Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82186 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82186 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Kola was right behind her. “I’m ordering the Korean,” he informed us. “Emergency coven biz. You guys want Tteokbokki?”
It was nice to see him cover for her, which she would have done just as quickly for him.
“You guys are a good team,” I told him.
He made a gun of his fingers. “You guys too, babe.”
I snorted.
“Babe?” Sam repeated. “No. No, just delete that from your vocabulary.”
“No babe, babe?” he teased, walking backwards out of the kitchen.
Sam walked after him. “Listen, no one can say that and not sound like an idiot.”
I sighed deeply, glancing over at Hannah, who had her head back and her eyes closed. “Ohmygod, Marie, of course it matters. It’s just like when you cook. If you’re pissed off when you’re cooking, people will be pissed off after they eat it.”
My family.
“Is bae better?” I heard Harper inquire.
“How do we feel about me sayin’ ‘my old lady’?” Jake chimed in. “Is it too 1975?”
“What is happening right now?” I heard Sam ask, and then seconds later, “Jory!”
That’s it, everyone. I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your May, and I will see you in June.
JUNE 2021
Hello, all. Happy Pride and welcome to He Said, he said for June. As a treat for Sam—and an early Father’s Day gift—I invited a few of his friends, like Pat and Chaz, and older ones, from his Marine Corps days, for a weekend get-together on a luxury houseboat on Lake Shelbyville. They just needed to meet Sam at the Lithia Springs Marina on Friday afternoon and they could have a whole weekend of being on the water, hanging out, and drinking and eating. The boat would come stocked with all the essentials, which meant beer and bourbon as well as anything and everything to go on a grill. Of course I made sure everyone was vaccinated, and yes, I made them take a photo of their immunization cards, because let’s face it, my husband would ask no matter how much he liked everyone.
There ended up being fifteen guys who were excited to join Sam for the impromptu second weekend in June. I had invited Dane and Duncan to go as well, but Duncan said he was too old and too spoiled for two days on a houseboat that didn’t include a cook and a butler, and Dane just stared at me like I was insane until I rescinded my offer.
I was surprised on Friday night when there was a knock on the front door and Hannah went to answer it after picking up Dobby, who was there, as usual, barking his head off.
“Pa.”
Turning from the chocolate cream pie I was making, I saw a man with my daughter who honestly looked like he’d stepped right out of the pages of a romance novel. Between the rugged good looks, the square jawline, the dimples that popped when he smiled, and the short dirty-blond hair that didn’t seem to know which way it was going, he was stunning. He was a bit shorter than Sam, so maybe six-three, with wide shoulders, a narrow waist, and long legs. His leather riding jacket looked like it had seen better days, as did his motorcycle boots, but the black matte helmet under his right arm was in good shape.
“Hi,” I offered, because again, very handsome man in my kitchen, but why he was in my kitchen to begin with was the point. I glanced at my daughter, who was sipping a cup of chai tea she’d just made.
“What?” she replied defensively.
“Stranger danger?”
She shook her head. “Not good with following directions.”
I turned back to the man, and his grimace as he walked forward, first setting his helmet on the kitchen table and then closing on me, hand out, told me she was right.
“Gale Dyer,” he said, introducing himself. “You must be Jory.”
“I am.” I was careful not to sound sarcastic. “It looks as though you might have misread something in my email.”
“Yeah, I thought it said meet here and go.”
I nodded as I shook the callused hand and then watched as he stepped back and ran the same hand through his thick hair.
“For the record, I’m all immunized.”
“I think you probably told me that in the RSVP.”
“Which tells me again that I barely glanced at your email. I clearly answered you, but instead of actually reading, I loaded your home address into my GPS and that was it.”
“It’s a simple mistake,” I soothed him.
“It was a dumb one, but thank you.”
“Where did you drive from?” I asked.
“I was in Seattle visiting friends.”
“Holy crap,” I gasped, staring at him. “All that way on a motorcycle? I would be dead at a quarter of the distance.” He chuckled in response. “But I would be terrible on the road for any length of time, period. I’m far too fond of my creature comforts.”