Risking the Crown (The Crown 2)

Holy shit. This pregnancy was starting to affect everything. I took a deep breath and looked behind me to make sure Cole hadn’t seen me almost fall.

I just had to make it through dinner. Get Mary Ellen back to North Carolina. And then I could tell Cole about the baby.

I took three more breaths before I could let go of the wall.

I had prepared a pitcher of mojitos, the guacamole dip Cole liked so much, and had shrimp ready to go into a shrimp boil. I checked the clock. Only five more minutes until show time.

I carried the mojito pitcher and the snacks to the deck. Cole was sprawled in one of the two lounge chairs.

“Maybe I should go ahead and have one of those.” He looked at the glasses.

He wasn’t the only one. I was nervous. I wished like hell I could drink. I poured and handed him one. “Here you go.”

“Aren’t you having one?” he asked.

“Oh yeah. Of course.” I poured a second one and turned from him so he couldn’t see I wasn’t actually drinking it.

Two minutes later, I heard Mary Ellen’s laughter from the beach. I looked over the railing to see her tucked under Aiden’s arm. He whispered something in her ear. My chest tightened as they took the steps.

“Hey, y’all.” I waved.

Aiden grinned. “Thanks for the dinner invitation, Kaitlyn.” He handed me a bottle of wine. “This is for you.”

“Aww, thank you.” I plastered on a smile. “I’ll put this in the fridge and be right back.”

When I returned from the kitchen, Mary Ellen was pouring drinks for her and Aiden. If I didn’t know they had only met last night, I would have guessed they had been a couple for a while. They moved in sync with each other. Maybe there was something to the connection she said they had.

Aiden crunched on a chip. “This guacamole is delicious.”

“Thanks, I made it today. It’s Cole’s favorite.”

“How’s the knee?” Aiden pointed to the leg still in a brace.

I could tell Cole was reluctant to enter a conversation with him. “Getting better.”

Mary Ellen threaded an arm through Aiden’s. “Aiden was telling me today about a trip he might take to North Carolina.”

I knew I looked stunned. I quickly tried to rearrange my face. “Oh, wow. What kind of trip?”

“I have some business with a boat builder in Charlotte. I was thinking I might make a detour through Chapel Hill while I’m there.”

“That’s quite a detour.” I held on to the mojita I couldn’t drink.

He grinned. “Isn’t life full of detours?”

I wondered which one he was referring to. We were all on a massive detour as far as I was concerned. I was carrying one inside me.

“Are you interested in boats, Aiden?” I leaned against the railing.

“The business side of it. There are a lot of directions you can go with a boat business. This guy I have a meeting with is interested in diversifying. Right now he’s in high-powered fiberglass vessels.”

Mary Ellen piped in. “Kaitlyn was a business major. She’s eventually going to get her MBA. Maybe you two could bounce some ideas around.”

Cole’s poker face tonight was excellent. I was proud of him, but doubtful it would last.

“Is that so?” Aiden strolled next to me. “You’re into business and Cole’s into fixing things?” He hid his smile behind his glass. I didn’t like what he was implying.

“Actually, Cole was in an advanced engineering program when his grandfather became sick.” My stomach knotted. Introduce awkward. I tried to skip over the fact I had added Pops to the conversation. “We have a long-term plan with the Dune Scape and one for Cole to finish his master’s degree.”