Plans set, we went down to find Zoey’s fiancé and make sure we had everything for our day at the springs.
Christopher opted to ride with his father and Zoey, and although I was really, really happy that he had formed such a strong bond with Gabe in a short period of time, I couldn’t deny that a small part of me missed the days when it was only Chris, Zoey, and me.
As we drove, the landscape changed, and the town of Cherry Springs got farther away in my review mirror. Eventually, I saw a wooden sign that indicate the springs were to the left, and I followed Gabe’s 4Runner down the secluded road.
When we pulled into the clearing to park, there were half a dozen cars already there, and as I got out of my car, I turned to my sister in confusion and asked, “I thought you said it would be us and Jasmine, and maybe Gabe’s parents. Who do all of these cars belong to?”
Gabe shrugged, as if to say, not my fault, while my sister had the grace to redden and say, “I may have invited a few other people.”
“What did you do?” I asked, my stomach filling with dread at her reaction. If it was just more family members, she wouldn’t be looking so sheepish. “You’d better not be trying to set me up.”
Zoey grabbed her bag and began rushing down the trail after Gabe and Chris, who’d left as soon as my tone had gotten accusatory.
“Just invited a couple guys I thought you might like to meet,” she called over her shoulder, and left me there next to my car, swearing under my breath.
“I’m going to kill her,” I muttered as I seriously considered getting back in my car and driving away.
After a few moments of inner conflict, I grabbed my bag out of the backseat and slammed the door in a fit of adolescent rage at my sister, then walked down the path they’d left me on, trying to talk myself out of my Zoey-induced bad mood.
When the springs came into view, my breath caught, and all anger left me. How could I be upset when surrounded by such beauty?
Trees surrounded the area, then the almost caramel-colored soil tapered down into a large pool of water. You could see the spots where the water darkened, indicating the depth of the pool, and with the sun shining off the surface, it was a site to behold.
Turning my head from the water to the sounds coming from my left, I was left speechless by another breathtaking site.
I barely registered Zoey waddling toward me in my peripheral as my eyes were so locked on their target.
“Cheese and crackers,” Zoey loud-whispered as she got closer to me. “I’ve never seen anything like it, and I watched Gabe and the guys play football shirtless at camp.”
Zoey was out of breath when she reached me, then she stopped, turned, and took my hand in hers as we both looked on at the area that everyone had begun to set up.
There were five men. Five tall, sexy, well-toned, shirtless men, talking and laughing with each other as they set up the area were we would grill, eat, and lounge for the day.
Gabe, Reardon, and Dillon, I knew, but the other two, I’d never seen before.
“Jesus, is there a calendar being shot here today or something?” I asked my sister, smiling when she giggled in response.
“Right?” she responded. “You’d think I’d be desensitized after getting to be with Gabe all of these months, but I nearly went into labor when they all took their shirts off and started doing manual labor. A girl can only take so much…”
I barely contained a snort, then it registered that my son was also over there with the men, so I worked on composing myself before pulling on Zoey’s arm and dragging her with me toward the men.
We’d barely gotten two feet when I heard a noise behind us, right before Jasmine yelled, “If your last name is Lewis, please, for the love of all that is holy, put your shirt back on! You two … continue with what you were doing.”
“Shut it, Jazzy,” Dillon called out, his red hair, which matched hers perfectly, catching beautifully in the sun.
“Oh my god,” I heard a strange voice barely breathe, and I turned to see who had spoken.
A stunning blonde, with long hair, golden skin, and the bluest eyes I’d ever seen, was looking nervously toward the guys.
“Jasmine, are you sure it’s okay that I’m here?” she asked the exuberant redhead, her tone nervous.
Jasmine was already pulling her T-shirt over her head, revealing the emerald-green bikini top that popped against her creamy white skin, when she looked over her shoulder and assured the woman, “Laurel, you’re practically a Lewis yourself, don’t be silly. C’mon.”
Jasmine bounded over to the guys, her long hair trailing behind her, clad only in her bikini top and some short cut-offs.
I turned to Laurel and said, “Hi, I’m Chloe. You’re Jasmine’s friend that just moved back, right?”
The nerves cleared from Laurel’s face once the guys were no longer in view, and she gave me a sweet smile.