Whiskey and Country

38

NICHOLAS

“You’re sure he’d want me here? In his house? While he’s here too?” I asked Dahlia as she emptied the suitcase and hung our clothes in the wardrobe weeks later.

“Yes. We’re together. And I love you both. In different ways, but all the same. You’re part of my life, and Carter has to accept it. It’s a tradition of ours. If he plays in town, we stay here, all of us. Now just get ready so we can go.”

“What about Jack? Are you sure he’ll be okay tonight?”

“With Addi? You’re kidding, right? She loves him as her own. They will be fine. Stop being a helicopter parent, would you?”

I elbowed her, and she batted her lashes. Now I knew the power of those. The first time I picked her up for our date, she batted them at Carter, and he stopped fighting with her. Now she used them on me too whenever she wished to have the last word. And it worked. I had no idea why. It just did. I just stopped arguing every time Dahlia used her weapon of choice. Pussy-whipped, as Tucker would say. I kinda liked it, though.

“Woman, I can’t believe you went there,” I teased, pulling her against me. “Helicopter parent, really?”

“This new role suits you.”

“You think?”

“Ohmygod, stop with the whiskey voice already. You have no idea the effect it has on me.”

I blinked. “Whiskey voice? You’re still hung up on that one?”

“Yeah. When your voice is half-smooth, half-husky. It’s just like you. All calm and in control on the outside, strong and passionate on the inside. Like the liquor. It fits you. And it’s the color of your eyes. Whiskey, I mean. It’s also a color, so—”

I tipped a brow. “Oh, my eyes are whiskey too.”

“Yes. Lucky for me, it’s also your drink of choice. I think that should be my name for you from now on.”

“Whiskey? You kidding, right? It sounds like a dog’s name.”

Dahlia shrugged, laughing.

She looped her arms around my neck and ate the distance between our bodies.

“Okay, you’re right. It sounds terrible.” She scrunched up her face. “I’ll have to find something more fitting, I guess. Anyway, I love both sides of you.”

Oh, I owned a weapon too then. “You sure?”

“Babe, I’d get drunk on you every day if I could. You’re my new obsession. You look all inoffensive and sweet and hot, but you’re addictive, Nicholas Peterson. And I can’t live without you.”

“Did I ever tell you how much I love you?”

She wrinkled her beautiful face. “Not sure. Tell me once more. Just in case.”

“I love you, Dahlia Ellis. I love your heart. Your compassion. Your calm. Your quiet. Your wild.” I kissed the bone above her eyebrow. “And I love us together. I love your son. And I’ll befriend the man who has been by your side from the moment you were born and took care of you all these years. Because I owe him. A lot. He did it with the selfless way of his heart, never asking anything in return. He was Derek’s idol, and I can see why.”

Dahlia wiped her watery eyes.

“I have no idea how you ended up in my life, but I promise to love you every day.”

She dried her eyes with a tissue. “Shoot, my mascara. Stop being so handsome. It’s ruining my makeup,” she said, pushing my chest with a hand.

My fingers laced through hers over my heart. “For what it’s worth, thanks. For all you just said. It means a lot. And I just fell deeper in love with you. Who knew it was even possible?”

We kissed, our mouths rehearsing a languorous dance. I held Dahlia’s waist as she dissolved against my torso. Passion ignited between us. It always escalated quickly every time we were in each other’s orbit.

When we broke apart, I chased Dahlia away, my hand connecting with her ass as she yelped and flashed me a ten-thousand-buck smile. Trying to tame my aroused self and regain some control over my body, I finished setting up the bedroom that would be ours for the next few days before going to check on Jack, napping.

He had his own bedroom both at Carter’s cabin and his penthouse, here in Nashville. I watched his sleeping figure through the ajar door, his tiny fist holding his favorite blanket close to his heart, the sound of his steady breathing bringing me comfort. Yes, since the day he choked, I could spend hours listening to it.

“Hey,” Dahlia called from the kitchen, breaking the moment. “I'll prep lunch. Sandwiches?"

I closed the door and went to join her. "Works for me. You need help?"

"Nah, I'm the sandwich queen, remember?" She turned toward the refrigerator. "Tell me, I thought Tucker was supposed to fly here for the weekend?”

“He was. Canceled last minute. Said he had a work emergency. I suspect he was afraid we’d force him to come with us tonight.”

“It’s ridiculous. He could have hung out with Addi and Jack until we got back. Or watched Jack, and Addison could have come with us.”

I stopped in my tracks. “Addi and Tuck hanging out together? Nah, it sounds like a recipe for disaster.”

Dahlia chuckled. “Oh, you’re right. Why didn’t I think about it? Lucky for everybody involved, she has a steady boyfriend, so she’s out of reach.”

I moved behind her and held her hipbones, molding her back to my front. “Nobody is out of reach for Tuck, Dahlia.”

“Addison can hold her end. Don’t worry about her.”

I shook my head. “Never underestimate Tucker Philips. You’ve been warned. But perhaps having them both here would have determined who deserves the craziest friend title. My best friend or yours?”

Dahlia spun between my arms. “Maybe I’m not ready to find out just yet. Let’s not force proximity until we’re sure we can handle it.”

“Woman, we have a deal.”

I offered my palm, and we shook on it.

* * *