“Cheap shot, Rhodes, but fine, I’ll go with you.”
A way too satisfied grin lives on my lips.
“Stop smiling. It’s creeping me out.” She once again heads for the exit. “You’re driving. I’m much better as a passenger princess, so pick me up at home.”
I watch as Miller leaves, getting back into her van, and fuck do I love that the term home keeps slipping from her mouth.
Chapter 21
Miller
This house is nice. Similar to Kai’s place, which is only ten minutes away, but a bit bigger. On the short drive over, I learned that the owners are a local NBA player and his fiancée, and that I’d also be meeting another guy who plays for Chicago’s NHL team as well as his fiancée.
I’m nervous.
I was hesitant to agree when Kai asked me back at the stadium, but those nerves have only amplified on the ride over here. Meeting the closest friends of the dad I’m nannying for doesn’t exactly seem like the nostrings-attached summer I planned for. In fact, this dinner feels very stringy.
At the same time, there’s an odd pressure sitting on my chest, hoping they’ll like me. I can’t recall the last time I was concerned about acceptance. I never stay in one place long enough to worry if I’ll make friends or not, but this feels different and I’m not sure why. It shouldn’t matter if Kai’s friends like me or not because, in less than a month’s time, they won’t remember me anyway.
Kai opens the front door without knocking, reaffirming how comfortable he is with these people, and I enter first with Max slung on my hip. But two steps into the foyer, when I hear voices, I stop.
“Go ahead.” He motions towards the back of the house. “I think everyone is in the kitchen.”
I don’t move.
“You okay?”
I nod.
“Miller Montgomery.” He turns toward me. “Are you . . . nervous?”
“No.”
He chuckles. “Oh my God, you are. Miss ‘grab my tits if it’ll help you calm down’ is nervous for a little family dinner.”
I can’t even get in on the joke right now. That’s how off I feel.
His face softens. “They’re all nice people, Mills.”
I straighten my shoulders, determination set between them. “I’m sure they are. Let’s go.”
Kai’s confused stare burns into the back of my head, but I’m not going to reveal that I’m nervous because I don’t really have friends. No need to explain that friendship leads to connection which leads to heartbreak when I inevitably leave for the next city. Because then he’d ask why I’d be nervous if that were the case and I’d have to try to figure it out for myself why I want his friends to like me of all people.
I’m the first to see everyone as I stand in the entryway to the kitchen with Max on my hip.
“Hi!” He waves to the four other people in the room, but I stay frozen in place when all eyes land on me. Then Kai’s hand finds the small of my back and an odd amount of peace washes over me from that simple gesture.
That’s Kai though. Stable. Dependable. Always there when you need him.
But this summer, he’s needed me. To help with his son. To make him let loose. And now, the tables have turned for the first time in our . . . whatever our situation is.
The group of four glance around each other in the kitchen, unspoken conversations taking place, before a tall man with a chain around his neck and tattoos decorating his arm splits into a cheeky smile. “Well, aren’t you three the cutest little family we’ve ever seen.” He finishes that with a few brow pumps aimed at the man at my side.
We do look domestic as hell, me holding Max, and Kai carrying the lemon meringue pie I whipped up.
“Miller, right?” asks a woman with blue-green eyes and curly hair.
I hold my hand up in a small wave. “That’s me. The nanny he wasn’t allowed to fire and is now sleeping with.”
A man with equally vibrant eyes chokes on his drink.
“Yep. I like her,” says the first man with the tattoos.
“She’s giving you guys shit,” Kai corrects.
A blonde woman with a spring in her step bounds right towards me. “It is so great to meet you! I’m Indy,” she says, gesturing behind her. “This is my fiancé, Ryan. Welcome to our home! And that’s my best friend, Stevie, and her fiancé, Zanders.”
I mentally engrain those names the best I can.
Man with ocean eyes and freckled cheeks: Ryan.
Woman with those same attributes: Stevie.
Tattoos and chain: Zanders
And the blonde ball of sunshine: Indy.
“Can I say hi to this little guy?” She holds her hands out for Max and he finds his way into her arms. “And let me take that from you.” She grabs the pie from Kai. “Did you make this, Miller? It looks amazing. Do you want a drink? I made margaritas! Come in, make yourselves comfortable.”
After hellos are said, the room seems to settle, giving us a moment to join.
I keep my voice quiet so only Kai can hear. “She seems . . . friendly.”
“She will make you her . . . bestie. Is that what you girls call it?”
I chuckle. “I don’t fucking know.”
“Well, she will make you her friend even if you try to resist, so my advice would be to just go with it.”
A small curve settles on my lips at the idea of that.
Kai’s thumb rubs a circle against my lower back in his naturally soothing way. “Do you feel a bit better now?”
“They called us cute.”
“How dare they.” His head jerks back. “The last word I’d ever use to describe you is ‘cute’.”
“Exactly. God, you know me so well.”
“Stevie, how’s the senior dog center been?” Kai asks.
“It’s been great. With the team’s partnership”—she points at Zanders—“donations have been amazing and adoptions have been consistent.” Her brow raises. “Why are you asking? Are you looking to adopt?”
Kai chuckles. “One day, I promise I will. Once I officially retire from baseball, you’ll be my first stop.”
“Deal.”
Indy uses her fork to point to the almost finished lemon meringue slice on her plate. “Miller, I’m going to need this recipe. Actually, I think I’m going to need you to just come over and teach me sometime. I’ve never gotten meringue right.”
“I’d love to. Teaching is one of the favorite parts of my job.”
“Perfect.” She brings her margarita to her lips with a smile. “We’ll make a girls’ day out of it. Stevie, you in?”
“Absolutely.”
I sit back in my seat with a smile on my lips, and Kai’s palm slides over my thigh under the table, giving it a squeeze. When my attention drifts to his face, he’s got a soft grin on his lips and shoots me a discreet wink.
Tonight has been great. The nerves disappeared almost immediately.
It also helped when Rio, Zanders’ teammate, showed up and brought the humor. It’s my favorite way to break the ice.
But it’s been especially great because Indy and Stevie are nice girls, and it’s comforting to see how much the guys care about Kai and his son. Ryan was even the one to take Max upstairs and put him down for bed in one his guest rooms where, apparently, they keep a crib for nights like this one.
“And the wedding?” Kai asks Ryan and Indy. “How’s the planning?”
Ryan slips his hand into Indy’s, looking right at her when he says, “Great. We’re getting close. September twelfth.”
“Miller, will you still be in town?” Indy asks, pumping her brow in Kai’s direction. “Kai has a plus-one.”
“Okay, matchmaker,” he mutters under his breath.
I freeze for the first time at the table because dinner with his friends already felt too intimate and attached but attending his close friend’s wedding is a whole other category.
“I won’t be, unfortunately. I leave at the end of August.”
My eyes flick to Kai and he’s not smiling.
“Speaking of marriage and husbands,” Rio begins, starting on his second slice of pie. “Miller, are you looking for one?”
“No, she’s not,” Kai quickly declares at my side.