“I see Grant’s not the only Riggins brother with a sweet tooth,” Aspen teases.
“We all have one but Grant’s on another level. Just another reason Aurora is perfect for him,” I tell her, reaching into the cooler for another container.
“What’s that?” Aspen asks.
Pulling off the lid, I see a pan of baked spaghetti. “Mom’s baked spaghetti.”
“Oh, God,” Aspen moans, and the sound has my cock twitching in my pants. “I love your mom's baked spaghetti.”
“My guess is that there’s garlic bread in the other container. And this.” I pull out a smaller lunch box that feels as though it weighs a ton. Reaching inside, I pull out two rolls of cookie dough.
“That explains all of the sprinkles and frosting in the cabinets,” Aspen muses. “Why didn’t she just add the cookie dough to the grocery delivery?”
“These are homemade.”
“Really?”
“Yep. Mom’s famous sugar cookies. To buy them store-bought is a crime in our house,” I tell her. “This was my great-grandma’s recipe.”
“Wait! Are these the sugar cookies she had at Christmas?”
“That would be them.”
“We have to make these. Forget the spaghetti.” She reaches for the container of cookie dough, but I hold it over her head.
“Now, now, you know you have to eat all of your dinner before dessert.”
Her hazel eyes fill with heat as they roam over my body. “Right.” She coughs. “Dinner. I’ll grab some plates, and we can heat this up.” She’s quick to step away and start rummaging through the cabinets, pulling out two plates. In the drawer next to the stove, she finds a spoon for dipping and a couple of forks.
“Here.” I hand her the first plate when it comes out of the microwave.
“Thanks, I’m starving. I don’t really know how. I had all kinds of snacks on the way here.”
“Snacks don’t really fill you up, though. They satisfy the hunger, but you never really feel full. At least I don’t.”
“Facts! And it’s the same way at the bakery. I can graze on our treats all day, and I’m still starving by the time we close up shop.” She takes a hefty bite of her spaghetti, and my eyes are trained on her lips as they close around the fork.
It’s erotic, watching her eat. I’ve never thought that in my entire life. I don’t even know why I’m thinking it now, but it’s true. Her lips sliding across the stainless steel utensil has me wishing it was something else in her mouth—something of mine. The beeping of the microwave pulls me out of my dirty thoughts.
“So, what’s on the agenda? What do we need to do while we’re here?” I ask. I’m trying to get us on an even playing ground, and I need to stop thinking about her in any way other than my brother’s future sister-in-law. She’s always just been Aspen before now. Gorgeous, fun, friendly Aspen. Today, she’s more than that. She’s all smooth skin and luscious lips.
Fuck. Stop. Thinking. About. Her.
“Nothing major,” she replies. She’s completely unaware of my thoughts and what sitting here with her like this is doing to me. “The caterers are supposed to deliver supplies on Tuesday and will be back on Saturday for the wedding to set up. There’s a decorating crew that’s supposed to do the same. I think Aurora just wanted me here, just in case, you know? She’s worried something is going to go wrong.”
“Grant won’t let that happen. Trust me. It won’t matter what he has to do. He’s going to make sure that this wedding is exactly what she wants it to be.”
“What about him?”
I shrug. “Like my brothers who’ve taken the leap before him, he just wants her to be happy. It’s not where, when, or how they get married. It’s that they get married. He wants her to be his wife, change her last name, and make babies.”
“What about you? Is that what you want?”
“Yeah, I mean, isn’t that the goal?”
“I don’t know. You don’t seem too eager to settle down.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to settle down. It’s that I’ve yet to meet someone I want to settle with. Every day of forever is a long-ass time. I want to know that the woman I choose is just as invested as I am.”
“You don’t think you’ve met her?”
“No. Everyone I meet knows who we are. They know I’m a Riggins, and they see dollar signs. My brothers have been lucky enough to find women who love them for who they are. Sawyer, Layla, and Aurora don’t give a fuck about our money. They just want them. That’s what I’m waiting for.”
“And when you find her?”
“I’m never going to let go.” Settling down isn’t at the top of my list of priorities, but I will admit watching my three older brothers, and seeing how happy they are, does appeal to me. As I venture into the later side of my twenties, the random nights out aren’t as fun as they used to be. I guess that means I’m getting old.