Beautiful Dreams (The Beautiful Series) (33 page)

I heard Kyle enter the room. I glanced in his direction to see his odd expression. He was looking at me as if I had lost my mind.

“What are you doing?” He laughed.

“This damn skirt won’t zip!” I responded, slightly embarrassed. I heaved in a deep breath and gave the zipper a hard yank. “Got it!” I beamed as I rose from the bed. I slid my hands down my curves to straighten the plum material.

I lifted my gaze to take in Kyle’s bemused expression.

“It seems that after weeks of not working out and eating whatever I pleased, my metabolism has failed me, and so have my deceiving yoga pants,” I huffed.

Kyle bit his lip to keep from snickering while he raised his eyebrows in mirth. “Must be all of those late-night bowls of chocolate ice cream in front of the TV, too?”

“Guess so,” I snorted. “Looks like no more munchies for this girl. Just tennis shoes and eating up miles to burn as many calories as possible in the next seven days,” I answered while wondering if my wedding dress would still fit. It seemed my metabolism was no longer what it used to be.

Kyle gathered me in his embrace, and I inhaled the scent of him. He always smelled so divine.

“You look beautiful the way you are, Lily,” he whispered along my ear. Then, he bit gently, tugging on my lobe. “I can’t wait to see what’s underneath that sexy outfit of yours.” He leaned back abruptly. “Speaking of…where are we going anyway?”

I inwardly debated on if I should continue to keep dinner a secret, but then it occurred to me that I had only been to his family’s house a few times. I had never really paid attention on how to get there. So, it looked like I was going to have to spill the beans.

“We’re having dinner with your family tonight,” I said while watching his eyes.

In that moment, I could tell that he knew I was aware his birthday was tomorrow.

“Surprise.” I grinned.

The corner of his mouth curved up, exposing his dimple. “So, you do know?” he questioned mischievously.

Raising my brow and my arms around him at the same time, I playfully smirked up at him. “Of course I know!” I snickered while leaning back to let him go. I nudged his chest, and then I shook my head. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me that tomorrow is your birthday!” I chided.

He was definitely going to have to get past his aversion to celebrating because I loved birthdays and holidays—a lot.

Amusement danced in his eyes. “I’m not a big fan of my birthday,” he admitted.

“How come?” I asked with curiosity.

“Sibling trauma,” he responded casually.

I gathered my arms up around his shoulders once more. “Oh, then I definitely need to hear more. Did a big clown pop out of your birthday cake or something?” I teased while stroking his nape with my fingertips.

He let out a soft laugh. “Even worse. Ryan and Abbey thought it would be funny to hide my gifts, and then they wrapped my sister’s Barbies,” he said with a haunted tone. “My mom sat there with her mouth hanging open as my dad laughed hysterically while I opened Barbie after Barbie…and then doll clothes.” He shivered slightly. “It was traumatizing.”

I threw my head back, laughing hard. I was completely caught off guard by his story. I had no idea what I had imagined it would be, but it certainly was not that.

“It’s totally not funny,” he said, chortling himself. “It was very emasculating to an eleven-year-old boy. Not to mention, they joke about it every year.”

Laughter continued to pour out of me. I could not stop it. “Oh my gosh!” I said between laughs. I was nearly in tears. “No wonder Abbey didn’t elaborate on
why
you disliked your birthday.”

“That’s because she was the mastermind behind it. She just used Ryan as her scapegoat. Needless to say, they both got grounded,” he said with wit.

After recovering, I lifted my head to meet his eyes. “Don’t worry, birthday boy. By the end of this weekend, I hope you start looking forward to every future birthday,” I said with candor in my voice.

“Oh yeah?” he rasped, his tone suddenly husky. “You have me intrigued. What have you been up to, beautiful?”

He leaned in, and his breath was hot against my ear. I deliberately pulled back, moving my lips to stop less than an inch from his, while watching his eyes darken.

“Not telling. My lips are sealed, so you’ll just have to wait.” I snickered.

Kyle closed the distance between us, zoning in for a toe-curling kiss. His warm mouth ravished mine, and then he pulled back, leaving me wanting more.

“Are you sure you want to keep it a secret? I bet I can pull it out of you,” he teased.

“Nope, I can’t spoil the surprise,” I said, shoving him away. “We only have a short while to get ready before your family is expecting us for dinner, so get to it,” I demanded.

Kyle sauntered off to the shower while I finished getting ready.

Thank goodness he hadn’t tried to force it out of me. With that man’s kisses, I would have never stood a chance.

Once he was dressed, we made our way to the car. I was glad his parents’ house was only a short drive away since I was eager to spend time with them all. They were all such fun, loving people to be around. I could not wait to get to know them more, and with our approaching wedding, I was feeling extremely blessed to soon call them my own.

We pulled into the driveway at the exact same time as Ryan and Kate. I exited the car and turned to face Kate, who looked to be struggling to stand up.

“Hi, Kate! Would you like some help?” I asked her.

She placed one hand on the seat cushion beside her and the other on the car door for leverage to hoist herself up to her feet. “No.” She laughed while rotating to face me. Her hands came down and fondly caressed her stomach. “I’m fine. Just a little off-balance with this belly.”

“I can see that.” I smiled at her.

Her tummy was even more pronounced since the last time I’d seen her.

“When are you due again?”

She let out an exhausted sigh. Ryan came to her side to offer his hand. She smiled sweetly at him and then looked back at me.

“Not until early September. I don’t know how or if I’ll survive the whole forty weeks. I swear, my belly is going to burst at the seams.”

“Well, you’re almost there,” I said encouragingly.

Kyle came to stand at my left, and he placed his hand on the small of my back.

“Not close enough,” she snorted good-naturedly. Then, she teasingly narrowed her eyes at Ryan. “I’ll think twice before letting my husband ever knock me up again.”

I bit my lip to keep from chortling. However, Ryan and Kyle burst out laughing.

Ryan wrapped his arms around his wife. His eyes were shining with adoration. “If I recall our conversation correctly, Kate, it was you who came down with baby fever.”

“Damn baby fever,” she muttered under her breath.

The men chuckled again. Kyle took my hand in his as we all congregated toward the front door.

“Aw, Kate, just think of how happy you’ll be in a few weeks when you get to hold your little girl for the first time,” I said, trying to comfort her.

Kyle slightly squeezed my hand, and it made my heart soar.

Kate tilted her head in my direction. “I know! I can’t wait to wrap her in my arms and snuggle with her for hours,” she replied with excitement, her whole face glowing with love.

All of our heads snapped up as the front door opened.

Grace stepped out onto the porch, her eyes full of light. She pressed her hands together in front of her chest. “I’m so happy you guys all made it!” she cried. Then, she opened her arms to hug Kyle. “Happy birthday, son.” She pulled back, holding him at arm’s length. “Gosh, I can’t believe you’re twenty-nine. Where does the time go?” She looked as if she might cry at any second.

“It doesn’t stop, that’s for sure.” Ryan chortled as he nudged Kyle on the shoulder. “So, don’t blink, Kyle, or next thing you know, you’ll be thirty and plucking out gray hairs in the bathroom mirror,” Ryan teased.

Kyle let out a deep laugh as he turned his gaze to Ryan. “You’ve got enough of those for the both of us,” Kyle retorted good-naturedly.

We all turned our heads at the throaty sound of a car pulling up into the driveway, and then I could also hear the slight beat of music, too.

“I can’t believe you two let your sister buy that death trap,” Grace admonished while all of our eyes were still glued on the sexy Camaro.

“Uh, Mom,” Kyle said, turning his attention back to Grace, “you know as well as we do that Abbey is an unstoppable force of nature once she sets her mind on something.”

“You could say that again,” Ryan huffed. “But damn, that car? At least we taught her well,” he added with admiration.

“Yeah, we did,” Kyle replied.

“Hey, guys! I’m so sorry I’m late. There was road construction on the way here, and the detour took forever!” she exclaimed while making her way toward the porch. Abbey looked between all of us with a perplexed expression. “Hey, what did I miss?” she asked.

“Not much besides talk of Kyle getting gray hairs and that mighty fine car of yours.” Ryan grinned at Abbey.

“It sure beats sporting a minivan,” Abbey said, teasing Ryan, while hugging him.

“Hey now, don’t dis the family wheels,” Ryan chortled.

“Never.” Abbey winked and then turned to Kyle. “Happy birthday, big brother,” she said while embracing him. Then, she drew back, looking at his hair. “I don’t see any gray hair.”

“That’s because I don’t have any yet. Ryan is just jealous since he’s lookin’ like an old man these days.” Kyle laughed.

“Aren’t you two funny today?” Ryan snorted.

“Always,” Abbey chortled. “Who’s ready to eat? I’m starved.”

“Dinner is ready,” Grace added. “I was just waiting on you kids to arrive.”

“Let’s eat then,” Ryan said while motioning Kate forward.

We all walked into the house and headed straight for the dining room. Kyle pulled out a chair for me to sit next to him while Ryan and Kate sat across from us. Gavin emerged into the room, holding a large platter of roast. Steam flowed out the sides of the vent holes on the lid, and the scent quickly filled the air.

“That smells wonderful.” I smiled at him.

“Hello, Lily. So glad you two were able to come over tonight, so we could celebrate Kyle’s birthday as a family,” Gavin said, greeting me.

“Of course. Thanks for having us,” I replied.

Gavin set down the hot meal in the center of the table, and then he turned to face Kyle. “Happy birthday, son.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Kyle said while embracing his father with a manly pat on the back.

“Well, everybody, dig in. We don’t want this perfectly good food to get cold.” Gavin smiled while taking his seat at the head of the table.

Suddenly, everyone took his words to heart. We passed dishes around in a circle and filled our plates. The roast was accompanied by steamed vegetables, mashed potatoes, green beans, salad, and so much more. It was enough food to feed an entire neighborhood, and it all looked so delicious.

I eagerly filled my plate with eyes much larger than my stomach. However, after hardly eating for days, I could not seem to help it since my appetite had finally returned. I just made sure to avoid milk like the plague. With my latest flu adventure, I had a feeling I would not be drinking it anytime soon.

Kyle tilted his head in my direction. “Are you sure you’re going to eat all that?” he asked with amusement.

“Probably not,” I admitted. “But I’m surely going to try.”

Kyle chuckled and then went back to clearing his plate at a rapid speed.

“So, how are the wedding plans coming along, Lily?” Grace asked before taking a sip of her milk.

My eyes immediately lowered to her glass.
Nope, not going to think about the smell of milk.

I quickly glanced up at her and pushed the thoughts out of my mind. “Everything is moving along smoothly. Now, we are just on an eight-day countdown until the wedding.” I smiled at her.

“It will be next Saturday before you know it.” Grace beamed, sounding as anxious as I was for the wedding day to finally be here. “Did you kids decide where to go for your honeymoon?”

“Yes, we are going to Kauai,” I replied after swallowing.

“Oh, I’m surprised you didn’t want to go to Honolulu. There are so many tourist things to do there.” Grace frowned softly.

Kyle shook his head. “We aren’t tourist kind of people, Mom. We want the sun and beach and peace,” he said.

At his words, I wished we were in those thirty blissful days of our honeymoon, and then I wished for the ability to freeze time, so we would never have to leave.

“Well, I happen to think that’s an excellent idea. Who wants to visit Honolulu anyway? It’s a madhouse there because it’s such a tourist attraction,” Gavin huffed.

“Oh, stop, dear. It’s just as beautiful there, too,” she said to Gavin. Then, she turned her attention to Kyle. “If you two are going for peace and quiet, then I think you made the right choice.”

“I would kill to stick my swollen toes in a warm sandy beach right about now,” Kate snorted.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. You’ll get to do that soon enough…” Ryan said soothingly while patting Kate’s hand. Then, he suddenly laughed. “Well, someday—maybe when the little one is more grown.”