“You must get a lot of guests.”
“Easton has a big family. I have two sisters. And of course all his football friends. There seems to always be someone visiting. Which we love, of course. Plus I’m waiting for the day these kids decide to settle down, get married, and start giving me grandchildren. We have a few houses on the property.”
Lydia gave her a pointed look.
Uh-oh. Time for Katrina to make Lydia understand it wasn’t going to be her and Grant. “Won’t that be fun for you?”
“Yes. I can’t wait.” Lydia looked around. “Anyway, did you want to unwind and take a nap?”
“Oh. Not at all. I’d like to help you get dinner started. I’ll go on back to the house with you.”
“Great.”
They drove back, and this time, since Katrina wasn’t in deep conversation explaining her past, she had the opportunity to gaze out the window. She spotted deer in the thick woods, and saw a creek running parallel to the road.
“It’s beautiful here,” Katrina said.
“It is. I fell in love with the place as soon as Easton and I saw it, and I knew we had to buy it. The terrain changes in so many places. There are high hills and low valleys, and sparse vegetation along with lush greenery. It’s really amazing.”
“I can see why you love it so much. I live in an apartment in Manhattan that has zero greenery other than the plants.”
“Oh, but Central Park is lovely. I’ve been there several times.”
Katrina nodded. “It is, but it’s not exactly my backyard, and I think they’d frown on me trying to grow a vegetable garden there.”
Lydia laughed. “That’s true. But you could surely buy another place out in the country somewhere if you wanted to.”
She could. But the idea of being out somewhere remote with just her and the kids kind of unnerved her.
They pulled up to the house and she noticed an additional car parked out front.
“Oh, Tucker must be here,” Lydia said.
“We went to one of his games the other night. He’s very good.”
Lydia put the car in park and turned to her. “Did you get to meet him?”
She shook her head. “No, he had to leave town for an away game.”
“We’ll take care of that now. Come on.”
When Lydia opened the door, the noise level had increased. Katrina spotted her sister in the kitchen with Mia. Grant was in there, too, along with his dad and Leo. And another guy who had to be Tucker, because she noticed the glasses.
They seemed to all be arguing about something.
“They’re arguing the curveball again,” Lydia said. “A frequent argument around here. Mainly because Tucker’s is so good. It mystifies them.”
“You can’t argue physics,” Mia said. “It’s a natural curve.”
“Bullshit. It’s an optical illusion,” Grant said.
“And you’re just jealous because you can’t throw a baseball like that,” Tucker said, offering up a smug smile to his brother.
Grant leaned against the island and folded his arms. “No, but I can throw a sweet spiral that’ll land a wide receiver in the end zone. Which you can’t do. There’s a reason you chose baseball over football.”
“Yeah,” Tucker said. “Because I’m damn good at it.”
Easton rolled his eyes. “How about we end this argument, and Tucker, give your mother a hello hug.”
Tucker turned and grinned. “Hey, Mom.”
Wow. Katrina was right. Up close, Tucker was incredibly good-looking. Very tall, a little leaner than Grant, but still built just … fine. And those glasses did nothing to detract from how very handsome he was. In fact, Katrina swore the glasses made him look even hotter.
When he pulled away from Lydia, his gaze zeroed in on her. “So I’ve met Anya and Leo. You must be Katrina.”
“I am. Nice to meet you, Tucker.”
“You, too.” Tucker cocked his head to the side. “So my brother was lucky enough to do a photo shoot with you. I’ve seen your work. It’s very impressive.”
“Thanks. I’ve seen your work with a baseball. Also very impressive.”
Tucker grinned, then looked over at Grant. “See? Your girlfriend thinks I’m impressive.”
Grant shrugged. “Only on the field. She thinks I’m impressive off the field as well.”
Dear God. Katrina hoped the floor opened up and swallowed her.
Easton only laughed. “Damn glad to have you boys home again.”
Tucker lifted his gaze to his brother. “So … Kat and her family were your four tickets, huh?”
“Yeah,” Grant said, coming over to put his arm around her shoulders.
She was surprised he’d show this kind of familiarity in front of his family. Putting his arm around her. Talking about the two of them as if they had some kind of … she didn’t know. She wasn’t sure what to think about it.
“Good call,” Tucker said, looking at his brother, then turning his attention to Katrina. “I hope you liked the game.”