“I’m Jenna, by the way. It’s so good to meet you, Sydney.”

She knew about me, I was sure of that, but I didn’t know the extent and I really wanted to know what all had been said about me.

Especially the whole love business.

“It’s good to meet you, too,” I replied, dropping her hand and looking down at her shoes. “Cute booties.”

Really cute.

They were camel-colored leather with a chunky wooden heel that had to be four inches.

I wondered what size she wore.

“Thanks. I have a date tonight and he’s six-five. Needed some height.” Jenna turned her head and looked at Brian. “Did you forget?”

Brian shoved his hands in his pockets.

“Nope.”

“You forgot.” Jenna sighed. “It’s fine. I can reschedule.”

“No way!” Olivia cried, stomping her foot.

“Oh, man. This sucks.” Oliver crossed his arms over his chest and huffed out a breath. “I don’t wanna go back home. It’s boring there. I wanted to walk on the beach.”

“Oliver, don’t say sucks. That’s not nice,” Jenna scolded.

“Well, it does,” he whispered, ducking his head.

“I don’t care. You’re not allowed to say that word.”

“Fine. This is stupid.”

“You aren’t allowed to say that either,” she snapped, sounding on the verge of losing her temper. “Do I need to take away your iPad privileges?”

Oliver looked up at her, quickly shook his head, and muttered, “No, ma’am.”

I decided to cut in before the poor thing said something out of panic and got his iPad privileges taken away. I felt bad.

“You don’t have to reschedule. We didn’t have plans tonight. We’d be happy to watch them,” I told Jenna, seeing her smile then looking over at Brian to confirm and watching his brows lift in surprise. “Right?”

He stared at me, face stuck in that expression.

“Right?” I probed.

“We didn’t have plans?” Brian asked incredulously. “’Cause I thought we were sorta in the middle of somethin’—”

“That can be pushed back until later,” I cut in, bringing my hands to my hips. “Obviously.”

He cocked his head.

“Not sure it can, babe.”

“It totally can.”

“You understand what I’m dealing with right now?”

“Um, should we step out?” Jenna asked hesitantly.

“No. Please stay here,” I replied, eyes narrowed as they sliced back to Brian.

Brian narrowed his back.

This was so not the time or place to have this discussion, and seriously, how painful were blue balls anyway? I was certain men played that shit up.

“Really?” he asked.

I nodded hard. “Really.”

Brian looked to the ceiling and breathed in deep.

“Well, it was a good run. Sweet while it lasted.”

He was talking about our relationship.

“Very funny,” I quipped, catching the smile he was fighting before looking between the kids. “You two wanna hang out here for a while?”

“Yes!” Oliver punched his fist into the air and jumped off the floor. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Olivia shook her hips with a little dance, then cutely high-fived her brother.

“Are you sure?” Jenna asked, concern in her voice. “I don’t wanna put you two out.”

“You won’t be. Go enjoy yourself. We got this.”

She smiled again.

“I like your girlfriend, Uncle Brian. She’s cool,” Oliver said, taking the two small duffles out of his mother’s hand and giving the one decorated with pastel circles to Olivia. “And I guess she’s pretty.”

“She’s super pretty!” Olivia shouted, looking up at me and clutching her duffle against her chest. “Wanna play hair salon? I brought my accessories.”

I smiled big.

“Absolutely. I love accessories.”

“Awesome,” she whispered excitedly, then turned her head. “You hear that, Ollie? Syd is gonna play hair salon with me, and she loves accessories, too!”

“Yeah, whatever. Me and Uncle Brian are gonna play Road Blocks.”

Oliver rounded the couch with his duffle and climbed on, heaving the bag up on the cushion and unzipping it.

Olivia scrambled after him.

“I have my cell if you need me. We shouldn’t be that late so you won’t have to put them to bed,” Jenna said, stepping in front of Brian and laughing quietly at the frustrated expression he was still holding, then wrapping him up into a hug. “I love her,” she whispered, loud enough for me to hear. “Don’t mess this up.”

“Don’t you have a date to get to?”

She leaned away and stuck out her tongue, then gave me a wave, smiling.

“Have fun!” I said, waving back.

Her heels slapped against the wood floor as she exited the room, then the front door closed behind her.

I stepped in front of Brian and grinned up at him.

“Hey, Trouble.”

He didn’t grin back.

“Wild.”

I rolled up on my toes and whispered a promise. “I’ll make it good.”

His cheek twitched, then he wrapped his arms around my back and pulled me close.

“Countin’ on it, babe,” he said against my hair.