He rolled his eyes. “Sounds like Erica.”
As the couple drew closer, Brianna smoothed her hair and smiled. “Hello.”
“Hi,” Erica said, and, without a moment’s hesitation, pulled Brianna into a tight hug. Brianna tentatively hugged her back. She hadn’t expected or hoped for such a warm welcome. “Nice to meet you, Brianna. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about you.”
“Uh, thanks.” Her cheeks heated. “I’ve heard a lot about you, too.”
“Don’t believe any of it.” Erica grinned. “Tommy probably made it all up.”
“Brat. I told you not to call me that.” Thomas pulled his sister into a tight hug.
Jeremy offered his hand, those stunning blue eyes glittering. “Hello, Brianna. Nice to meet you.”
Brianna slipped her hand into his—and yelped when he, too, dragged her into a rough bear hug. Her blush felt like it was spreading down to her knees, and she awkwardly pressed her hands against the second hardest pair of abs she’d ever felt as she pushed herself back.
“Well. Um. Nice to meet you, too.” She fiddled with her hair and pressed close against Thomas’s side. “Thank you both for watching the kids overnight.”
“No problem. We needed a vacation from base life and it gave my mom an excuse to spend a few days playing doting grandmother with our little guy.” Erica lightly slugged Thomas’s arm. “Then the next step will be helping this idiot find a new house.” Her sly look slid from Thomas to Brianna and Brianna could have melted into the sidewalk.
Wait, what? He was house hunting? Her heartbeat sped up. “Oh. I see.”
Thomas cleared his throat. “I said that we might be looking at houses. Not definitely.”
But where? Here or in California? Thomas looked at Brianna, then looked away before she could meet his eyes. What was he hiding from her?
Cody tugged Jeremy’s shirt. “Is it true you’re a real soldier? Thomas said you are.”
Jeremy crouched down. “I’m better than a soldier. I’m a Marine. Do you like soldiers?”
“Yeah! But…you don’t look like a Marine. Where’s your uniform?” Cody eyed him. “And your gun?”
“At home. But I can tell you all about soldiers and military formations. I know lots.”
Cody’s eyes widened. “Will you play toy soldiers with me?”
Zach snorted. “He doesn’t want to play with fake military guys, Cody. He’s the real thing.”
“I’d actually love to,” Jeremy said. “I’ll even show you how real Marines line up for battle.”
Cody jumped up and down. “Can we go? Now?”
“Sure. Come on.” Jeremy winked at Brianna and Thomas, then followed the boy up the pathway. “You two kids have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, Tommy.”
“That leaves a lot of options,” Thomas said.
Jeremy laughed. “Yeah, I suppose it does.”
“Oh, gross. I’m gone.” Zach bolted after Jeremy and Cody. “See ya.”
“Love you, too,” Brianna called out, then shook her head. “Looks like we’ll be missed horribly.”
“Go. Have fun.” Erica pushed them gently down the path. “Get out of here.”
“Bye, Katelyn,” Brianna called over her shoulder. “Love you, Princess.” Yet she lingered a moment. Would her shy little girl be able to deal with Erica?
She needn’t have worried. Erica sank down to one knee and offered Katelyn her hand. “So you like princesses? I do, too. Want to go play?” She smiled. “My favorite thing in the world is to dress up like a princess and have tea.”
Magic words. Katelyn brightened, slid her hand into Erica’s, and practically dragged her inside. The door shut behind them, closing them off—and effectively freeing Brianna and Thomas for the night.