Dirty Chef

Adam and I cracked up hard.

Alex’s eyes flooded with amusement, though there was a warning in his expression too. And I had a feeling that whatever he wanted to say wasn’t for the ears of his folks.

Lola wasn’t as restrained. “He’s gonna tan your fucking hides later.”

And the one who laughed the hardest at that was Nick.

“Worth it,” Justin said with his mouth full.

I adored this family. Elizabeth and Nick were the best parents ever. I loved my mom and dad, but they wouldn’t be as quick to adjust to such a different relationship.

Elizabeth and I had gone out for lunch shortly after Alex and Jameson went public with their dynamic, and she’d said one thing. Either you watch your family grow, or you watch it disappear. With that attitude, it was no wonder the four Grady boys had a close relationship with their parents.

When Jameson returned, he didn’t think about cake. He just went over to another seating area to grab a lower chair. Then he got comfortable a few feet to the side of the dining table, behind Nick and Jack, who shared a corner, and sat down to tune his guitar.

“Looks like we got the best seats,” I said happily to Adam.

Those across from us had to turn in their chairs.

Adam hummed a little but made no other response.

Jameson glanced up after a minute or so, and he frowned. “I’m not wasting these pipes on a bunch of gawkers.” He started strumming, and he nodded at Nick. “Didn’t you raise us to ask our partners to dance?”

“I sure did, son.” Nick gave his sons pointed looks.

Alex and Jack had no issues leading the way. They stood up and extended their hands to Lola and Isla. The lovely little smiles they all wore for one another made my heart so happy.

“Come on, baby.” Justin took Harper’s hand and nodded at the floor.

Jameson’s singing always shook me. If I didn’t know he was blissfully happy, I would’ve been worried. His voice was hauntingly beautiful. He sang as if his heart had been ripped out and stomped on.

Elizabeth had a sleeping baby in her arms, while Kyle was asleep inside, but she and Nick shared a look that whispered of years of dancing together.

It tightened my stomach.

Next to me, Adam pushed out his chair and stood up. He glanced down at me with a faint smile and held out his hand.

There goes my heart again…

I swallowed hard and placed my hand in his, and he ushered me to a private little spot ten or so feet away from the others. Before he pulled me close, he turned his ball cap backward once more. Jameson eased into another song, one I recognized instantly. It was the one Adam and I had danced to in the parking lot behind our building.

“You and that cap of yours.” I tried to keep it light, even though the moment felt anything but.

“Mm.” He rested one hand above my butt, and he trapped our joined hands between us over his chest. “Do you remember when I bought it?”

I shook my head.

“We went to a game in the city,” he murmured. “You, me, my folks. I think Jack was there too.”

I remembered now. “He got there late.” It’d been a hot day. That was most of what I recalled. So, so hot. Baseball truly wasn’t my sport. The games lasted forever. “I don’t have the best memories from that day,” I said, grinning. “I was sweating like crazy.”

He chuckled quietly.

“But I’m glad you bought yourself a little keepsake to remind me,” I joked. “Of all the million ball caps you have…”

“Fourteen ain’t a million.” He rested his forehead to mine. “And it was a special day for me. We had just signed the papers for Coho.”

See, I remembered that occasion with perfect clarity. Now I wasn’t as surprised about forgetting the game.

Adam closed his eyes and breathed in deeply.

Farther away behind us, Jameson sang the chorus, and it was impossible not to get swept away by the moment.

As affectionate as Adam and I could be and had been over the years—even in front of his family—this was new to both of us. Dancing this close? This wasn’t what friends did.

“That day,” Adam murmured. He cleared his throat and opened his eyes. The warmth mingled with something else. It was intense, and I detected a pinch of nerves. Then he smiled. “That day, I knew you’d end up being the most important person in my life.”

“Oh,” I mouthed. Holy crap.

As soon as I heard the first notes of the next song, I realized Adam had planned this. Oh God, plan. This was the plan! It was the song that hit so damn close to home, the one he’d played the other day when we sampled the desserts and ended up on the floor. The song about two friends in a small town and the rumor going around about them. A rumor about you and me… The singer wanted the rumor to be true.