Caroline sputters, nearly choking on her coffee.
No matter how long she’s been part of my family, she still can’t seem to get over how open and honest we are. My moms have never been the type to shy away from talking about sex. They figured the more open they were, the more open I’d be, and the more I’d come to them with any questions or issues.
They were right.
“Don’t hide behind him now, Caroline,” Momma Kira teases. “Come say hi.”
Caroline comes around the bed, taking the spot next to me, setting her own cup of coffee down, and cozying up at my side until we’re both in the frame.
“Hey, Mommas,” she says, giving them a shy grin. “I’d say it’s nice to see you, but…”
They chuckle.
“So how long has this been going on?” Momma B asks, not wasting any time jumping to the twenty questions I’m sure are going to follow. “Oh no.” She gasps, her hand flying to her chest dramatically. “You two weren’t having sex in our house when you were here last Christmas, were you?”
“Momma!” I chide, and Caroline smashes her face to my shoulder, hiding from the camera. “No. Nothing like that. It’s…new.”
“How new?”
“A few weeks now.”
“Four,” Caroline answers, grinning against me, then finally looking at the phone. “We’ve been official for four weeks now. Well, almost four.”
She’s counting.
I fucking love that she’s counting.
“Wow. A month and you didn’t tell us?” Momma Kira sounds a little hurt, and I’m not surprised. I usually tell them everything.
“I didn’t mean to lie. It’s just—”
“It’s my fault,” Caroline interjects. “It’s all such fresh territory and I didn’t want to tell anyone, not knowing what was going to happen. We have too much history with each other and our families to bring anyone into it. I wanted to be cautious. Just in case.”
My moms exchange a glance, and it’s one of those talking-without-speaking kind of moments.
I’d know—Caroline and I have them often.
“What?” I ask.
“It’s… It’s just…”
She pauses, chewing on her lip with uncertainty.
Momma B tilts her head, encouraging Momma Kira to talk.
She clears her throat.
“We just want you kids to be careful, you know? You’ve been best friends for a long time. Relationships are hard as it is, but adding in the fact that you two have known each other for so long… Well, we just hope you aren’t rushing into anything and that you’ve really thought this through. Things are different now.”
“We do definitely kiss a lot more.”
The moms laugh.
“I’m sure you do,” Momma B says. “Just…be careful. Be open. Communicate more now than you ever have. It’ll save a world of hurt because there are things at stake now that weren’t before.”
“The heart,” Momma Kira provides. “That’s what’s at stake now.”
I want to tell her the heart was always at stake, but I understand where she’s coming from.
Just in the last month, Caroline’s come to mean more to me than she used to. Hard to fathom, because she meant a whole hell of a lot to me before we started all of this.
Now though…I can’t even describe the way she makes me feel. It’s on a whole different level, and I’ve certainly never come close to feeling like this with anyone else before.
I nod and peek down at Caroline.
She’s looking at me with eyes that say, See? Just in case.
I don’t need a just in case.
I know what I want.
Her. All of her.
“We understand what you mean, Mommas,” Caroline tells them, her eyes full of something I can’t quite put my finger on. “We’re being cautious.”
They let out a relieved sigh, then Momma B leans toward the phone.
“And be careful in other areas too! Wrap your tool, Cooper Bennett. I don’t want any grandbabies yet. I’m not old enough.”
I laugh because she’s about to turn sixty but has the spirit and energy of a twenty-year-old.
Caroline falls into a coughing fit, likely remembering that I was just inside her not even half an hour ago with nothing between us.
I squeeze her leg in a Get it together way.
“We’ll be careful in that area too,” I promise. “But, hey, I need to get working soon unless I want to answer to my boss as to why I haven’t logged in for the day.”
“Boo. Fine. Go be a grown-up and stuff,” Momma B says, waving us away.
“Love you both!” Momma Kira blows us kisses.
“Love you too,” Caroline and I say in unison.
We send a final wave before I press the end call button.
Caroline smacks at me before I even have the chance to turn my phone off.
“Oh my god,” she hisses. “You could have told me you were on the phone! I just practically bragged to your moms about my oral skills.”
“For what it’s worth, you definitely have the right to brag. You’re so good at suck—”
She slaps her hand over my mouth.
“Don’t you dare finish that sentence.”
I grin against her, pulling her hand away. “Or what?”
“Or I’ll…I’ll…”
“Suck my cock again?”
“Ugh,” she complains, pushing my face away. She stands, shaking her head and heading toward the hallway, giving me a fantastic view of her ass. She stops at the door, peeking at me over her shoulder. “Seriously so annoying this morning.”
Then, she rolls her eyes.
I chase her down the hall.
Guess work can wait after all.
14
Caroline
“So, I had an interesting morning,” River says by way of greeting as she waltzes into Making Waves, coffees in hand like always.
We’re just two days away from the Harristown Jubilee, and we’re working around the clock to make sure everything runs smoothly during the event.
Maya’s on advertising duty on top of running our normal online orders. River’s working out inventory and keeping up stock. And I’m in charge of holding down the fort in the shop. I think River gave me the easy job because she’s still holding out hope that I’ll let her display my work.
“Oh, please tell me you found me an extremely hot and wealthy guy to date.” Maya folds her hands together in prayer.
“Sadly, no. But if you happen to find a hot and wealthy guy who happens to have a brother, please send him my way. I’m about two hours away from kicking Dean to the curb.”
Maya scoffs at her best friend. “Right. And I met Henry Cavill yesterday.” She pouts. “Dammit. Now I really wish I had met Henry Cavill yesterday.”
“What’d Dean do now?” I ask.
“Breathed too loudly,” she complains, but her lips pull into a grin anyway. “Fine. The bastard told me they ran out of cherry pie at The Gravy Train when he came back with coffee, but I was just there talking to Darlene and he’s a damn liar. He lied about pie. Fairly positive that’s a cardinal sin.”