“I’m moving on,” Jules says. “He’s not interested in me, and that’s fine. It’s about time I focused my laser-beam-like gaze elsewhere. Like William the groundskeeper.”
We all laugh—William is about seventy-five and has about two hairs on his head.
“What about you?” I ask Clio. “Got your eye on anyone?”
She shrugs. “Nope.”
“Liar,” Remy says in her beautiful French accent. “I saw you ogling Ryan the other day.”
Clio’s eyes widen. “Ogling? Jesus, Remy, where do you learn these words?”
“Albie teaches me. And do not change the subject. You were looking at his butt when he bent over the table.”
“He has a nice butt,” Clio protests, ignoring our sniggers. “Very tight. A girl can window shop, can’t she?”
“Are you interested in him?” I ask her. He’s quite a catch. He’s Hal’s and Jules’s half-brother, adopted by Brock King when he met their mother, Erin. He’s three years older than me, and I’ve known him all my life, as our fathers have always spent a lot of time together. By the time Clio was in her teens, though, Ryan had left home, so I guess she doesn’t know him as well as I do. When he was younger, he was never without a girlfriend, although he was faithful to his ex-wife, as far as I know. His recent divorce was a tough one, and has left him reluctant to date again, so he’s thrown himself into his work.
“I’d do him tomorrow,” Clio admits, making us all laugh. “I’ve had a crush on him for years.”
“Really?” Jules looks amused. “I never knew.”
“Well I’ve never acted on it,” Clio says. “For Reasons, with a capital R.”
“What kind of reasons?” Nix asks. “He’s single. His divorce came through at Christmas.”
“I know,” Clio says. “He’s my cousin, though.”
“By adoption,” Nix replies. “And anyway, it’s not illegal to marry your first cousin in New Zealand. It’s not in many places. Charles Darwin married his first cousin, Emma Wedgwood.”
Clio blinks at that information. “Ryan is also eight years older than me.”
“Noah’s ten years older than me,” Abby comments. She’s been quiet, listening while she nurses Ethan, but he’s now in his carry-seat, and she raises her eyebrows to challenge the younger girl.
“Yeah,” Clio says. “True. But you and Noah are so well suited. Ryan’s… I don’t know, mature. Confident. I get all tongue-tied with him.”
“You, tongue-tied?” Jules laughs.
“I do,” Clio protests. “I can never think what to say.”
“Flash your boobs at him,” Nix says. “That’ll do the trick.” She gestures at where Clio’s blouse is unbuttoned to show an inch of cleavage. She’s a D cup, with a tiny waist and wide hips, your typical hourglass, so she tends to draw a lot of male attention, especially with her blonde hair.
“Ha!” Clio rolls her eyes. “Anyway, I can’t imagine he’d be interested in me. His ex was so elegant and composed. She was a lawyer, for Christ’s sake. Really intelligent.”
“You’re a vet,” Izzy points out. “You’re hardly dumb.”
“Yeah, but I’m, like, blah, blah, blah all the time. I’m too in your face. He’s very quiet.”
“He wasn’t when he was younger,” Jules states. “He was quite the lad.”
“Really?” Clio’s eyebrows rise.
Jules sips her wine with a knowing smirk, glances around, then leans forward conspiratorially. We all lean forward with her. “I overheard him arguing with his ex once,” she whispers. “Samantha called him ‘insatiable’ and said she was fed up with him trying to wear her out.”
“Ooh,” we all say, and Clio’s jaw drops.
“Wow,” she says, looking over at him. “Really?”
All the girls’ eyes widen. The knowledge that he’s secretly a sex god is a revelation to everyone here.
“That’s it,” Nix announces. “Clio’s homed in on him. Like a guided missile, about to blow him out of the water.”