But even as I switched directions again, I thought of something. If they were so cavalier about breaking a bed, I couldn’t even imagine what they’d do to my sewing machine. Or Gina’s dress. Fortunately, I’d seen that my belongings were okay when I’d looked around the room before. But I’m sure they wouldn’t be for long.
Without bothering to be too quiet, I gathered all my things and put them on the porch. It took some time, but my anger fueled me. The Annas had to have woken up due to the noise, but neither said anything. Perhaps they could feel the rage pouring off me.
It was a relief to close the door to the cabin for good. I took the first load of things over to the guys’ cabin, not bothering with the golf cart because I didn’t want to wake anyone up. No one was in either bedroom, so I figured they were out back in the hot tub. I didn’t bother them even though it took me two more trips to get all my stuff there. I stashed it awkwardly in the entryway between the two bedrooms. There really wasn’t any other place for it.
I dug out my swimsuit and used the bathroom to put it on. I touched up my hair and makeup and then threw a silky robe loosely over my shoulders. Padding barefoot through Brock’s empty room, I found the door I’d seen briefly this morning. Three faces looked up from the hot tub when I stepped onto the deck.
“Mind if I join you?”
Their grins provided a pretty clear answer.
13
Maddie
“This is the life,” I said, sometime later as I closed my eyes and leaned my head back. “Let’s just stay here until the wedding.”
“We might get pruney.” Jessie was sitting on my right.
Brock, on my left, nudged my side with his elbow. “Weren’t you the one who was going on earlier about the maid of honor and the best man having responsibilities?”
“Was I? Why would I say that?”
“She’s starting to get it,” Kincade said. He sat across the hot tub from me, but if I reached my leg out, I’d touch his.
“Get what? More wine? I’ll get it.” Jessie reached for the bottle, clearly having lost track of the conversation.
“No more,” I said with a soft moan. “I just want to stay here and soak forever.”
“Then I think it’s our duty to stay with you,” Kincade said. He’d switched to beer at some point. The men’s cabin didn’t even have a kitchen, yet they somehow had a cooler full of drinks with ice back here. The deck was nice. It had a fire pit with some chairs around it, plus this hot tub. Add in the fact that there were no Annas here, and it seemed like a much better cabin than mine.
“Why did I even go back there?”
Somehow, Brock followed my train of thought. “We would’ve helped you move your things if we’d known.”
I waved away his words. “It’s okay. Besides, you three are the ones who are going to be stepping over my stuff all week, so it’s okay that you didn’t help carry it.”
“So you’re really staying?” Jessie asked.
“I wouldn’t set foot in that cabin if it were on fire,” I said.
Jessie shifted on the seat next to me. “You’re not supposed to go into cabins that are on fire.”
“Oh yeah. Good catch,” I said dreamily. I might not have been making a lot of sense, but I was having one hell of a good time. I sighed again in contentment. The water was the perfect temperature, and it felt so good bubbling against my skin. Plus, I felt closer to the guys now.
Well, I was closer to them, physically at least. Brock and Jessie were so close that they often brushed against me. But we’d talked, too. Before we started imbibing again, that is. I’d learned their ages—thirty-two for Brock and thirty-one for Jessie and Kincade. We’d talked about our jobs, and I’d told them about the dead-end office job I worked at with Sonia, the boss from hell. I even learned that Brock owned a penthouse at the top of a high rise in LA, but he was considering buying the two units on the floor below it to create an extra-large penthouse, which Kincade immediately started referring to as a mega-penthouse. Who even knew that was a thing?
“This is really nice,” I sighed. I think it was at least the fourth or fifth time I’d said it. I accompanied my words with a huge stretch, raising my hands above my head and reaching my feet out in front of me. It felt good on my tired muscles, at least until my butt slid off the seat.
My eyes flew open as my chin slipped underwater, but Brock grabbed my thigh and pushed me back into place before the rest of me could submerge. “Thanks.” He still had his large hand splayed over my leg. I couldn’t say that I minded.