He interrupted me by taking my wine and setting it down on the coffee table with his beer. Just as I opened my mouth again to say something, he cupped the back of my neck, leaned forward, and kissed the shit out of me.
It was so. Damn. Good.
Hey, maybe he didn’t need the romance novel after all.
He pulled back just enough that the tip of his nose brushed mine. “We’re dating, Kinsley. Secretly, but still dating. And exclusively. I’m not going to see anyone else, and neither are you. Does that narrow it down for you?”
A little shiver cascaded down my spine. Josh brushed his thumb over my jaw, bringing it close to my lower lip where he gently pulled it down before he released it.
“That was a weirdly sexy kiss to follow such a conversation,” I murmured.
“That’s your response?”
“Yes, it narrows it down. And most people would have run away at my very graphic description.”
“I would appreciate not reliving that.”
“It wasn’t enjoyable to describe,” I said dryly. “But I had to get drastic.”
He sat back in the same manner someone would sigh—heavily, with a long-suffering undertone that said they couldn’t believe my shit.
It was fine.
I couldn’t believe my shit, either.
I grabbed our drinks from the coffee table and handed him his with a smile, then selected Schitt’s Creek from the menu.
Maybe him coming wasn’t such a bad thing after all.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN – KINSLEY
rule eighteen: never, ever hide your relationship from your best friends.
and you can’t hide it from old people.
The duck was wearing a dress and a bonnet.
I really wished that was an opening line to a joke, but it wasn’t.
It was, sadly, reality.
It was a lot sadder for the duck than it was for me. That wasn’t to say I wasn’t alarmed, because I was. So, so alarmed, and wondering if it was time for Mabel to see her doctor.
This wasn’t normal.
“What do you think?” she asked, smacking her over-lined light pink lips together. “Isn’t she cute?”
I blinked at the poor, ugly brown duck who looked like she’d stepped out of a children’s novel set in the English countryside, like a Beatrix Potter one.
I was half expecting a rabbit in a little blue jacket to show up any moment.
I glanced around for said rabbit, but when it didn’t appear, turned my attention back to the fancily dressed duck. The bonnet was a frilly white concoction that was an insult to fashion, and I wasn’t even going to focus on the crochet dress with a little apron that matched the bonnet.
“I don’t know what to say,” I said slowly.
“You don’t like her?” Mabel sounded hurt.
“I just don’t know what purpose the dress serves.” I chose my words very carefully. “Isn’t it uncomfortable?”
“No. I made it especially for her.”
Oh, damn. No wonder she was so hurt. “Is that more?” I pointed to the big wicker basket on the nearest bench that looked like it was full of a bunch of duck clothing.
“Yes!” She hobbled over using her cane and sat next to the basket, then pulled out the top outfit. It was a blue floral dress with a matching bonnet, and there were even little pockets on the dress that were adorned with lace and little blue bows.
“You made all these?”
“It was a joint effort,” she said proudly. “We had a sewing class and made these dresses.”
“A sewing class? You needed to be taught? I don’t want to be rude, Mabel, but even I can sew.”
I turned at the sound of Josh’s voice and fought the smile that desperately wanted to break out on my face. “When did you get here?”
“I brought Grandma some things from the store,” he explained, grinning a little too enthusiastically at me. “She told me I had to come and see the ducks and Mabel’s outfits. She’ll be here in a minute.”
“I can sew, young man,” Mabel said before I could reply. “But we needed a printer for the patterns. Duck dresses aren’t in our books, believe it or not.”
I could believe it.
“And if you two keep grinning at each other like that, people are going to figure out you’re sleeping with each other.”
My stomach dropped.
Josh recovered faster than I did. “What on Earth are you talking about, Mabel? You’re insane.”
“I’m not insane.” She dutifully laid the dress on her lap and folded it carefully. “Your faces lit up when you saw each other in a way they haven’t before.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Then why can’t Miss Talks-A-Lot over there say a word?” She raised one heavily penciled eyebrow at Josh, nodding in my direction. “She’s the first to tell me I’ve lost my mind if my granddaughter isn’t here to do it for me.”
“I have never told you that you’ve lost your mind,” I protested.
“Interesting that that’s the thing you choose to argue,” Josh said dryly.
I glared at him.
“I knew it!” Mabel fist-pumped and pointed at us. “You are doing the dance with no pants.”
“Mabel, you have to be quiet.” I held out my hands and took a step closer to her. “Please. Nobody knows.”
Her eyes widened. “I was right?”
Josh shot me a look as if to say, well done, idiot. “Yes, you were right. We’re figuring things out and nobody knows. You won’t say anything, will you? We don’t want Colton to know until we’re ready.”
“Oooh, this is scandalous.”
“What’s scandalous?” Grandpa Randy said from behind me.
I turned and saw him approach with Josh’s grandma with her arm looped through his.
“Your granddaughter is sleeping with Vicki’s grandson.” Mable’s eyes narrowed when she saw them together. “Why is she with you?”
“Mabel!” Josh and I both said at the same time.
“About time,” Vicki said, releasing Grandpa’s arm and taking Josh’s. Her light-gray hair was pulled up into an elegant chignon, and I admired her ability to do her hair even with her arthritis.
If I tried that now, I’d have birds nesting in it.
“Thank you for the visual,” Grandpa said, coming over and kissing my cheek. “I assume your brother
