Ava was uncomfortable at the thought of someone studying her so closely, but also strangely touched that Suzy seemed to care about what happened to her. Squeezing the other woman’s hand briefly, she swallowed the lump in her throat and attempted to lighten the mood. “Thank you . . . for caring. But if we put my past issues aside and pretend that I’m, say . . . Emma, what would you tell me to do?”
Suzy narrowed her eyes, seeming to give the question serious consideration. “Well, I guess if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. In other words, all the stuff that you’ve been doing to get Mac’s attention seems to be working like a charm. You’ve had sex—obviously the wonderful, dirty kind—and he’s no longer with G-lo, so you hold all the cards now. Did you have something else planned to drive him crazy?”
“Well, I’m supposed to have a surf lesson today.”
Suzy cringed immediately. Emma’s sister’s death was still fresh in all their minds. “I don’t think that’s the best idea. Couldn’t you come up with anything else?”
“I know.” Ava sighed. “But living in a beach town means most of the activities here revolve around the beach. I’m going to cancel it.”
“Hey, I’ve got it! How about parasailing? I’ve done it a few times before and it’s awesome. I could go with you. They’ll even let us go up together. It’s just down the beach from our house, so you could come over this afternoon and we’ll walk there.”
“And Gray doesn’t freak out over you doing stuff like that?”
Suzy grinned, looking completely mischievous. “Well, of course he freaks out, but he knows he can’t change me. He just makes it his mission to catch me if I fall.”
“It sounds scary,” Ava admitted, “but kinda fun.”
“Best part, Gray has been saying for a week that he needs to get Mac to come over because he wants to upgrade our security system. I’ll suggest he do that this evening while I’m out. Actually, I’ll insist on it.”
Feeling embarrassed, Ava asked, “You aren’t going to tell Gray why, are you? I mean, I have to face him over a conference table at least once a week. I don’t want him to think I’m some desperate woman trying to pick up a man. Even though I guess I am.”
Shaking her head, Suzy smiled. “Nah, I won’t tell him. He’s a little gun-shy on the whole matchmaking thing after having his brother and my sister making out secretly in our house for weeks before we found out. I still think about them screwing on our kitchen counter when I’m in there, but what are you going to do? It happened.”
Ava choked on her sip of tea at Suzy’s matter-of-fact analysis of Nick and Beth’s courtship. She could easily picture both Gray and Suzy avoiding their kitchen like the plague. “Oh my God, that’s funny. Poor Nick and Beth.”
“Poor them? Shit, poor us! I’d burn the place down if I didn’t love it so much.”
Their food arrived and after taking a few bites, Ava asked, “So, what time should I be at your house?”
“Can you be there around five thirty? You can wear one of my swimsuits to keep from going home first.”
Ava tried not to imagine what a swimsuit of Suzy’s might possibly look like. She’d have to borrow a T-shirt to put over it. “Sure, that sounds good.”
“Cool, now get out your phone and text something naughty to Mac. Just to let him know where your head is.”
Her sandwich dropped back onto her plate with a thump as her eyes widened. “Wh-what?”
“You did say for me to give you the same advice that I would Emma. Well, that’s what I would tell her. All men love hearing that you’re thinking of THAT. Trust me, I practice what I preach. Gray gets some interesting texts and it never fails to make for a memorable evening.”
Despite herself, Ava was intrigued. She’d never done anything like that, since she’d never actually had a boyfriend. It did sound fun, though, just like something someone normal would do. “So, what would I say?”
Suzy winked at her, saying, “Well, the last one I sent Gray said something like ‘thinking of you while I touch myself,’ but since he knows you’re at work or in this case at lunch, it might be harder to pull that one off—but not impossible, mind you. Maybe we should start off kind of mild, just so this first text doesn’t send him over the edge. How about . . . ‘I know you’re busy today, but can you add one thing to your to-do list? Me’?”
“What?” Ava shrieked. “I can’t say that!”
“Oh, come on, why not? It’s perfect. It starts out as business and ends as a party. It’s just the right amount of sweet and sexy. I guarantee that he’ll be busting out the zipper of his pants within sixty seconds of reading that.”
Red-faced, Ava said, “Oh . . . I can’t, I just—what would he think if I said something like that to him?”