“What are you thinking about?” he asks.
“The beach,” I say as it comes into view. “It’s beautiful.” Again, Ajay brings my hand to his lips and kisses me.
“Someday.”
“It doesn’t have to ever be, Ajay. Just knowing it’s here is enough.” Late at night, when he thinks I’m sleeping, he tells me his dreams. He wants to be like Quinn and own property along the ocean, but fears that Sinful Distraction won’t ever hit it big enough for him to afford a mansion by the sea. Every time he starts talking about it, I want to reassure him that we’re happy, that I love the house we live in, that my friends in the subdivision don’t give a rat’s ass about his job. But I know he lives with an underlying fear that he’ll never be good enough, and that’s thanks to his father walking out of his life. If Ajay could only see that Evelyn worships him, that I am so madly in love with him that sometimes it hurts, maybe he wouldn’t feel like he’s not the best for us.
We pull up along the front of Quinn and Nola’s. Parking is limited, but Quinn always puts cones out to keep the spaces in front of their house free so his guests can park there. According to Nola, this pisses everyone off, and it’s completely of out of character for Quinn to act this way, but I get it.
Nola’s at the passenger side door, opening it before I can even get my seatbelt off. We haven’t seen each other in almost a month because she went back to South Carolina to visit her family.
“Oh my—”
“If you tell me that I’m as big as a house, or a whale, or anything remotely close to either of those, I’ll just agree with you so save your energy.” I offer her my hand so she can help me out of the car. I know Ajay will do it, in fact, he’s rushing around the front now to get me, but it’s nice having a friend close by who cares enough to want to help me. Dhara and Fletcher will be here in a few days, but Nola and I have become close.
“I would never,” she giggles. “Come on, I cut up some watermelon and Quinn’s moved a fan out to the patio for you. Oh, and my mom sent back tons of presents for the baby.”
“He’s going to need his own house,” Ajay adds before opening the back door to get Evelyn.
“I thought we were going to the beach?”
“You’re really trying to earn the title of beached whale, huh?” I laugh at Nola’s joke. If anyone else had said it, I’d probably punch them.
“Well my swimsuit is black and white,” I add, shrugging. Nola’s with me every step of the way, holding the gate to their very small side yard open so I can waddle through. Quinn peeks his head around the corner and smiles.
“Still pregnant?” he asks, smirking as he comes toward me. He over exaggerates how much arm space he needs in order to hug me.
“Still playing house without putting a ring on her finger?” I fire back him. Nola snorts and quickly ducks into their house.
“That’s a low blow, Ballard.”
“Just calling it like I see it, James.” I shrug and push past him. My stomach almost knocks him off balance. Before I step inside, I hear him say to Ajay, “Your wife knows how to hit me where it hurts.” I hope he’s referring to the fact that he hasn’t asked Nola to marry him yet.
Inside, Nola’s busy in their downstairs kitchen. For once, I’m happy that I don’t have to climb stairs. As soon as I sit down, Evelyn comes in.
“Miss Nola, may I use the restroom?”
“Of course, do you remember where it is?” Evelyn nods and runs down the hallway with her swimsuit in hand. “I have a feeling Quinn told her he’d take her surfing,” she says.
“I think you’re probably right, which means we’re taking our asses down to the beach to watch.”
She sighs. “It is a glorious thing to watch them, isn’t it?”
“It’s literally what dreams are made of.” Both of us seem to daze off into our day dreams, likely picturing our half naked guys standing in the surf. I shake my head to clear my thoughts just as Evelyn comes running out of the bathroom. She sets her clothes, which are folded as well as she could fold them, on the table and runs outside, hollering for Ajay and Quinn.
“I’m ready if you are,” Nola says, with a basket in her hand. “Quinn also set up the beach chairs down by the surf so we don’t have to carry anything.”
“He’s a keeper.”
“Believe me, he’s as moody as the rest of them. I don’t know what happened at practice earlier, but he came home muttering something about family and how closed off his sister is.”
“Really?” Ajay only mentioned the new person, Dana and Hendrix… oh and People wanting to buy my baby’s first pictures.
“Something I’ve learned while dating Quinn is that he and his sister don’t always see eye to eye.”
“Which one?”
“Elle.”