Alexandra wipes her eyes with my shirt one last time. She starts to look more like herself. “So . . . you’re saying I’m making a bigger deal about this than it is?”

“I’m saying if you tell Steven, it won’t feel so big anymore.”

She gives me a small smile. “You’re right. I know you’re right. I’ll talk to him tonight.”

“Good.”

Alexandra stands up, leans in, and hugs me. I squeeze her back, letting her know that I’m here for her. To listen, and to kick her in the ass whenever the rare opportunity presents itself.

“And don’t go making a habit out of this falling-apart thing,” I chastise. “I have an exclusive on self-destructive behavior in this family.”

She chuckles and heads toward the house. Then she pauses and turns toward me. “Hey, Drew?”

“Yeah?”

“When did you get so smart?”

That’s an easy one. “About five years ago.”

After I finish my sandwich, I head back to the bedroom to wake Kate. But when I get there, she’s already up and in the shower. Washing the body I obsess about and singing.

Nobody does it half as good as you

Baby, you’re the best

Her voice floats around the bathroom and echoes off the tiles. It’s a cheesy song—Carly Simon—from some seventies James Bond flick. But pleasure still rises up from my gut and spreads out through my chest at the sound. Because as sure as I know Delores will one day be committed to a home for the criminally insane, I know Kate is singing about me. I fold my arms, lean back against the door, and watch her through the steamed glass. She tilts her head back under the hot stream of water. Her rack juts out high and proud—more tantalizing than any Vegas showgirl’s set. Her long hair brushes against her ass, playing peekaboo with the butterfly tattoo on her lower back.

Kate turns off the water and steps out of the shower. She smiles when she sees me. “Hey, you. Where’d you go?”

I should probably hand her a towel. It would be the nice thing to do. The bathroom tiles are cool, and if her pointy ni**les are any indication, she’s a bit chilled. But you don’t really think I’m going to do that, do you?

Come on.

Like I would ever pass up the chance to eyefuck Kate Brooks in all her wet, bare-ass beauty. And pointy ni**les are awesome. So, like the giggly, perverted schoolboy part of me still is, I don’t move an inch as Kate scurries across the bathroom and grabs a robe off the hook on the far wall, then covers up my favorite viewing pleasure.

“I was on the patio with Alexandra.”

Kate twists a second towel around her head in that high-crown style that only women are capable of. Then she frowns worriedly. “She really hasn’t been herself lately. I hope she’ll talk to me tonight about whatever’s going on between her and Steven.”

“Way ahead of you. It’s all taken care of.”

“What’s happened?”

I reach into the shower and turn the water back on full blast. Then I slip off my boxers. Despite the seriousness of the conversation, Kate does a little eyefucking of her own.

Nice.

“Her baby-making factory got an early foreclosure notice.”

“What does that mean?”

“Doctor told her she’s menopausal.”

Kate’s hand goes to her chest with a sympathetic sigh. “But she’s so young!”

I nod. “Yeah. She’s a hot mess about it. She’s been afraid to tell Steven, but I convinced her to talk to him later. They’ll get back on track.”

Kate’s eyes widen. “You convinced her to talk to Steven?”

“Yep.”

“How did you manage that?”

“She talked, bawled her eyes out, and I . . . comforted . . . her.”

Now Kate looks confused. “You comforted her?”

“What are you, a f**king parrot? Yes, I comforted her—why are you shocked?”

Kate folds her arms across her chest. “Well, let’s see. Could it be because your idea of comforting Mackenzie when her cat died was to tell her not to be sad because now Snowball was with all his other feline friends in hell?”

I possibly could have worded that better.

“Or maybe it’s because when my mother missed James’s christening because of that blizzard, you comforted her by saying that when he grows up, he’ll barely know who she is anyway?”

Some people just can’t handle the truth.

“Then there was the time—”

I put my hand over her smart-ass mouth. Her dark, deep eyes stare up at me with warmth and teasing affection.

“I admit, not everyone is able to absorb my particular brand of comfort. But in this case, Alexandra did. Because of me, she and Steven are on their way back to marital bliss. For that, I deserve a pat on the back. A hand job would also do nicely.”

Kate busts out laughing. She wraps her arms around my neck, pressing her terry-cloth-covered stomach against my dick. She tilts her head up. “It’s nice to be the stable couple in the group for once. Go, us.” She holds up one palm. “High five.”

I glance at her hand, then shake my head dismissively. “I don’t do high fives.” I wiggle my digits. “But if you’re interested in some fingering, I’m happy to oblige.”

Kate giggles. “Such a pervert.”

I give her lips a peck. “For you? Always. Now stop trying to seduce me, and let me take a shower.”