Millionaire Crush (Freeman Brothers 3)
That Sunday ended up being the best day I’d had in a long time. Everybody greeted us enthusiastically when we got to the barbecue, and we fell naturally into being there together. I spent the whole evening near Vince at all times, fighting the grin that threatened to become permanent.
“Hey, smiley,” Nick said on my second trip up to the food table. “Did you do something different with your teeth? You seem to be showing them off a lot.”
“Same old teeth,” I said.
“You know, this whole thing is super convenient for like Christmas card purposes and everything, but how am I supposed to be your man of honor and his best man at the same time?”
“Alright, enough of that,” I said.
Nick laughed, and I knew he was just going to keep making fun of me through the rest of the evening. I didn’t even mind. My best friend could tease me all he wanted. I was happy. Genuinely happy for the first time in a really long time. My life was in limbo with the custody battle, and all that was missing from making this the most perfect day was Remy. But at least I had Vince holding my hand and checking to see if I needed refills on my drinks to comfort me.
One day my son would be here with me. I had to carry that belief in my heart.
The barbecue turned into after-dinner drinks that gradually faded into everybody sitting around a fire pit toasting marshmallows. It could have gone on forever and I would have been content. But eventually everybody got tired, and it was time to dissipate and head home. Vince brought me back to my apartment and I almost invited him in.
The words were right there on my tongue. But I stopped myself. That was rushing. Even if we had been heading this way for a long time, it was all still new and fresh. I learned my lesson a long time ago. This was something special, and I wanted to do it right. That meant taking my time, even if every bit of me wanted more.
Vince walked me to my door, and we paused outside. He tucked a finger under my chin and tilted my face up as he lowered his mouth to mine. I melted into the kiss, and one hand on my back drew me up against him. It was our first kiss, and it was a good one. Good enough to sustain me for at least a little while longer.23VinceMonday morning came with a nose full of fur and a struggle to breathe. The most elaborate high-tech alarm clocks in the world didn’t have anything on Frankie. I didn’t even need to check the time. The enormous ball of fluff had no patience for inconsistency. When he was ready for breakfast, it didn’t matter how long I had been sleeping or if I had any plans for the day. He jumped onto my bed, climbed on me, and plopped over onto my face.
Lying on his side, suffocating me to get me awake seemed risky. And yet, as was evidenced by mornings such as the one before that included stumbling around bleary-eyed to feed him before passing out again, it always worked. The touchy issue of daylight savings aside, I could set my watch by him. Greenwich Frankie Time never failed.
But on that Monday, even inhaling a good portion of my cat didn’t take away the grin that came to my face the second I was conscious. It might have even been there before I was conscious. That was how happy I was. The day before could not have gone better. It might not have turned out exactly how I thought it would, but I was glad for it.
When I headed for Lindsey’s house Sunday, it was with all the intention to check in on her and make sure that she was alright after the run-in with Grant the day before. My plan was to first ask her how she was feeling and give her a chance to talk about any thoughts or emotions the experience brought up. Even though I got a basic idea of what happened from my brothers, I wanted to hear it from her.
After we talked about Grant coming up to the bar and what she wanted to do about that, I planned on transitioning the conversation over to the bigger picture. I wanted to know more about Remy and her past. Even when I was walking up to her apartment door, it was with the plan of talking everything out in my mind.
But all that disappeared when she opened the door. As soon as I saw her standing there, something flipped inside me. She wasn’t dressed up and glamorous. She wasn’t trying to look alluring or draw me in. And that only made her all the more appealing. It was just Lindsey. As she was. And that was exactly what I wanted. That moment looking at her in pajamas with a package of bacon in her hand and messy hair proved to me I wasn’t just drifting around in a bubble of attraction. This wasn’t just a crush. I wanted Lindsey in every way, in all her forms. Maybe even especially like this.