The More I See You (Stevens Book 5)

Chapter 12

The day had been exhausting. The heat had worn Laura down and the clothes had to be her least favorite. She had never seen so much suede and fringe in her life. The only saving grace had been the horses which had been delightful.

Laura had been amused watching Davis as he tried to get Kelly on a horse and finally settled for letting her lead the horse through a pasture.  Carmen was also familiar with horses so she had been equally amused.

They had worked through the sunset and had missed dinner at the house. Rainer and Caleb offered to take everyone out for drinks and dancing, and assured Carmen and Kelly that they would be able to get food where they were going. The last thing Laura wanted to do was go out dancing and drinking, so she passed and went to her room to take a shower and change.

Too tired to mess with her hair or make-up, she put on a pair of blue jeans and t-shirt keeping it simple. She braided her wet hair and put on her glasses before heading down to the kitchen to round up something to eat.

It was quiet when she entered and only Quinn and Davis were sitting at the table eating a sandwich. Davis pushed the plate towards Laura when she saw her, and the sandwiches looked so good she couldn't say no, she reached in the fridge for a beer before seating herself next to Davis.

"You two look exhausted." Quinn smiled.

"It's hard work being beautiful," Davis teased.

"No, it's hard work working for Davis Stevens," Laura countered before she bit into a sandwich. "Where is everyone?"

"Most of them went to the dancehall. Mom and Dad are in the living room with Bryce and Grace, and Dana is upstairs with a fussy Fiona."

"Is she sick?" Laura asked with concerned as she bit into the sandwich, so she missed Quinn's thoughtful expression.

"No, just teething." He rose, taking his mug of coffee to the sink to rinse it. "I think I'll go make sure that everything's O.K."

She and Davis continued to eat in silence after he had left. Davis hadn't mentioned her earlier revelation, and what he thought about it was a weighing heavily on her. Part of her wanted to ask him if he still loved her even though she had failed as a basic human being, and the other wanted him to say that he couldn't love her anymore and put her out of her misery.

When he was done eating he picked up his plate and took it to the sink. As he passed her to go into the living room he paused and kissed the top of her head. "I still love you Laura, you're not getting out of it that easily." It was said softly and she closed her eyes as relief flooded her.

"Why don't you hate me? I hate me," she whispered, pushing the rest of her sandwich away from her.

"Are you done eating?" he asked. Laura nodded, and Davis grabbed her hand and led her into the living room where his parents, Grace, and Bryce were all relaxing. Grace couldn't hide her surprise when she saw Laura's relaxed look and what Bryce was thinking was anyone's guess.

"How can you look so beautiful with no make-up and glasses?" Grace asked with teasing disgust.

"The same way you do Grace," Davis said as he pulled Laura onto the couch next to him.

Bryce was eyeing them with a questioning look. "I must say, you two are confusing the rest of us," he said,watching as Davis flung his arm around Laura's tense shoulders.

"Must you?" Davis grinned, making fun of his brother's proper speech. "How are we confusing you?" Davis asked, not at put off by his brother's direct comment in the least.

"You both say you're not dating and you're just friends, yet your current canoodling state implies that you are dating."

"Canoodling, did you, oh barrister of the Queens realm, just say canoodling?" Davis started to laugh as did Grace.