Annihilate Me (Vol. 4) (The Annihilate Me Series) (7 page)

He
brushed some sand off his chest and smiled at me.
 
“Excellent!”

“I
’
ll start making a couple of different salads
now.
 
What do you think for the
main?
 
Seafood or steaks?”

“Both.”

“I
’
m on it.”

“Give
me twenty minutes and I
’
ll be in
to help.”

By
the time he joined me in the kitchen, forty minutes had passed and he was
covered in sand.
 
I looked up at him
with amusement.
 
“You might want to
use the outdoor shower before you come any closer.”

“What
if I come over there and share some of this sand with you?”

I
knew he
’
d do it if he thought he
could get away with it, so I held out my hand in an effort to stop him.
 
“
You can
’
t!
 
Look at all of the food I’ve made—the sand will get into it, which
makes it a deal breaker.
 
Get thee
to the shower, hot stuff.
 
Rinse
off.
 
Then you can help.
 
I
’
ve
made a fresh mesclun salad from the garden and tossed it with a lime
vinaigrette that would make Blackwell proud—it’s chilling in the
fridge.
 
Now I
’
m about to finish my grandmother
’
s French potato salad, which you haven
’
t had, but you
’
ll love.
 
We had the herbs for it in the garden,
plenty of chives and scallions, and obviously good wine and mustard for the
base, so I figured it would be a good choice.
 
I
’
m
going to make hummus and serve it on crackers.
 
We have plenty of chips from the last
delivery, so that will make Max happy.
 
I think we have some jarred salsa somewhere, too.”

“Look
at you,” he said.
 

“I
told you I could cook.
 
Now rinse
off so you can come over here and give me a kiss, OK?”

“Just
a kiss?”

“You
’
re incorrigible.”

“It
’
s not as if we don
’
t have enough time....”

“You
look too hot for a mere quickie, so that
’
s
a no.
 
Besides, you need to come in
and tenderize your meat.”

He
grinned at that.

“As
for later tonight, when we
’
re
alone?”
 
I cocked my head at
him.
 
“You never know what might
happen.”

*
 
*
 
*

When
Ann and her family arrived at three, Alex and I had designed a spread that was
pretty impressive for something so impromptu.
 
Both of us had showered and changed, and
somehow, after so much rushing around, we were ready for the party.

“We
did it,” I said.

“A
couple of old pros.”

“You
’
d think we
’
d been doing this for years.”

He
bent forward and kissed me.
 
“One
day, it will be years.”

When
I heard their Jeep pull up, I took the salads out of the fridge, gave them a
quick stir, and hurried them to the table Alex had set up on the deck.
 
I then crossed the kitchen to the front
door while Alex filled the table with the rest of the food.

“It
’
s safe to open up the bag of chips now,” I
said as I passed him.
 
“We
’
ve staved off the humidity long enough.
 
They
’
re good for two hours, then they
’
ll be soggy and worthless.”

“Got
them.”

“I
set aside that big glass bowl on the counter for them.”

“You
’
re so
efficient.
”

“Look
who
’
s talking.
 
This is going to be fun.
 
Here they come.
 
Jesus, Ann wasn
’
t joking.
 
She
’
s carrying a huge pitcher of
margaritas.
 
Don
’
t let me get loaded.”

“Sure,
honey.”

“You
’
re
terrible.
”

I
opened the door, waved to them, and scooted down when Max ran across the gravel
driveway to me to give me a hug.

“How
are you, little man?”

“Mom
’
s making me get rid of my seashells.”

I
glanced up at Ann, who just shook her head at me.
 
As usual, she looked flawless, slim, and
sophisticated.
 
She was wearing
yellow shorts and a white tank top that revealed a tan that rivaled mine.
 
Her blonde hair was pulled away from her
face in a ponytail that hung over her shoulder and reminded me, for an instant,
of Lisa.
 
I looked over at Mark, who
waved to me.
 
He was a tall,
handsome man in his early thirties with curly, dark brown hair that was in need
of a good haircut.
 
Just like the
rest of us.

“All
of them?” I said to Max.

“Well,
maybe not
all
of them.”

“But
some of them.”

“Yeah,
I guess so.
 
Some of them.”

“I
bet you
’
ve chosen your favorites.”

“All
of them are my favorites.”

“Maybe
some day we
’
ll come back so you can
get the rest.”

That
did the trick.
 
He turned to his
mother and said, “You didn
’
t say we
could come back and get the others.”

“I
didn
’
t?”

“Um,
n
ooooo.
”

“Well,
maybe one day we will.
 
I can
’
t promise when, but they
’
ll always be here.
 
How about that?”

“Awesome,”
he said, and then he darted past me and ran into the house to find Alex.

I
stood up and kissed them both on the cheek.
 
“Crisis averted.”

“And
it was a crisis.
 
You have no idea.”

“You
don
’
t,” Mark agreed.

“He
’
s
adorable.
 
It
’
s got to be tough to deny him anything.”

“I
can
’
t wait for you and Alex to
have a child of your own,” Ann said.
 
“Girl or boy, she or he will be beautiful.”

From
behind me came Alex
’
s
voice.
 
“I can
’
t wait either,” he said.

I
turned around in surprise and looked at him.
 
He was leaning against the doorway, Max
was holding onto his leg, and even though his expression was one of amusement,
I could tell that he meant what he’d said.

“You
’
ll have to marry me first,” I said.
 

He
came forward and took the pitcher from Ann
’
s hands.
 
“Just say the word.
 
Whenever you
’
re ready, I
’
m ready.”

At
which point he walked inside with Max.

I
turned to Ann, and our eyes widened as we looked at each other as only two
women could after such a
statement.

“Women,”
Mark said when he strolled past us.

“You
’
ll never understand,” Ann said.

“
You won
’
t,” I agreed.

She
reached out and held my hands.
 
“No
pressure, but I want to be a bridesmaid.”

“As
if you need to ask.”

I
put my arm around her as we walked into the house.

“The
two of you married.
 
I can
’
t bear it,” she said.

I
turned to look at her.
 
“One of the
happiest days of my life is on the horizon.
 
But I want to enjoy my engagement
first.
 
When it comes to the
wedding, the only question is when.”

“When
do you think?”

“When
it’s right.
 
That man has my heart
for life.”

“I
’
m dying here.”

I smiled at her.
 
“Me too.”

*
 
*
 
*

After
a wonderful afternoon and evening that involved one mother of a bonfire, good
food, laughter, and Ann
’
s
terrific margaritas and superb martini skills, we all woke the next day, packed
and ready for the flight back to Manhattan.

CHAPTER FIVE

When
we arrived back in the city the next day, it was early evening, and Manhattan
looked as if it had been tossed with a shimmering spray of lights.
 
From my frost-covered window, I could
see two large, black SUVs waiting for us on the tarmac at LaGuardia.
 

Their
headlights flooded the area while casting deep shadows.
 
I saw Blackwell, Tank, and members of
Tank
’
s team, all of whom were
suited up, and though I couldn’t see them, I knew they all were carrying guns.

“Jackets,
everyone,” Ann said.
 
“I put each of
yours above your seats.
 
No one is
catching cold on my watch.”

“Thank
you,” I said.
 
“I didn
’
t even think of that.”

“I
barely thought of it.
 
After our
stay on the island, I had to remind myself that it
’
s November.
 
I have a feeling we
’
re going to feel the cold more than most
when that door opens.”

I
turned to Alex, who was seated across the aisle from me, and reached for his
hand.
 
“Did you sleep at all?”

“A
bit.
 
Not enough though.”

“Same
here.
 
Too much on my mind.”

“Are
you happy to be back?”

“I
’
ll be happy to see Lisa.
 
I
’
ll
be happier to put this behind us.
 
But so long as I
’
m with
you, I
’
m fine.
”

He
kissed the back of my hand and held it for a moment against his cheek before we
stood and put on our jackets.

As
we departed the Lear, the first person I looked for when I reached the door was
Tank.
 
When I spotted him, he caught
my glance and mouthed “You
’
re fine
”
to me.
 
Then I came down the stairs
followed by Ann and her family, and finally Alex.
 

Blackwell
greeted me with a mix of relief and mischief in her eyes.

“Look
at you,” she said.
 
“So, this
confirms it.
 
The camera does add
ten pounds.
 
Even with your jacket,
I can tell that you haven’t ballooned to two hundred pounds the way I thought
you had.”
 
Her expression
softened.
 
She held my face in her
hands, and then she hugged me.
 
In a
low voice, she said in my ear, “And thank God you
’
re back, Jennifer.
 
I
’
ve
missed you terribly.”