It's All Relative(49)

Tucking a dark strand behind her ear, April looked over to the kitchen. “Can I help with anything?”

Jessie smiled and shook her head. “Harm beat you to it. She’s already in there making a salad.”

From the kitchen both girls heard, “A kick-ass salad!”

April laughed and rolled her eyes. Jessie thought again of checking on the potatoes, but April spoke before she could excuse herself. “You okay?”

Jessie threw on an unworried smile as she looked around to make sure everything was neat and tidy. It was. She’d spent all afternoon making sure of it. “Yep, I just want everything to be perfect for Kai.” Not sure how that sounded, she added, “He’s a long way from home, and I want to make sure he feels welcomed.” Suddenly feeling lame, she shrugged.

April gave her a crooked grin. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he feels plenty welcomed.”

Jessie frowned at her friend’s suggestive comment. She really didn’t want April entertaining him in that way, but she also didn’t have a say in the matter. April was an adult, Kai was an adult…and both of them were single. Placing her hands on her hips in a teasing stance that was obviously not meant to be serious—although, in Jessie’s mind, it completely was—she told April, “You stay away from him. He’s family, not a plaything.”

April smirked. “I’m just saying, if he’s new in town, he might want some company.” She smiled suggestively. “And I’m great company.”

Jessie rolled her eyes as she tried to hold her irritation in check. It wasn’t April’s fault she was a flirt, and normally it didn’t bother her. “Well, just tone it down then.” She smacked her friend’s boot. “You’ll scare him straight back to Hawaii.”

April laughed, then purred. “Mmmm, Hawaiian boy. Yum.”

Giving up, Jessie made herself laugh as she walked into the kitchen to see her more reserved friend. Harmony was cutting vegetables at the counter; she smiled when Jessie entered. The deep color of her brilliant red hair contrasted nicely with the dark green of her blouse, making her look like the living embodiment of autumn. Cocking a fiery eyebrow, she tilted her head at Jessie. “You do look a little freaked. Everything okay?”

Jessie wanted to cringe, but she smiled instead. “Yep, just hoping I didn’t burn the potatoes.” Her heart was racing faster than normal when she popped open the oven. The heat wave hit her in the face, and she stepped away to let it escape.

“I’m sure they’re fine, Jess. He’ll probably appreciate the sentiment anyway. I mean, he probably hasn’t had a home cooked meal in a while, right?” Harmony said, her hands flying over red and yellow bell peppers.

Jessie poked a knife into the potatoes and smiled when it easily went right through. Straightening, she closed the oven door and turned down the heat to warm. “Yeah, I think he’ll love it.”

Harmony gave Jessie an odd, appraising look, and Jessie realized she’d sighed in a way that sounded romantic. She had to imagine her face was also looking a little love-struck. Not liking that thought, she relaxed her features and went to the fridge. She needed to avoid looking like she was in love with Kai. Sure, she was attracted to him, but he was family. She could love him, but she couldn’t love-love him or anything. That was just the ways things had to be. Whatever she’d felt when she’d stupidly told him she was falling for him, she had to put the brakes on it.

But she still mentally arranged him out of order, placing attraction before family, and she had no idea how to stop doing that. Annoyed, she looked around for some wine to have with dinner. Over her shoulder, she asked Harmony, “Do we have any of that chardonnay left?” Jessie could have sworn that she’d opened a bottle just a couple of nights ago.

The sound of chopping resumed as Harmony went back to her salad prep. “Nope. April had a guy over Wednesday night. They drank it all.”

Jessie shut the door with a sigh. So much for that. She really should have known an open bottle wouldn’t keep for long around here. From the living room she heard April yell, “Sorry!” Shaking her head, Jessie went about making some Crystal Light. At least she wasn’t offering him Kool-Aid.

Just as Harmony was mixing her special blend of spices into a small bowl of mayonnaise—her super-secret salad recipe that she wouldn’t share with anybody—the doorbell rang. Jessie nearly dropped the pitcher of juice she was putting in the fridge. Before she could get it all the way inside, she heard April exclaim, “I’ll get it!”

Cursing, Jessie hurried her slow hands. In her haste, she banged the pitcher on the lip of a shelf and bright red liquid sloshed over the edge to splash on the floor; a couple of drops hit her sweater, but thankfully, she was wearing black.

“Damn it,” she muttered, grabbing a towel from Harmony, who’d automatically reached for one. As she cleaned up the spill, and Harmony finished the salad, Jessie heard April’s excited greeting to Kai; it was immediately followed by a flirtatious giggle. Jessie could just imagine April’s thrill at seeing her cousin. He was…well, he was just about the most attractive man Jessie had ever seen.

Wanting to see him again herself, Jessie slopped up the mess and tossed the towel into the sink. She finished at the same time as Harmony, and they walked into the living room together, where Jessie could hear April chatting with Kai.