Southern Player (Charleston Heat 2)

“Y’all enjoy.”Chapter FourGracieThe smells of frying bacon and freshly brewed coffee hit me the second I walk through Eli’s door the next morning. He took the day off—he’s been doing that more often since he and Olivia moved in together—and I invited myself over for breakfast. I don’t have a ton of time, as I’m due to meet with my contractor to go over the final punch list in an hour. But I didn’t want to wait. The sooner I can get Eli’s blessing, the sooner I can chat with Luke.

The sooner I can (hopefully) start my little sexual experiment.

I admit I’ve had a few glimmers of doubt about the whole thing now that I’ve had time to think about it. I mean, is it a dick move—pun not intended—to ask Luke to help me like this? Am I objectifying him? Using him? I’ve always respected him as a friend. And I intend to be one-hundred percent above board with everything. That’s why I’m going to Eli first.

No one is going to get hurt. Not on my watch.

If anything, I hope Luke takes my proposition as a compliment. Which it is, in my mind at least. I’m only asking him because he’s a good guy, and he’s trustworthy, and cute, and funny, and confident, and ridiculously hot…

And he doesn’t want forever. So I’m not asking something of him he doesn’t want to give. I wouldn’t be preoccupied with making him stick around. Because for once, that’s not the goal.

Luke and I clearly have chemistry. Why not indulge it in a safe, fun, no-strings arrangement where we both get off? Where we both get what we want?

I tug a hand through my hair. Now that I’m here about to ask Elijah for his blessing, I’m not sure if this the best or worst idea ever.

Am I being a gigantic, selfish idiot for even entertaining it?

Or have I finally gathered the courage to be who I truly am? Ask for what I truly want?

Billy, my brother’s dog, is the first to greet me. He lumbers over from his perch at Olivia’s feet, wagging his tail as I give his ears a little tug.

“Gracie! I’m so glad you could come,” Olivia says. She gets off her stool at the island, coffee still in hand, and pulls me in for a hug. “I hear the renovation is wrapping up over at Holy City. We’re looking forward to the grand opening.”

“I’m excited,” I say. “How’s the writing going?”

“Eh. It’s going. The drafting phase is always so damn hard. This book is such a mess right now. I hope I can make it come together.”

I give her a quick squeeze. “You made the first two books in the series come together pretty damn nicely. And I remember you felt the same way about those books when you were drafting them—you were so worried they wouldn’t work out. Let me assure you they worked out so well I can’t stop reading them. I loved Cate and Gunnar. But Max and Jane—gah, they are everything.”

Olivia’s smile deepens. She always gets this glow when she’s writing her books. Talking about them.

“Have you gotten to the bathtub scene yet?” she asks. “It’s my favorite.”

“Oh my God, Olivia, that scene. The candles and the fire and the washcloth? And the soap?”

“The soap.” Olivia laughs. “Yeah, that was a fun little addition.”

“Fun. And so hot.” I toss my hair out of my face. “Whew. I don’t think I can talk about it in public.”

“You know I was the inspiration for that scene,” Eli says, wagging his brows. “Had to take a lot of baths to get it just right.”

Olivia grins. “And when you did get it right—it was right.”

“Y’all are so cute it’s gross,” I say, laughing. I nod at the stove. “Whatcha making?”

“A riff on shrimp and grits. Goin’ for more of a brunch theme today.”

My stomach grumbles. I am starving.

“Smells delicious.”

“Damn fuckin’ right it does,” Eli says. “You girls sit. It’s ready.”

I grab a cup of coffee from the pot beside the range. Giving Elijah a quick peck on his cheek, I take a seat on the stool beside Olivia’s at the island. Take a sip of coffee. He always uses beans from my shop—I can tell by the taste of cinnamon-y spice on my tongue.

I wonder how the hell I should start this conversation.

Eli sets two steaming bowls in front of Olivia and I, using his towel to wipe away an errant scallion from the rim of my bowl.

The shrimp and grits dish is an old low country specialty. There are a million ways to make it. Today, it looks like Eli started with a bed of yellow grits. On top of that, he layered the shrimp—cooked in a yummy sauce made with bacon, shallots, Andouille sausage, stock, and spices, all thickened with a hint of cream—and a handful of freshly chopped scallions.