’s a huge money-maker for the charity. We easily get over half our yearly donations at it.”
“That’s true. But like I said, I won’t be attending this year. I’m sure you’ll be a much more charming host than I’ve been anyway. With you being the Master of Ceremonies, I think we’ll raise even more money, since you’re much prettier to look at than I am.”
“Well, I certainly can’t argue with that.” She shrugs, then focuses her attention on Diego.
“So, Londyn tells me you’re a firefighter.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he responds in a thick New York accent. “In Atlanta.”
“Fascinating,” she exhales, no longer concerned about the masquerade ball.
But I can tell Londyn is.
“Is it true?” Londyn asks later that night when I step out of the ensuite bathroom and walk toward the bed where she lies on her side.
“What? That I’m about to do very naughty things to you?” I crawl under the duvet, snaking an arm around her waist and tugging her close, peppering kisses along her jawline.
“No.” She swats at me, her giggles echoing in the stillness.
Imogene went to sleep hours ago, and I’m pretty sure Julia is passed out after all the wine she drank, leaving just Londyn and me.
“Well, yes. I am looking forward to all the naughty things you’re about to do, but that’s not what I mean.”
I slither down her body, easing her t-shirt up, revealing her torso. “Then what do you mean, honeybee?” I ask, circling my tongue around her belly button.
She moans, and I glance up, watching as her chest rises and falls in a quicker rhythm.
“I mean…” She licks her lips, seeming to struggle to form a sentence, especially when I lick a line down to the waist of her panties. “About New Year’s Eve. That it’s a big money-maker for your charity.”
I pause, not moving for several moments. Then I meet her eyes. “And if it is?”
“Wes…,” she sighs, her voice almost like a warning.
After I told Julia I wouldn’t be going, I’d hoped it would be the end of the discussion. I should have known Londyn would want to talk about it.