“Is this about Will?” Chloe asked.

Lucy nodded, taking in gulps of air to help her calm down, her hand pressed to her chest.

“You have to talk to him, Luce,” Jules said in a gentle but firm voice.

“I know,” Lucy wailed, swinging back towards misery.

“Hey, I know my brother and he’s super into you, I can tell. Just talk to him, okay?”

“I will, I promise.”

“And don’t you dare move to Colorado and leave me in London by myself. I need you, Lucy, and don’t forget, it’s all about me now, ’cause my boyfriend’s super famous, and I’m very likely to turn into a diva.”

“Turn? Turn into a diva?” Jules teased.

“Oh, ha ha!”

Jules threw up her hands. “Hey, if the Louboutins fit!”

Lucy had lost count of the times she’d sat between her two friends as they bantered, but she loved them more in that moment for making her smile through her tears than she ever had.

Chapter 34

The May Ladies

“Did I tell you that you look gorgeous tonight?” Will asked, one hand grazing the small of Lucy’s back. “Extra gorgeous, I mean. You’re always gorgeous,” he added quickly.

Lucy giggled and shook her head. “You don’t have to do that, you know.”

“Do what? Admire you?” She felt a hand lift her hair then the brush of his lips against her neck. She revelled in the feeling, abandoning the task of rinsing dishes and leaning into him.

“No,” she said softly. “I mean reassure me. I am aware that you fancy me, you know.”

“Oh, I more than fancy you, Lucy.” He nuzzled her neck and Lucy seriously considered leaving the washing up and slipping upstairs before the countdown to the New Year. She still couldn’t believe that she, Lucy Browning, had turned into quite the lusty nymph.

And all it had taken was half a lifetime of dating boring, practically asexual men, then meeting a vibrant, scrummy man, who emboldened her and made her laugh. The last time, she’d laughed so hard that she’d snorted, which had set them both off again. Her stomach muscles had ached for hours.

But she had volunteered them for the washing up for a reason, and it was far more important than disappearing for a quickie. “Will …”

“Mmm?”

She turned her head. “Come on, let’s get this done.”

He groaned, then started loading plates and cutlery into the dishwasher while she filled the sink with hot water and dish soap. She donned rubber gloves and, elbows deep in suds, she finally broached the subject she had been putting off since the day the others arrived.

“Uh, Will?” He joined her at the sink, taking a clean pot from her and drying it. Lucy took a steeling breath—at least they were side by side and she didn’t have to look him in the eye. This was already hard enough. “I just wanted to talk to you about …” Breathe, she told herself. “What will happen now.”