Feeling Hot

“You look as handsome as ever,” she said softly.

Saying a silent prayer that Holly wouldn’t bolt the second she saw Carson, Jen walked to the front hall and opened the door to let Holly in. “Hey. Thanks for coming,” she told her sister-in-law.

Holly’s low ponytail fell over one dainty shoulder as she followed Jen inside. “It’s no problem. You sounded so upset over the phone. I still can’t believe you broke up with Cash! I thought you said the two of you were—Carson?”

The brunette stopped in her tracks when she spotted her husband. She immediately turned to Jen with a wary look. “What’s going on?” Then she noticed Cash sitting on the sofa, and the wariness deepened. “You two didn’t break up, did you?”

Jen smiled sheepishly. “No.”

Carson took a step toward his wife, his nervousness clearly etched into his face. “Hey, Hol.”

Holly frowned at her husband. “Why are you in uniform?”

“I figured it was appropriate.” He shot her a faint smile. “I was wearing this uniform the night of Garrett and Shelby’s wedding, remember? When we ran into each other again after you abandoned me in a supply closet.”

After a beat, Holly smiled back. “I never thought I’d see you again after that night at the club.” Her green eyes glimmered with humor before going dull again. “But what does that night have to do with right now?”

As the pair eyed each other, Jen edged away, wanting to give them privacy. Cash did the same—he’d already risen from the sofa and was creeping toward the bedroom.

But her brother stopped them before they could make their escape. “Stay,” he said hoarsely. “I might as well grovel in front of an audience.”

“Grovel?” Holly let out a breath. “Carson, I don’t want to talk about—”

“I don’t want you to talk,” he said quietly. “I just want you to listen, okay?”

Holly seemed to hesitate, but then she nodded. She slid the strap of her leather purse off her shoulder and set it on the couch, but she didn’t make a move to sit. She just stood there, staring at her husband with sad green eyes.

Carson shifted his feet, looking more nervous than Jen had ever seen him. Finally, he cleared his throat. “I f**ked up, Hol. I know I f**ked up and I’ve been trying to find a way to fix this for months now. I was seeing a therapist—”

“You were?” Holly said, agape.

He nodded. “I thought she’d help me figure out how to make things right between us, but arrogant ass that I am, I kept ignoring her advice. She went on and on about communication, and I was all, less talk more action. Like my whole let’s-have-a-baby idea.” He gave a self-deprecating smile. “Because having a kid is really the way to solve a problem, huh?”

Holly laughed softly.

Carson moved closer, and Jen couldn’t help but smile when she saw her brother and sister-in-law standing so close. Carson towered over his wife, and yet Holly was the one who seemed to wield all the power despite her pixie-esque stature.

“I know it’s hard for you when I’m gone,” Carson mumbled. “It’s hard for me, too. More than you’ll ever know.”

Something warm touched her arm, and Jen jumped, then relaxed when she realized Cash had come up beside her. Without a word, he took her hand, the warmth of his touch seeping into her skin.

Across the room, Holly’s eyes shone with unshed tears. “But I don’t know, Carson. You don’t give me any indication that you even miss me when you’re away. You just try to pick up where we left off. You act like my entire purpose in life is to sit at home and wait for you to get back.” She blinked rapidly. “But I can’t do that. I have a life too. My job at the restaurant, my work with Annabelle. I can’t just drop everything when you come home and make you the center of my existence. Especially when I’m not the center of your existence.”

“I know. And I’m a jerk for suggesting you quit your job. I don’t want you to do that. The only thing I want is for you to be happy.” His voice cracked. “And I do miss you when I’m away, Hol. You’re all I f**king think about.”

Holly’s tears spilled over, and damned if Jen didn’t feel all teary herself. As much as she hated intruding on this personal moment, she was so very touched seeing her brother lay himself bare like that.

Carson cupped his wife’s cheeks and swept his thumbs over the moisture there. “I want to make things better, but I need to know that you want the same thing. That you haven’t completely given up on me.”

“Of course I haven’t given up. I love you, you idiot.”

All the tension left Carson’s body. “I love you too,” he said roughly.

When Holly stood on her tiptoes to kiss her husband, Jen felt like a total voyeur. She squeezed Cash’s hand, signaling that it was time to sneak away, but Carson foiled their next attempt when he spoke up again.

“Jen, where’d you put that printout?”

“Shoot. I left it in the printer tray in my room. I’ll get it.”

Letting go of Cash’s hand, she dashed into her bedroom and grabbed the sheet of paper, which she handed to Carson once she returned to the living room.

“What’s that?” Holly asked.

“Our hotel confirmation,” Carson replied with a grin. “We’re going to Catalina.”