Page 71 of Good For Me

Her eyes narrow. “Hang out with him?”

“Yup.” Damn, I can feel the flush moving up my neck.

“You’re hiding something,” she says, and I groan, knowing I’m going to fold in an instant if she pushes me.

“Fine. My grandfather hurt his knee surfing last year. His Physical Therapist recommended some, um, exercises that he was kind of embarrassed to do. So Ruby asked me to go with him. She thought it might make him feel less silly if I was there to laugh at it all with him.”

Jas looks gleeful. “What kind of exercises are we talking?” she holds up two sets of crossed fingers. “Please, God, tell me it’s something really embarrassing.”

I roll my eyes. “You realize you’re making fun of an old man, right?”

She scoffs. “Your grandfather doesn’t look the slightest bit like an old man and you know it.” She points a finger at me. “Now spill.”

I let out a dramatic sigh. All Jas has to do is fix me with those gorgeous grey eyes and I’ll pretty much do whatever she wants.

“We take a water aerobics class every Wednesday.”

Jas looks like Christmas just came early. “You take water aerobics? With your grandfather?”

“Yes.” I straighten my shoulders, instilling as much dignity into my voice as I can. “And then we go to Ruby’s for lunch and eat very manly steaks and drink beer.”

Jas bursts out laughing. “Oh my God, thank you for this information. This isamazing.”

I narrow my eyes at her so she won’t guess that I’m enjoying the hell out of her teasing. “This kind of reaction is exactly what made him embarrassed to go in the first place.”

Her face softens, her smile huge and freaking breathtaking. “I’m not making fun ofhim. I think it’s great he’s taking his knee injury seriously and listening to his doctor.”

“So you’re just making fun of me then?”

Her eyes sparkle. “Pretty much.” She leans closer, her vanilla scent washing over me. “Please tell me the rest of the class is old ladies. You’re the youngest people there, right? Do you wear a bathing cap? Oh my God, I love this visual.”

I sigh. “We are the only men there, yes. And the youngest. I’ll have you know that Dora and Hattie and all the other ladies adore us.”

She groans. “Oh, I bet they do. And that’s just what your ego needs—a bunch of sweet old ladies fawning over you every week.”

I roll my eyes. “You suck.” Before she can tease me anymore, I catch movement a few feet away. My little brother Ash and our cousin Cadence are hovering nearby, like they’re trying to work up the courage to come sit with us.

I lean toward Jas. “You mind company while we eat?”

She sighs happily as she looks at her plate. “My ability to care about anything besides this mac and cheese is not high.”

I laugh and wave my brother over. “You guys need a place to sit?”

“You don’t mind?” Ash asks while Cade is already sliding onto the bench next to me.

“Not at all,” Jas says, smiling at my brother. She slides down to make room for him and Ash pales slightly, his eyes a little panicked. He doesn’t do so great with strangers, and I’m pretty sure the fact that Jasmine is a hot older woman isn’t helping his confidence.

“Here, you sit next to Cade,” I say, picking up my plate so I can join Jas on her side of the table. “Don’t want you putting the moves on my girl,” I mutter to my brother as I pass and he blushes bright red, ducking his head as he takes his seat.

“Guys, you both met Jas, right? Jas, this is my little brother Ash and our cousin Cadence.”

“You can call me Cade,” he says, shaking his hair out of his eyes in a way I’m pretty sure he thinks makes him look cool. I hide my smile behind my sandwich.

“Are you guys having fun so far?” she asks. “You’re the ones I saw on the ATVs earlier, right?”

“Oh, yeah, for sure,” Cade says brightly. “The ATVs are totally dope. I could show you how to use them if you want.”

I meet Ash’s gaze across the table and he rolls his eyes. Apparently, I should have been more concerned about Cade putting the moves on my girl.