“The deal was that if you cussed I got to spank you.”
“Yep.”
After the last button was in place he stood up straighter. She could see the wicked gleam in his dark eyes, and she knew. “You did it on purpose.”
He chuckled. “Never been spanked by a woman before. Cal me curious.”
Liquid heat pooled between her thighs. Wade Harrison at her mercy. Mmm, now that was a delicious thought.
18
He’d made cannel oni, only her favorite Italian dish ever. Could he be more perfect? “This is the best I’ve ever had. I had no idea you could cook.”
“My mom always had a thing about equality. She made sure Dean and I could cook, do laundry, and mend our own clothes. She also saw to it that Deanna could work on her own car as wel as any mechanic. Drove my sister crazy; she hates getting dirty. The woman is a neat freak.”
Gracie liked his mother already. “What did your dad think of this philosophy?”
Wade swal owed another bite of his cannel oni before replying, “Dad thought Mom hung the moon. He would’ve done anything for her.”
She took a sip of her iced tea and thought of how nice it would’ve been to grow up with siblings and two loving parents. “It sounds like a pretty great childhood.”
After finishing off his last bite, Wade sat back in his chair. The black T-shirt he wore only seemed to enhance his powerful chest and hard abs. “Dad owned his own landscaping business. He made a good living with it. Mom was a nurse. She retired last year, after Dad died.”
Gracie immediately felt bad for prying. She reached across the table and covered his hand with hers. “I’m so sorry.”
Wade turned his hand palm up and entwined their fingers. “That’s okay. I’ve dealt with my grief. It was a little harder on Mom and Deanna. I think both of them walked around in a daze those first few months.”
“How did he die?” she asked, then quickly added, “if you don’t mind my asking.”
“A brain aneurism. He didn’t suffer. I’m grateful for that. The hard part lately has been talking Mom into sel ing the house. She rattles around in that big two-story. We want her to have something smal er, to be close to other people so she won’t feel so alone.”
She remembered Wade’s brother and sister coming over the day before, and guilt assailed her. “The apartment you were supposed to look at for your mom. Oh, Wade, I’m so sorry. You should have gone with them.”
He shrugged. “It’s okay. Deanna told me it’s a dump. Back to the drawing board. We need to find something soon, though, because Mom has someone interested in the house.”
Gracie thought of her own place and said, “What about my apartment complex? It’s a nice neighborhood. Er, until this whole nasty business with my stalker, I mean. Before this al started I never had a single problem there.”
His thumb stroked over her knuckles, and Gracie nearly lost track of the conversation. “Not a bad idea. I’l let Deanna know. She’s been sort of heading up this project. She’s a little protective of Mom. So far Deanna has nixed every apartment we’ve looked at for one reason or another. I’m starting to think she’s not ready to let go. She grew up in that house. It’s hard to move on.”
She understood, al too wel . She’d hated when her father had sold her grandmother’s smal house. It wasn’t anything grand, but it was her grandma’s and that made it special to Gracie. “Al her memories of your dad are tied to that house.”
He smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yeah, pretty much.”
She had a feeling he was covering his own grief. “What about you? Are you ready to move on?”
A subtle tightening of his fingers on hers was the only indication that Gracie had struck a chord. “It’l be hard, but I’l always have Dad in my heart. It’s Mom I’m worried about. The more she stays out there, the more she becomes a hermit. I’m afraid she’s withdrawing.”
“She won’t.”
“You sound pretty sure of that.”
“She has you, Dean, and Deanna. She has something to live for. Maybe she just needs to feel needed again.”
He sat up straighter, giving her his ful attention. “What do you mean?”
Gracie wasn’t in familiar territory. After al , what did she know about families? “Wel , I don’t know her, but she’s a mother, and she used to be a nurse. It seems like she’s the caregiver type. Maybe if she thought someone needed her again it would help.”
He frowned and released her. “Her kids need her. She’s our mother.”