It took a little convincing, but Bas got Em to let him buy lunch for her while they were still in town. With the weather being so nice they sat outside on the patio watching traffic pass by. The summer season hadn’t start yet in True Falls, but there was still a nice flow of people out and about. Em kept an eye on every single female that passed, taking each one into consideration for her friend. Since Bas didn’t have a particular type of woman he seemed attracted to, the possibilities seemed endless even as she eliminated the ones who were too old or had rings on their left hands. She had never truly realized the variety there was when it came to women. And that was just on looks alone. Some guys might be satisfied with just a pretty face, but Bas would need more.

On the ride back to the house Em wondered if she’d bitten off more than she could chew. Dating was one thing she’d never been too keen on. Since she’d always tended to be skittish around new people dating people she didn’t know beforehand had been disastrous. Her two most serious boyfriends had been the older brother of her college roommate and a former childhood friend. If Bas didn’t find someone that interested him within their inner circle, she had to admit that she would be at a loss as to where to look next. Hopefully luck would be on her side at this party.

Bas reached over and nudged his friend to get her attention as they pulled up to the house. A small sedan with its trunk open was parked our front. Em recognized what the rental’s presence meant just as the man himself walked down the steps of the house back to the car. A flutter of excitement hit her stomach as the SUV drew closer and Nick caught her eye thru the car window.

Three years hadn’t change him much. His sandy colored hair was cut differently, allowing his sharp features to take center stage. His full lips curved into a grin that reached eyes the color of stormy skies and revealing slight dimples on either cheek. Just as tall as Bas, Nick had the lithe body of a swimmer, long toned limbs and slim waist and shoulders that were broad and distinct. In a simple blue polo and khakis he still looked as though he’d just stepped off the cover of Aristocratic Living.

Bas hadn’t even got the car into park and Nick was at Em’s door opening it. Mischief in his eye, he drew her out of her seat by the hand.  “Well look who is sexier than ever.”

A blush warmed her cheeks as she thanked him for the compliment. Em then laughed as he used his grip on her hand to induce her to give him a twirl. The hair that Gayle had painstakingly straightened fanned out beautifully then swung back into  place. After treating her to a few more comments of appreciation, he pulled her into an embrace.The smell of woods, soap and a hint of lemon was pure Nick. As she hugged him she couldn’t help but to beam. He still had the ability to make her feel like she was the most gorgeous woman in the world.

Drawing back Nick smiled down at her and searched her face. Warmth clearly reflected on his face, just as it always did when he’d done so before. She knew he was drinking her in and did nothing to stop him. Nick opened his mouth to comment, but never got to voice his opinion.

“Hey bro.” Em turned towards Bas’ voice. Somehow he’d managed to turn off the SUV and come around to her side without her even noticing. For a moment she could have sworn that annoyance marred his face, but Nick was grabbing him in a bear hug too soon for her to be sure.

As different as they were, the duo buzzed with affection. Em knew that between e-mail, phone, fax and text the Beckenbach brothers constantly remained in contact. Of the four of them Nick and Bas were by far the closest. They were just shy of two years apart and up until Nick’s relocation had shared most everything, including an apartment. Em had never heard either of them say so, but Nick’s move had been hard on both of them.

Closing her door, Em started to get bags out of the backseat as Bas asked Nick about their flight. She didn’t even get the bags off the seat before one of the brothers moved her aside and they began unloading without her. Juggling his bags into one arm, Nick threw the other around Em’s shoulders and drew her along to the house.

Nick called out for Cady as they entered the foyer and a moment later she appeared at the top of the staircase. Em didn’t know what she expected, but the woman who came bounding down the stairs wasn’t it. Nick tended to date the same kind of girl. Tall, brunette and thin was practically his signature. Cady was petite with hair dyed different tones of blond and Marilyn Monroe curvy. In a khaki skirt and navy t-shirt, she was the perfect match for Nick. As soon as she made it to the bottom of the stairs, Nick left Em’s side to take Cady’s hand. Her pretty face was lit up with enthusiasm as Nick introduced her. “Cady, this is Emery and my brother Sebastian. Guys, the sunshine of my life, Cady.”

“It’s so nice to finally meet you!” Em found herself being hugged before she could even react. In the next beat, Cady had moved to hug Bas. Both she and Bas exchanged a look of surprise over Cady’s head. Nick laughed as Cady drew back to his side. “Sorry, I’m a hugger. It’s just I feel like I know you two already. Nick talks about you all the time.”

Bas managed to recover first. “No it’s fine. He says great things about you too. We’re glad that you could come with him.”

Even though it was Bas that spoke, Em felt Cady waiting for her to respond. “We’re sorry that we weren’t here to meet you, we went into town to run some errands and have lunch.”

“We just got here ourselves. Cady wanted to stop in town, but I dragged her up here to unload our stuff first.” Nick gazed down at his girlfriend adoringly.

In the time she’d known him and seen him with various women, she’d never seen Nick look at one like that. She felt something, but she had no idea what exactly it was off hand. Rather than obsessing, Em latched onto the opening he gave her to do something she didn’t have to think about. “Did you need something from town? If we don’t have it here, I could run and get it for you?”

Cady shook her head. “No, it’s nothing you can get for me. Nick didn’t tell me what the dress code was for this party you’re throwing. I brought a dress, but thought maybe there might be a dress shop in town or something if I needed some more options.”

Nick chimed in. “Hey maybe you and Cady can go into town and do some shopping. Em knows pretty much everything there is about True Falls. She could probably help you find what you’re looking for.”

Three pairs of eyes settled on Em waiting for her to answer. Her mind raced for a legit reason to say no, but nothing was appearing. Just as she was getting ready to commit just to move the attention away from her, Bas spoke up. “I thought you and Libby were going to take Mom shopping in the morning. You know so she could get a dress for the party?”

Em could have kissed Bas for the out that he’d provided. “Yeah! We were taking Catherine shopping in the morning. If you can wait til then, you can come with us and we can shop together.”

“That would be great!”

Pushing a grin of her own onto her face, Em nodded. Once again Bas jumped in to save her. “Hey, we’re going to put this stuff away. Why don’t you guys unpack and then we can decide what to do while we wait for everyone else to show up?”

Nick and Cady agreed that sounded fine and headed back upstairs to their room. Once they were out of earshot, Em turned to her friend prepared to share her appreciation. Before she could, Bas announced that he was going to put his stuff away, leaving her alone in the foyer.