She slows to a stop and looks at me. “At our age, we see no reason for a long engagement. I was hoping you’d help us with wedding plans and… do you think we’d be able to throw something together in a month’s time?”
My first thoughts are about how impossible that would be, but again I stop myself before I voice anything negative. Instead I ask, “What do you have in mind?”
"We've talked about having it here at the farm.” She gestures around the yard as she speaks. “What do you think?"
I look around the property and switch into planner mode. There is certainly plenty of space available. I picture a tent large enough for tables and maybe even a dance floor f
or the reception, and the hillside to the left of the house would be the perfect place for an archway and rows of seating for the ceremony. The backdrop of green and golden fields would be beautiful.
"Let's start planning!" I say.
As we head back into the house, Billy and Tommy pass by us on their way outside. Both are wearing baseball caps and carrying mitts. Billy looks at me with narrowed eyes and a lewd smirk that no one else can see. When he passes, he brushes against me even though there is plenty of space around us.
"Lunch will be ready in half an hour, guys," my mom calls after them.
"Lunch? Already?" I ask.
She laughs. "I know. Big, frequent meals have been an adjustment for me. These boys are always hungry. It's really strange being in a house with three males."
"I'll bet.”
We talk wedding plans while I help her prepare a lunch of soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. When the food is almost ready, my stomach starts to tighten into a knot as I dread seeing Billy again. I'm not hungry, and I'd like to skip the meal, but good manners again prevent me from hiding in my room.
"Kate, can you let the boys know lunch is ready? And ask Tommy to run and get George?" I'm about to leave the kitchen to do as she's asked, when my mom laughs, almost to herself. "Just think, sweetie, you're finally going to have some siblings. Two brothers.”
I try to make some sort of reply that sounds like I'm excited about the idea, but all I can think of is Billy’s hand on my ass. Brother. What a joke.
Chapter 9
Before I call out to Tommy and Billy, I watch them through the window. They're playing catch, and though I can't hear them, I can tell from their expressions and body language that they're having fun and probably taunting one another.
I'm going to have stepbrothers. It's a strange thought. Growing up, I'd liked being an only child, and I think it's the reason my mom and I are so close. But now that I'm older, I envy people's relationships with their brothers and sisters.
However, I've also seen a lot of siblings fight with each other, but George's sons seem to get along great, maybe because of their age difference.
Billy is throwing fly balls high into the air, making them challenging for Tommy to catch. Billy's body truly is a sight to behold. For a moment, I disconnect the thought of his frustrating personality from his physical appearance, and just gaze at him in wonder.
His arms are like small tree trunks, and his shoulders are ridiculously broad. When he stretches his arms up to throw the ball, his t-shirt hitches up and I catch a glimpse of his tightly muscled abs, and—what was that? I watch closely as he throws again, and see a dark, detailed tattoo right above his hip. I wonder what the ink portrays, and how far downward it extends…
What is wrong with me? Maybe if I'd done the deed with him last night, I wouldn't still be having these inappropriate lingering thoughts. Maybe he wouldn't even have been good at it. A beautiful body doesn't automatically equal good sexual skills.
But as I watch the ease with which he moves as he plays catch, and see the control he has over his massive physique, I know I'm just trying to tell myself lies.
Lunch goes so smoothly that I almost start to relax. There is some light conversation, but for the most part, everyone focuses on their food. I'd forgotten how good my mom's grilled cheese sandwiches are, and my appetite grows after I take the first few bites.
Then I feel a nudge against my leg. At first I think one of the dogs has come in and is under the table, but when I look up, I see Billy staring at me, smirking.
I stare daggers back at him. He returns to eating his soup while his foot moves higher along the inside of my calf.
I fidget, but there is no where I can move to get out of his reach without drawing attention to myself.
"Are you up for horseback riding after lunch, Kate?" George asks.
"Sure, that sounds great," I say. My apprehension about the horses is overridden by my desire to get out of here and away from Billy. But then he speaks up.
"I'll take Kate out," Billy says. "I invited her to go riding after breakfast, but she wasn't up for it then." His words carry an artful touch of innuendo. Not enough for anyone else to notice, but enough to make it perfectly clear to me that when he says "riding," he's referring to his invitation to join him in his bedroom earlier today.
His meaning is made clearer still to me as he stealthily rubs his foot against the inside of my knee while he talks.
"Okay, that'll work," George says. "Then I can help Tommy with his science project. How's that coming?" George turns to his youngest son and their conversation continues, while my mom looks at Billy and me, clearly pleased that we seem to be getting along so well.
I feel like a trapped rabbit, eager to get away but unable to make a move.
Billy continues to touch me under the table with his foot. I ignore him as he works his way further up my leg and into my lap. When I feel his sock-covered foot against my thighs, trying to nudge my legs apart, I reach down and dig my fingers into the bottom of his foot, hoping that he's ticklish.