Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 122966 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122966 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
I sobered instantly. “Fuck no.” It irritated me that he’d even go there, though I couldn’t blame him. He’d picked me up after I’d been arrested, after all. He’d been around for the worst of it. “She’s—” Everything. I shook my head, unable to find the right words to describe the impact she’d had on me. And continued to have on me.
Maybe Ethan saw it, judging by his smirk. “All right, then. I guess it’s serious.”
“Terrifyingly so.” As I grabbed my towel and phone from the floor, I noticed I had a message from Pipsqueak.
Did you buy lunch already? If not, I got this insane hankering for Chinese food.
That would be one heavy lunch, but it was her birthday. She could have whatever she wanted, and then she could decide if she wanted to keep the reservation I’d made for tonight, or if she’d want something lighter.
“As sad as I am to see my buddy bite the dust…” Ethan trailed off with a rueful grin. “Since it’s my baby sister, I’m glad you look whipped.”
“Thank you,” I chuckled. “I think.”
It felt good to have told him, and he’d reacted pretty much how I’d thought he would.
Darius was a loose cannon, however.
By the time I got home with enough Chinese food to feed an army, the sun had disappeared and rain was pouring down. I jogged up the path to my house with the food and my gym bag, and once inside, I was met by loud music and Grace’s laughter.
Fucking hell, this had to be my future.
Just as I’d imagined, Elise and Grace were dancing and goofing off in the kitchen.
Grace laughed madly and spun around, mirroring Elise’s movements.
I set down my bag, then leaned against the doorway and just watched them.
Elise didn’t stop when she spotted me. She just grinned and shook her booty in the way that made Grace squeal and try to mimic.
The counter was almost spotless. A white cake sat on one of her spinning platforms that she used to apply decorations, but other than a layer of frosting, the cake had nothing on it. But there was a bowl of sliced fruit by the sink, so I assumed she had plans. Strawberries, kiwi, blueberries, and bananas from what I could see.
Only she would make a cake that I actually looked forward to trying.
“Who’s hungry?” I asked.
Grace twirled around, nearly falling on her butt in the process, and spotted me. “Dada danth, pom!” She waved for me to join her.
I smiled and held up the bag of food. “Or we eat lunch on the patio first.” I faced Elise next. “In case you missed it, it’s pouring down.”
“Oh, awesome!” She lit up, knowing this meant she could listen to the rain falling on the patio roof. “Let me get the food, and you can help Grace wash her hands.” She walked over to me, focused solely on the bag.
I had another agenda item first. “Hey.” I lifted her chin and dipped down to kiss her.
She laughed softly and kissed me back, sliding a hand up my chest. “Hi.”
I hummed contentedly. “I love this, coming home to find you here.”
“Mmm, me too.” She played with the neckline of my tee and flicked me a quick glance that was full of playfulness and affection and…hope? “I didn’t mean to ruin a surprise or anything, but have you, by any chance, planned on visiting me in San Francisco?”
I furrowed my brow and straightened. What had she seen? She wasn’t technically correct anyway, but—
“An email popped up on your computer after I’d changed Grace’s diaper,” she elaborated and took the food from me. “I saw the words San Francisco and district before I looked away.”
Ah.
Well, now I had to read the email.
I had seen hope in her eyes, right? Which would bode well for the conversation. And settle my nerves.
“I guess you’ll have to wait and see,” I replied. “Grace, love, come here. Let’s go wash our hands while Elise turns your Chinese food into paste.”
Pipsqueak snickered, and it didn’t go unnoticed that she was blushing too.
It was shaping up to be one hell of a great day.
Elise and I sat across from each other and had Grace at the short end of the table on the patio, and between us were all the containers of food we could need. And a lot more. The rain pitter-pattered on the roof, giving Pipsqueak this look of extreme contentment and happiness that it was impossible not to feel the same.
Her mood had always been infectious to me, I realized.
The fact that she was currently drowning in one of my hoodies only made her cuter.
“How was your workout?” Elise bit into a spring roll and wiped some cut-up noodles off Grace’s chin.
“It was good. It was shit, but it was good.” I dumped more rice on my plate and went for another serving of beef stew. “Ethan isn’t the best sparring partner, not that I was any better today. But I got to tell him that I’m snatching up his baby sister, which felt fantastic.”