Page 66 of Taste of Surrender

Jesse handed her a mug. “She’s staying here to check out some wedding venues and start meeting with the vendors.”

“Oh.” I was a little bummed to hear that. Over the last few weeks, she and I had grown closer as she hung out with me and Garrett while the guys and Savannah were busy with everything they did. “It’s going to be weird not having you around.”

“Yeah, I asked my sister to come stay with me before she starts classes at Hawkins U; otherwise, it would be too quiet in this house without you all here.”

Jesse wrapped his arms around her waist. “Don’t worry, baby. I’ll FaceTime you every night,” he said before spinning her around and kissing her.

I shook my head and turned on the food processor to drown out the sound of them making out. With how into each other they were, I wondered if they would have even noticed if I hadn’t come home.

Once they pulled apart, I continued moving around the kitchen, putting the final touches on their lunch. As I plated the pasta, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. Pulling it out, I saw Malachi’s name on the display.

Making sure neither Jesse nor Olivia could see, I clicked on the message to open it:

I hate not having you here. Do you think you can sneak away again tonight?

I don’t know. Maybe if I wait until J&O go to bed

I have an idea. Give me a minute

I shoved the phone back into my pocket then slid the plates across the island where Jesse and Olivia were sitting.

“You’re not going to eat?” Jesse asked.

“I had breakfast before you guys woke up.” It wasn’t a lie, but a part of me felt guilty because I wasn’t being completely honest with my brother.

While I started cleaning the kitchen, my phone vibrated again with a text from Malachi.

Tell Jesse that Savannah is setting you up with someone. She said she would cover for us if he asks

I chuckled to myself. I was going to have to make Savannah some epic vegan meals to pay her back.

“What’s so funny?” Jesse asked.

“Uh … Savannah just texted. She wants to set me up on a date tonight with a guy she knows.”

Olivia smiled brightly. “That’s awesome. Are you going to go?”

I shrugged, trying to play it cool. “Sure. It might be fun.”

While they dug into their lunch, I texted Malachi back:

It’s a date

Malachi textedme to let me know he was waiting for me down the street like we had planned.

“My date is here, so I’m taking off. Don’t wait up.” I waggled my eyebrows, causing Olivia to giggle while Jesse frowned.

“Don’t we get to meet this guy?” he asked.

“Let’s see how tonight goes before you freak him out with the protective older brother bullshit.” I laughed.

“Fine,” he grumbled at the same time Olivia said, “Have fun.”

Once I closed the door behind me, I hurried down the sidewalk in case my brother got any ideas to follow me outside. Spotting the Mercedes G-Class, I swung the door open and climbed inside.

“Let’s go,” I said as I buckled up.

Malachi grinned and pulled away from the curb. “You that excited to get this date started?”