Page 10 of Sunny Skies Ahead (Watford Sweethearts #2)
Chapter six
Kameron
“ C onnor Harvey. Married. I never thought I’d see the day,” Lucas said.
Connor shoved another pair of shorts into an already over-stuffed duffle bag.
Lucas flopped down on the far side of the bed to continue eating his chips.
I stood in the doorway, shaking my head fondly at the two idiots in front of me.
It was the day after the wedding, and there was a flurry of activity at the farmhouse getting things ready for the honeymoon drop off.
“I don’t know what you’re on about, Morales. Connor was the most likely out of us to find love.”
Lucas shrugged, popping another hot chip into his mouth as he gestured to Connor, who was muttering to himself about what he might be forgetting.
“I’ve watched you shove flip flops, wool socks, board shorts, and jeans into that bag. Where the hell are you going?” I asked, realizing I’d never gotten the full details from Imogen.
Connor looked up, and I laughed at the terror written into the man’s face .
“Imogen planned the entire honeymoon,” Connor said, voice strained.
“Abbie wanted a surprise honeymoon. It was part of her dream for her wedding. Said it would have stressed us out to plan it ourselves, which is insane, just so we’re clear.
I couldn’t narrow down the destinations, even after she sent the packing list. Hence, the pants and shorts. ”
Lucas let out a low whistle, and I clapped a hand over my mouth. This was Connor’s worst nightmare: being thrown into a situation with no way to prepare for all the variables.
It was yet another reminder that there was only one person in the world Connor Harvey would ever make this many sacrifices for.
“At least you know it’s international,” Lucas said, gesturing to Connor’s passport tucked into the front of the duffel. I shook my head.
“Not necessarily,” I said, smiling. “There’s a good chance it’s a domestic destination and Imogen asked them to bring their passports in order to throw them off the scent.”
“I trust that she’s picked somewhere Abbie will love,” Connor said, waving a hand. “The two of them have been planning their weddings since the dawn of freaking time. At the end of the day, that’s all I care about.”
I smiled while Lucas made a gagging noise.
“You’re going to have to get used to it,” I said.
“The two of you keep dropping like flies,” Lucas whined. “First, it was Connor and Abbie. Now, you and Imogen keep circling each other. It’s only a matter of time. Soon enough, I’ll be the last man standing.”
My eye twitched. “I think you’re mistaken. ”
“Oh, he’s not mistaken,” Connor chimed in. When I gave him a look, Connor just grinned at me. “Abbie might have let it slip about your, uh, job offer.”
I pressed my lips together. I had been meaning to tell the two of them, but with the wedding and everything that came after, I hadn’t found a good time to do so.
“It’s a very part time arrangement.”
“Right,” Connor said, a smile playing on his lips.
“Look, we need the help. None of us have administrative skills. All three of us would much rather be in the great outdoors, doing literally anything else. Imogen thrives with organizational stuff. It seemed like the perfect fit.”
“And it just so corresponded with her quarter life crisis.”
I was going to smack Lucas one of these days. I could feel it in my bones.
“Yeah, it did,” I said, feeling more like a petulant child than a grown man. “I know I should have run this by the two of you, but with Connor splitting his time between Watford and the farm, we need someone here to pick up the slack. Imogen is that person.”
“I’m not mad about it,” Lucas said. “Imogen’s been talking for months about how she needs a change of pace from the homestead. I think it’ll be good for her. And you’re right, we need the help, especially because your focus needs to be on grant proposals.”
“So, why are you worried?” I asked, somewhat exasperated.
“Because of what we talked about in the car,” Lucas answered, giving me an uncharacteristically serious look. “Don’t screw with people’s feelings. ”
“He wouldn’t do that,” Connor said, zipping his bag shut and pinning Lucas with a glare. “You haven’t known him for as long as I have. Kameron’s the most honest of the three of us. He wears his heart on his sleeve. He wouldn’t lead Imogen on like that.”
I didn’t need Connor to defend me, but it was nice to have someone step in on my behalf sometimes. Lucas set his jaw forward.
“You’re right. I shouldn’t have dug at you like that. Imogen has been a really good friend to me these last few months. We’ve shared a lot with each other. I don’t want her to get hurt. That’s all.”
Something about Lucas’s tone got under my skin. I didn’t know if it was the insinuation that I would somehow intentionally hurt Imogen, or Lucas’s clear perception of something worth exploring.
I’d really screwed myself.
On the one hand, this new proximity would give Imogen and I more of a chance to get to know one another, instead of doing this weird back-and-forth text message exchange where we somehow talked about everyone else but never ourselves.
“Ready to head out?” I said, standing to my full height as opposed to slouching in the door frame.
That smitten glint returned to Connor’s eyes as he grabbed the duffle bag and slung it over his shoulder.
“Hell yes,” he said.
I felt that odd, familiar feeling twist in my gut when I saw how excited Connor was to see Abbie again. Connor had been parted from Abbie for less than two hours, and he was already tripping over himself to get back to her.
I shook my head, unable to reconcile the thoughts swirling in my mind.
I had seen the ways love could destroy people. I had seen my mom become a shell of the woman she’d been when I was growing up. When my dad died, a light in her went out forever.
Things were better now. Strained, but not broken.
But I’d never forget the dark years I spent trying to find a way to bring that spark back to life. They’d made a mark on my soul. Those years were what drove me to swear love and connection off in the first place.
Yet deep down, I was realizing that I still wanted it for myself.
I wanted to experience that kind of all-encompassing love.
Even if it broke me the way it had broken my mother.