“Perfect.”
I watched the women walk off toward Dillon’s SUV, then drive away.
“How does it feel, living a charmed life?”
I turned my head toward Dillon and cocked an eyebrow.
“What do you mean?”
“Only you, Mr. NFL, MVP, Super Bowl Champion, turned upstanding citizen with a camp for teens, would have a woman like that stumble across your path.”
I felt the grin take over my face.
“Just lucky I guess…”
“My ass,” Dillon grumbled good-naturedly. “I’m going to spend the rest of the week scanning the woods, hoping for a buxom blonde to come trampling out.”
“She’s here for her nephew,” I explained. “Got her weeks mixed up.”
“That’s what Rear said,” he replied, following me around back to the grill. “You gonna make a play, or what?”
I pulled the cover off and crouched down to turn the gas on, then straightened and looked into his green eyes.
“I’m taking it into consideration, and I’d appreciate if both you and Reardon kept things on a strictly friendly level.”
“Yeah, I kinda figured that when you nearly shot daggers out of your eyes when I did nothing more than introduce myself to the woman,” he said with a chuckle.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” I replied, although I was pretty sure he was accurate on that account. “You want to start on the potatoes while I season the meat?”
“I can do that.”
“I was also hoping I could talk you into making your beans. I think I remembered everything for them.”
“Anything else? An amuse bouche perhaps?” Dillon asked sarcastically.
“Nah, I think we’ll go a little more rustic tonight, but thanks,” I replied with a chuckle, then asked. “Where’d Reardon disappear to?”
“He said he had to check in with the office real quick.”
“Well tell him work is off-limits, and to get his ass out here and help if he wants to eat.”
“Aye, aye, captain.”
Chapter Four ~ Zoey
“So, you guys are all cousins, huh?” I asked Jasmine when we were alone in the car. Being naturally curious, I wasn’t shy about asking questions or getting to know people. It helped me a lot in my work.
“Yup,” she answered with a smile. “Dillon and my mom, Reardon’s mom, Gabe’s dad, and Serena’s dad, are all siblings. We were all born in a small town called Cherry Springs, and for the most part, grew up together.”
“That must have been nice,” I replied, thinking that it really did. I had my sister, Chloe, but we hadn’t really gotten along much as kids. She’d been a girly girl, loving to dress up and be social, whereas I tended to keep my head in a book and stay more to myself. We hadn’t had any family nearby, so the idea of being close to my cousins was a foreign one.
“It was. Serena moved away when she was in middle school, but every summer we all went camping together.”
“And you still do,” I muttered, thinking it more to myself than meaning to say it out loud. “That’s really wonderful.”
“Yeah, it is. There were many years where we were all so caught up in our own lives that we were lucky to see each other every year at Christmas, but a few years ago, Gabe had the idea for us to meet here every summer, to reconnect, and we’ve been making it a priority ever since.”
“Wow, that’s really cool. I envy you that closeness with your family,” I admitted, without really meaning too. Jasmine was just such an open and receptive person, that it was almost impossible not to share with her.