As he disappeared back out the front, Audrey followed to the doorstep, watching him move as he jaunted down the steps of the lodge and out to his car. He drove a Lyons, too, but she wasn’t surprised to see that it was a dark blue sedan. That was more like Cade. Practical and elegant.
“Well, well, well.” Reese’s voice thrummed in her ear. “Just look at you.”
She turned and scowled at him. “What?”
“You’re glowing.” His grin cut across his entire face. “You’re positively beaming now that Cade’s here. You’re lit up like a firecracker.”
The flush on her cheeks threatened to grow hotter. “I’m just thrilled to see an old friend.”
“Don’t think I didn’t notice how you weren’t exactly quick to let go of him,” Reese said. “And I’m pretty sure I saw you sniff his jacket.”
“I did not.”
“Yeah, you did.” He rubbed that scruffy goatee on his chin thoughtfully. “Does Cade know that you’re in love with him?”
Her irritation turned to panic. “What are you talking about?”
He made a silly, high-pitched giggle that sounded shamefully like the one she’d burbled just moments ago. “You’re perfect, Cade,” he mimicked.
She smacked his arm. “You’re a horrible man. I wish you’d go drown in the lake.”
He waggled his eyebrows. “I see someone’s in a rush to try out her CPR skills. Baby, if you want to give me mouth to mouth, all you have to do is ask—”
“Please, shut up!”
“No can do. As Cade’s best buddy, it’s my duty to let him in on any secrets I might think he’d have interest in. And do you think he’d be curious to know that the good, sweet little twin is in love with her childhood buddy?”
She gasped, mortified to hear that out in the open. “It’s not like that!”
“Too far back? Since your teen years, then?”
“No! You’ve got it all wrong.”
“Do I?” He gave a lazy shrug of his big shoulders in that too-tight shirt. “I guess we could always run the idea past Cade and see what he thinks.”
She clenched her fists. He was turning her reunion with Cade—her first chance to spend some real, quality time with him in years—into nothing short of a nightmare. How weird would it be around Cade if he knew that she was secretly in love with him? How would he act toward her?
She suspected he would be kind and understanding . . . because Cade always was. He’d try to let her down easy, and it would break her heart. “Please,” she gritted. “Please don’t say anything at all.”
He rubbed that scruffy goatee again. “I might be persuaded to keep my silence.”
Audrey gasped. “Blackmail?”
“Now that you mention it, blackmail does sound pretty interesting.” He grinned, white teeth flashing in his face. “What do you say me and you rendezvous later tonight for a moonlight kiss?”
“You know I don’t want to kiss you! You’re the last man on earth I’d want to kiss right about now.”
“I know,” he replied, his voice smug. “That’s why I suggested it. It’d be more fun to tell Cade all about your secret. Maybe I could pass him a note like we did in grade school. ‘Audrey’s in love with you. Do you love her? Check yes or no.’”
She glanced at the doorway and noticed Cade was starting to head up the steps. Panic overtook her. “No notes. Don’t tell him anything. Please!”
“Rendezvous then? Tonight?”
She had about two seconds to decide. Her mind whirled frantically for a moment, and then she turned and smacked Reese on the shoulder. “I hate you so much.”
“So that’s a yes?”
“It’s a yes,” she whispered, practically exploding it at him. “Now just shut up! Please!”
He winked at her and made a zipping motion over his mouth, just as the door opened again.
“Here, let me help you with that,” Audrey said to Cade, rushing forward to take a few of the bags from his hands. He had an overnight bag slung over one shoulder and multiple plastic grocery bags piled onto each arm. “It looks like you stopped at the grocery store.”
“I did. Wanted to make sure things were as easy for you and Daph as possible.”
“You’re so thoughtful,” she said softly to him, taking a few of the bags.
“You’re a real prince charming,” Reese teased, but grinned and made the zipping motion again when Audrey glared at him.
He’d keep the secret, all right. He’d just needle the hell out of her with the information since he had it. God, she hated the man.
“I cleared my schedule,” Cade was saying as he headed into the kitchen with the rest of the bags. “So as long as you and Daph need me, I’ll be here for you.”
Thankful tears burned her eyes. Getting Daphne clean would be hard enough on her own, but with Cade here, she had her best friend and support system right at hand. She couldn’t have asked for better. “It’s so good that you’re here, Cade. I’m so glad to see you.” And then she added, “I’m sure Daphne will be thrilled, too.”
Cade gave her a gentle smile, ruffling her tight bun. “You know I’ll always be there for you in your hour of need, Audrey.”
His words were like sweet music to her ears. It was just a shame that he’d tried to ruffle her hair like when she was a kid. She ignored that part, focusing on the delicious words instead, and her heart melted just a bit more.
Things would be wonderful now that Cade was here.
***
So far, this weekend was turning into a huge bust.
Reese tugged at the too-tight sleeves of his borrowed T-shirt and sat on the end of the couch, watching as Audrey—snarling, angry Audrey with the tight bun and even tighter mouth—fluttered over Cade and giggled at everything he said.
It would have been downright amusing if it hadn’t hurt his ego, just a touch.
Reese was the playboy of their club, after all. The others joked that if they needed a woman seduced, all they had to do was send her to Reese, and she’d be melting as soon as he smiled. His charm had gotten him into many a sealed boardroom . . . and plenty of beds. He’d been planning on using that infamous charm on Camilla Sellers, heiress to Sellers Hotels and daughter of the man Reese was currently going back and forth with in regards to an investment opportunity for a series of cruise lines. Reese wanted to expand his empire, and Sellers was looking more and more like the way to go. The fact that his daughter was twenty-five, gorgeous, and clearly interested in Reese was just a bonus. She didn’t sit on the board . . . yet. But she definitely had her father’s ear, and while Reese romanced her, she could be talking him up to her father, convincing him that a partnership with Durham Industries was the way to go.