He frowned at her, switching Harmony’s weight from one arm to the other. The baby whined, wriggled, then settled after grabbing a fistful of the dark hair at the nape of Cole’s neck. “Excuse me?” he asked.
“Don’t give me that.” Olivia elbowed him. “You looked at her over breakfast like you wanted to slather her on your toast.”
“Yeah, but you couldn’t because she wasn’t on the menu,” Adrian added.
Cole frowned at their knowing faces. “Did she say something to you?”
“No, we’re just intuitive,” Olivia reminded him. “All except for Roxie here, bless her heart. She’s blinded by soon-to-be marital bliss.”
“Shouldn’t you be blinded by marital bliss, too, Liv?” he returned with a wry smile tugging at one corner of his mouth.
“Touché,” Adrian intoned, then cleared her throat when Olivia glanced askance at her. “Despite all appearances, Cole, we are known to be helpful on occasion. You should know that better than anyone.”
Cole sighed, glancing the way Briar had gone. “I don’t know what you could do in this case. It’s been a few months since Harmony came.”
“Two,” Olivia said handily.
“Not that I’m counting,” Cole retorted.
“And you two haven’t messed around since?” Olivia guessed.
He shifted uncomfortably under their expectant looks. “Things have been busy. There’s the baby. There’s taking care of the inn, the new advertising initiative to bring in more guests.... There hasn’t been time for messing around.”
“There’s always time,” Olivia said.
When Cole turned stoic again, Roxie clasped a hand to her heart. “Aw. You’re waiting for Briar to make the first move because you don’t want to rush her. Isn’t that just the sweetest thing?”
“She hasn’t shot me down,” Cole added quickly in defense of his wife. “We just don’t talk about it.”
“Who needs to talk?” Adrian asked.
“Excellent point.” Olivia faced Cole, setting her mug aside so she could level with him. “Look, I’m going to tell you the same thing I told Briar when you first came to Hanna’s. Get over yourself and jump her damn bones.”
Cole choked on the second cup of coffee he’d only just finished. Looking around, he made sure that Kyle was still eating, safely out of earshot. “Christ.”
“And I was right, wasn’t I?” Olivia challenged. “It’s what you both needed then, and it’s what you need now. Do it. We’ll all be happier for it.”
A frown tugged at Cole’s mouth. “And here I thought it wasn’t any of your damn business.”
Roxie’s cornflower-blue eyes gleamed as they found Gerald through the window again. “You know, all this talk about Briar and Cole getting together...it gives me an idea....” She looked at Olivia. “You’re usually the matchmaker, of all of us. I think it’s time we return the favor.”
Olivia didn’t like where this was going. “Huh?”
Roxie smiled. “I like Gerald. I think he might be good for you. Even if that doesn’t mean staying married to him, I think you should give whatever he believes you two have a chance. And, I’ll be honest, if over the next three weeks I discover a way to help him convince you to do this, then I’m going to take it.”
“I like this plan,” Cole piped up. He slung an arm around Roxie’s shoulders and squeezed companionably. “I’ve been waiting for the chance to give our cousin here a taste of her own medicine.” He winked at Olivia. “Yeah. I like this plan a lot.”
“You want revenge,” Olivia told him. “It’s enough having to deal with Cupid,” she added, nodding toward Roxie. “I don’t need Machiavelli working against me, too.”
“Machiavelli is no stranger to your matchmaking ways,” Adrian informed her.
“Whose side are you on?” Olivia demanded.
“Hey, I’m Switzerland,” Adrian said, raising her hands. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t have a little fun watching you deal with Gerald and the rest of them.” She swept her arm out to encompass both Cole and Roxie, who already had their heads together.
Olivia gave up trying to reason with any of them. “I’m gonna get out of here before Pinky and the Brain get too far into their plotting. I have a tavern to clean.”
Before Olivia escaped through the swinging door, Briar swung it open first from the other side. “Not so fast,” Briar said. “I think I’ll have a word with you now.”
“I’d love to stay and chat,” Olivia lied, pivoting toward the screen door, “but the bar opens early on Fridays, remember, and, frankly, I don’t need a lecture.”
“That’s too bad.” Unfazed, Briar gripped Olivia’s wrist and pulled her into the privacy of the sunroom. “If it were up to you, we’d never find the time and place for me to lecture you.”
Olivia held up her hands in defense as Briar whirled on her, stemming the torrent of words that her cousin had no doubt been waiting all morning to say. “Wait. Before we do this, let me ask you something. Why aren’t you sexing Cole up?”
Briar balked, went pale. “What?”
“We just talked to him,” Olivia said, lowering her voice to a discreet level. “He said you’re not putting out.”
“He said that?” Briar asked, horrified.
“Not those exact words, but that’s the gist of it, isn’t it?”
Briar flustered for a moment, then scrubbed nervous hands over her thighs, looking anywhere other than at Olivia as her face reddened. “There hasn’t been time—”
“Yeah, he tried to give us that line of bull, too. What’s going on, Briar? Really?”
She threw her hands up. “Nothing. Nothing’s going on, Liv. It’s just... I was hoping that maybe he’d say something...or do something.”
“Like what exactly?”
“Like...say that he wants me,” Briar said with a consternated expression. “I know it sounds silly, but—”
“It’s not silly,” Olivia muttered. “Unless you consider the fact that he’s also been waiting for you to say or do something, too.” At Briar’s helpless look, Olivia sighed. “Look, I’m begging you to put an end to it. Don’t even talk about it. Just do it. Tonight.”
“Tonight,” Briar said, breathing out and looking dazed.
“That’s all I have to say,” Olivia said quickly.
“Wait a minute!” Briar recovered, gripping Olivia’s elbow to stop her from retreating. “We need to talk about Gerald.”
“I’m talked out as far as he’s concerned,” Olivia informed her.
“He’s a nice guy,” Briar said, managing a stern brow for Olivia and a small smile for Gerald all at once. “In fact...” Her eyes softened and went dreamy. “Liv, he’s a wonderful man.”
“Cole’s right. Maybe he should be jealous.”
“No, he shouldn’t,” Briar said firmly. “Listen, I know better than anyone that you like having your own space and your own set of rules when it comes to men. But...Gerald’s different. You know that, right?”
“I know that for all his charm, brains and good looks, he needs his head examined for thinking even for a second that this has the tiniest chance of working out,” Olivia said.