That was still his reaction when his mother came back into the kitchen with Whitney in tow.

Maggie had gone to answer the doorbell because Steve had been taking corn on the cob out of the pot on the stove, Grant, Aiden and Dax were setting the table, Zoe, Jane and Josie were out on the back patio, and Henry and Didi were in the middle of a quest in Warriors of Easton and couldn’t stop according to Henry’s shout from the family room.

No one came to the front door anyway, so they’d all assumed it wasn’t anyone all that important.

They’d been wrong.

Cam was literally standing in the middle of the kitchen, holding a hot casserole dish, his mouth hanging open, staring at Whitney.

She looked shy and unsure and completely gorgeous.

Her hair was down, falling in loose waves around her shoulders. She wasn’t wearing any of her usual “office” makeup. No eye shadow or lipstick. She also, thank you Lord, was not wearing one of her office skirts. She wore a pink sundress and cock-hardening scuffed brown boots. She looked every bit the girl next door in a small Iowa town and he wanted her with every fiber of his being.

“I knew better than to bring food, and especially dessert,” she said with a little smile. “So I brought liquor.” She held up a bottle of lemon vodka in one hand and a bottle of red wine in the other.

Maggie laughed and took both bottles. “Brilliant girl,” she praised. Then she nudged Whitney toward Cam. “We’re so happy you’re here.”

Someone—he wasn’t sure who—took the casserole dish from Cam, then slipped the oven mitts off his hands, and nudged him toward Whitney.

They met partway across the kitchen.

“Is this okay?” she asked him softly.

Right. He still hadn’t said a fucking word. Like how happy he was to see her. Here. At his parents’ house. On a weeknight. For one of their big group dinners.

“This is…” He couldn’t properly express himself here in the middle of the kitchen with people around. “Come on.” He took her hand and tugged her toward the hallway and into the bathroom just past the stairs that led up to the bedrooms.

He pushed her into the tiny room in front of him then stepped in behind her and kicked the door shut.

They wouldn’t be able to hide out in here long. And they weren’t alone. At least not enough to do all the things he wanted to do to her. But he needed a few minutes without eyes on them.

“Cam, is every—”

She didn’t finish that thought because his mouth was on hers a moment later. He slid his fingers into her hair, holding her head still, and stepped her back until she was against the wall by the sink. Then he kissed her. Hard, deep. With tongue and moans and his fingers curling into her scalp and her hands gripping his shirt at his waist.

She arched into him. She moaned too. She opened her mouth and let his tongue stroke deep.

He heard footsteps in the hallway outside of the door and knew their time was running short, but he couldn’t let her go just yet. He dropped his hand to her hip and skimmed it down to where the hem of the dress hit her thigh, then he dragged his hand up the silky smooth skin, bunching the skirt as he went.

She shuddered under his touch. He didn’t stop until he hit the skin-warmed silk of her panties. He slid his hand over the slick fabric to cup her ass and then dragged his mouth along her jaw to her ear.

“This skirt is so much better than the others.”

She gave a soft laugh and nodded. “I agree.”

He squeezed her ass, then reluctantly let her go. He leaned back, looking down at her. “I’m so happy you’re here.”

“You are?”

“Surprised, but yes.”

“I got done early and... realized I wanted to do something.” She lifted a shoulder, then admitted, a little sheepishly, “I actually invited both Piper and Paige out for drinks first. But they were busy.”

Cam felt his grin. She’d reached out for a girls' night. He loved that.

“I’ve got you,” he said. He took her hand and turned toward the door.

“Wait.” She grabbed his forearm with her other hand.

“What?”

“What was this?” she asked, looking around the bathroom and then at him, her gaze dropping to his mouth.

He immediately turned back and leaned in. “This was holy-shit-you-look-gorgeous-and-I’m-so-fucking-happy-to-see-you-and-I-love-that-you-came-over-here greeting.”

“Really?” She looked happy. “I know your mom is too polite to turn me away but—”

He laughed. “She is. But I promise that’s not what this is. I’m so glad you’re here. I would have been bringing you over here every night if you’d been at home and…” He cupped her cheek again. “I love that you knew you could show up here with all of us.”

She frowned slightly but then nodded. “Yeah. I guess… I didn’t even think about it. I was focused on surprising you. But it didn’t occur to me to be nervous that the other guys would think it was weird that I was here.” She looked like she’d just had a realization. “That’s new.”

He smiled, his heart expanding. “It is. You know you belong with us.”

Her smile grew and, damn, the brightness in her face almost brought him to his knees.

“And you can still have your girls’ night,” he said, starting for the door again, tugging on her hand. “Zoe and Jane and Josie are out back.”

Whitney immediately stopped moving, jerking him to a stop.

He looked back.

She wasn’t smiling. Now she looked nervous.

“Whit?”

“I… oh my God, how did I not think of that? Of course they’re here.”

“Of course they are,” he agreed. Dax and Grant were good friends of his but they hadn’t started showing up at Maggie’s dinners until they’d fallen for Jane and Josie. Well, Grant had come once… and he’d then been officially ass over nose for Josie after that. Jane and Josie, however, had been coming to dinner here for years.

“I can’t crash their girl time,” Whitney said, frowning at him. “I can’t just show up at their regular thing and expect them to include me.”

“They won’t see it like that.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Whitney—Jane and Josie are two of the nicest women I know.”

“You didn’t say Zoe too,” she pointed out.

He shrugged. “My little sister is sassy,” he said. “But she’ll be sweet to you.”

“I’m the granddaughter of her grandmother’s arch nemesis. I’m the daughter of the family that owned the business she’s always thought of as her primary rival.”

“She’s over that,” Cam said. And she was. Mostly. Aiden had helped Zoe see that they were just two completely different businesses, on two completely different levels. Though, yes, Zoe could hold a grudge almost as well as Letty had.

“But she’s felt that way for a long time. It’s easier for her to not think of Aiden as her competitor because they’re in love,” Whitney said. “And you’re her brother and Grant and Ollie are your friends. But I’m…”

“The woman I’m crazy about.”