I smiled and then frowned. “You keep linen napkins in your purse or something?”
She laughed prettily. “Nope, they’re yours as it turns out.”
I stared at the dark blue napkins folded into perfect triangles. “You’re kidding.”
“I’m not. They were in that drawer right there, along with a green and gold set.”
I shrugged. “Must have been a gift from Mama or Beth.” We settled at the table with more tea for Margot and a dark beer for me as we dug into the food. I gave her about five minutes of blissful eating before broaching her earlier shock. “Are you ready to talk about it now?”
She shook her head and started to blink fast. Too fast. “No,” she said on a sob. “I’m not ready to talk about it, and I’m certainly not ready for it to happen. Twins, Grady! I am entirely too old for twins. One baby was going to be difficult enough, but two? How can I possibly handle two babies while I run my business?”
“First of all, it’s not just you. We will both have two babies to take care of while we run our businesses.”
“Of course,” she nodded. “You will be involved, but I’m the one carrying the food around.”
I laughed. “Funny, they have these breast pumps that you can use so I can feed our babies later. Technology is amazing, ain’t it?”
She glared at me. “Okay fine, together, but how will we do all this Grady? It was going to be difficult with one baby, but two?”
“We’ll figure it out, the same way parents have been doing for thousands of years.” I shrugged off her concern. “Besides, name one thing worth having that comes easy.”
“Okay you might have a point there, but considering I’m hormonal with two babies growing inside of me, I reserve the right to freak out a little.”
“A little?” I laughed and shook my head. “Freak out as much as you need. I’m right here. Me and my chicken riggies.”
Margot ate her fill and pushed her plate away with a sigh. “Best riggies I ever had.”
“That’s what I like to hear. Go watch some TV while I clean up.”
Margot shook her head. “I’m pregnant, not useless. I’ll help.”
I shrugged. “If you insist. I never turn down help when it comes to cleaning.”
“Good to know.”
We washed dishes together in companionable silence. I washed and she dried and put them away. It was all disturbingly domestic, except I wasn’t disturbed by it at all. I wasn’t uneasy, and I just fell into the movements with ease, like we’d been doing it forever.
And just like some type of modern day family, we finished in the kitchen and retired to bed like an old married couple.
It was the kind of domestic bliss I didn’t think actually existed, and when Margot curled up against my chest, I allowed myself to enjoy the domesticity.
Just for tonight.
Chapter 19
Margot
I woke up in Grady’s arms and it felt much better than I remembered. Waking up in Michael’s arms certainly didn’t stir me the way being pressed up against Grady’s hard muscles and hot flesh did. It felt good. No, it felt better than good. It felt like heaven and bliss and want. My body pulsed with need—instead of nausea—first thing in the morning.
I smiled at that particular thought and turned to face him. In sleep, Grady was even more beautiful than when he was awake. Fiery gold lashes fanned against high cheekbones, his full lips parted into a slight smile as he slept, and this close without the intensity of his gaze staring back at me, I could see some of the freckles that were usually obscured because of his thick beard. Yeah, he was more than just good looking. More than handsome. He was truly beautiful in a really masculine way.
Feeling the devil on my shoulder I lifted one leg and rested on top of his hip, tracing his full lips with my fingertip. Grady stirred a little, a move that brought me within a breath of his morning erection. My nerves started to get the better of me and I moved to pull back, but Grady’s hand shot out and gripped my hip. “Going somewhere?”
“Um,” was the only word I could manage.
He smiled and popped open one blue eye and then the other. “You looking for trouble Margot?”
I smiled at the thick, rasp of his voice. “Is that what you named him, Trouble?”
A loud laugh erupted from Grady, and with how close we were, the sound vibrated my entire body and amplified my desire. He pulled me closer and flexed his hips so the full length and hardness of his erection pressed between my legs. He growled and I moaned, electricity sparked between us, and when Grady leaned in I was ready for his kiss.
Mostly.
I pulled back and he frowned. “Morning breath.”