Toasty (Cozy 2)

“Take it or leave it, cousin. But those are my terms.”

“You told me where the wedding is. I can find my own way,” I say, but even as I try to think of how, Bruce would be the one person on earth that could somehow make it happen. Fuck. “Why? Why the fuck are you after her? Is it because you know I want her?”

He shrugs as he grabs the invitation and puts it in his jacket. “There are so many other ways to get under your skin, but I’d like to present this to you as a challenge.”

I sit up on the couch and he stands and walks over to my desk to put some distance between us. “Talk,” I say through gritted teeth and I wonder if I’ve got a weapon in here I could use on him.

“Be my plus one to the wedding. Let Myra decide who she’s happy to see and who she’s willing to—shall we say—entertain.”

“I’ll end you,” I say, standing up from the couch.

“I’ll take that as a yes? Good,” he answers before I have a chance to. “I’ll pick you up tomorrow at six.”

He goes to walk out and I take a step toward him. He turns around and smiles at me like he hasn’t come in and dropped a grenade.

“Oh, and it’s black tie.” He winks before he walks out the door and closes it behind him.

“FUCK!” I roar, shoving the contents of my desk to the floor in one swipe.

I can hear his laughter down the hall as he walks away.

Chapter 2

Myra

I fight to keep from wiggling around like my sister, but I think I’m more anxious than her right now. These last six weeks have been an emotional rollercoaster. I’ve done well at hiding it but I’ve always been good at that.

“You got ants in your pants?” I tease Pippa.

She’s so freaking happy right now I think she might burst if she finds out she’s knocked up. I have a feeling she is because she and her soon-to-be husband can’t keep their hands off each other. It’s adorable and I’d be a liar if I didn’t admit that I was jealous of their love. They have something everyone longs for.

“No pants.” She points to the robe she has on. She wants to wait to take the pregnancy test before she puts on her wedding dress, and I don’t blame her. The thing is a handful but it fits. If you’re going to get married in a castle, you have to do it in a dress fit for a princess. At least that’s what I told her when she was trying on dress after dress.

“She’s almost here.” I barely get the words out and there’s a knock at the door.

I rush over toward it, trying to keep my composure the best I can. I pull open the door and grab the bag from one of the housekeepers and give her a quick thanks before shutting the door. I turn to see my sister giving me a funny look and I hold the bag out, wanting her attention off me and back on to her own pregnancy. She rushes over to me and grabs the bag, then dumps it out onto the bed.

“How many did you get?” she giggles. “I only need one.”

I stare down at the test as I stand next to her. This is not how I thought my life was going to turn out when I decided to quit my job. Honestly, I didn’t know how it would go, but this was not one of the ways I would have guessed. I reach down and pick one up and I have to fight to keep my hands from shaking.

“I’m going to take one too,” I tell her.

I’m pretty sure I’m pregnant after getting sick again this morning. That’s three mornings in a row, along with other small signs. I’ve been ignoring them and trying to stay focused on Pippa’s wedding, but when she brought up that she might be pregnant and wanted a test, I found that I needed to know myself.

“You little sneak. Who have you been giving it up to?” She playfully smacks my arm with her pregnancy test. “Wait.” I watch her try and think of who it might be because I’m sure she’s shocked. I never date, and how would I have had the time working as much as I do? If I wasn’t working, I was with my sister. It’s how life has always been for me. I fell into a maternal role with her, but as we’ve grown older it’s shifted back to being sisters. She doesn’t need me to take care of her anymore and I find I can lean on her from time to time.

“Stop trying to guess.” I give her a playful smack on the arm, this time with my pregnancy test. “I should’ve kept my mouth shut. Besides, you’ve kept enough from me.” I point to the test, reminding her how in one day I learned she hadn’t just moved out of our place, but she was getting married and madly in love.