His words were a soothing balm on my anxiety. “You’re right,” I said. “Thank you for talking me down.”
He winked. “Anytime.”
There was a knock on the front door before it opened. Thomas and Zach came in together, and I giggled when I saw that Thomas was carrying a can of cranberry sauce. He handed it to Jake. “I was going to make homemade sauce,” Thomas said, “but it didn’t turn out right.”
Zach nudged him. “Be honest,” he said. “It looked like a red version of the Blob, and you bent a spoon trying to stir it.”
Thomas’s jaw clenched, and I wanted to wrap my arms around him and tell him that it was all right. Everyone likes the canned stuff better, anyway. “I’m sure it would have tasted great,” I said.
He smiled at me, and it set butterflies free in my stomach. God, I was so head over heels for these men. “You’re sweet,” he said, and I saw his hands clench at his sides. He wanted to touch me too.
“I didn’t bring anything,” Zach said. “No one wants me to cook.”
We all laughed, and the tension was broken. “Well, the turkey should be done shortly, and I’m making mashed potatoes,” Jake said. “We’ll eat around noon?”
“I’ll help you with the potatoes,” I offered as the groups moved back into the living room to continue watching the Macy’s Day Parade and the following football game.
“I will too,” Thomas said. “I’ll make up for my cranberry sauce fiasco.”
The three of us went into the kitchen, and as soon as we were alone, I wrapped my arms around Thomas. “I wanted to do that the moment you walked in,” I said.
He hummed against my hair. “Me too, sweetheart,” he said.
I kissed his jaw. “I’m sure the cranberry sauce wasn’t that bad,” I said, and he laughed and squeezed me tighter.
“It was,” he said. “It was an absolute mess that I left in a pot in my sink. I hope it comes off after a soak, or you’ll be helping me pick out some new pots.”
The domesticity of it made me sigh happily. “We could do that,” I said. “If the pot is ruined.”
His eyes studied my face. “You like the idea of going to buy things for my condo,” he said bluntly.
I thought to argue, to deny it, but there was no real reason to. “I do,” I said, “but it’s your place, so I wouldn’t want to overstep—”
Thomas wrapped my arms around my waist. “If you want to redecorate the whole place, we will,” he said. “I want you to be comfortable in my condo.”
“I am,” I said. “I like your place.”
“But we could make it a little... homier for you.” He leaned down and captured my mouth with his. “Okay?”
I nodded. “Okay.”
Jake cleared his throat. “I could use some help peeling potatoes,” he said, and Thomas and I got to work. We were halfway through the pile when Zach wandered into the kitchen and took a few kisses for himself.
I had just left a smacking kiss on his cheek when Tinsley walked into the kitchen. “Oh,” she said, staring at us.
“Tins...” I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know how to explain because she understood what she was seeing immediately.
She smiled and looked at her father-in-law. “So, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, huh?” she asked him.
Jake let out a barking laugh. “I suppose not,” he said, “but I feel more like a copycat since he went first.”
We laughed, but there was a bubble of anxiety that I couldn’t get rid of. “Could you not say anything for now?” I asked her. “So much could go wrong—”
She held up her hands. “I understand,” she said, “and I won’t say anything. I promise.”
19
JAKE