Boyd
“Let’s get you all cleaned up and into bed.”
His mind was a blur as she rubbed him down and spoiled him with tender kisses and touches. She wrapped him in soft towels before grabbing his clothes and tucking him into bed. He was out before his head even hit the pillow.
He woke up in the middle of the night with Queenie snuggling him from behind. With a warm, fuzzy feeling, he soaked in the serenity of calling such an amazing woman his —and being the little spoon.
The next morning, an odd sort of churning settled in his gut. He was forty-three and could count on one hand the number of times he’d met the parents. It felt odd to still be so nervous at his age. But perhaps his anxieties were justified. After all, this was far from a typical situation .
“What have you told them about me?” he asked, pouring Queenie a cup of coffee.
“That I’m serious about you and I don’t want them to make this awkward.”
“Fuck, why am I so nervous?”
“Because this is important to you.” She set the coffee aside and pulled herself onto the counter. “If it weren’t, you wouldn’t be feeling anything.”
“Are you nervous?”
“I am. I’m terrified my dad will ask you a bunch of awkward questions.”
“What types of things would he ask?”
“Most likely he’d question you about work and life stability. He can be an awkward soul. Mom is the social butterfly between the two of them.”
“He just wants to know you are being taken care of.”
“Yep.” She reached out, clenching his shirt and pulling him closer. “You’ll do wonderfully. I’m sure everyone’s nervous.”
“I don’t want them to think I’m an idiot.”
“They won’t because you aren’t. You are a kind, successful, charming man.”
He cupped her cheeks, resting his forehead against hers. “I might need to hear that peptalk more than once today.”
“I should’ve printed you a shirt, huh?”
An hour later, they arrived at the café to find her parents already seated. While Queenie made her introductions, he offered a hand to her mother first. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Bardot.”
“Oh, please, call me Camila.”
Filing that away, Boyd turned to her father. “Mr. Bardot. ”
“Christopher.”
Queenie tugged him into the seat next to her and gave him a menu. “We always come for the croissants; they’re so addicting.”
“Yet my husband always makes us order a proper breakfast too,” Camila added with a playful nudge.
Christopher rolled his eyes. “Who doesn’t start their day with eggs and bacon?”
“Or coffee,” Boyd finally chimed in.
“Ah, we’ll get along just fine.” Camila beamed at him before she turned to the waiter and gave him her order.
Once their menus were whisked away, Christopher focused his attention on Boyd. “Queenie said you work in marketing?”
“I do. I built my own company and dipped my toes into real estate along the way.”
“Real estate sounds much more interesting,” Camila said.
“They both have their perks.”
Christopher, however, was intrigued by it all. “What do you do with the properties you own?”
“Most I own are leasing buildings for passive income.”
Christopher was rather interested, but when they went into deeper detail, the women at the table checked out and began their own conversation. Boyd only looked over once he heard his name—and Queenie’s teasing giggle.
“Boyd said he’s horrible at it, so I’m not too afraid of embarrassing myself.”
Now his woman had his undivided attention. “Horrible at what?”
“Golfing.”
“Ah, yes, the bane of my existence. ”
“Queenie said you’re going to Top Golf with your friends,” Camila explained.
“We are, though I’m only there for the company. They just like to torture me.”
“I’m excited. I’ve always wanted to try it.”
“If you make it the night without taking an eye out, Oliver and Archie might invite you to the golf course.”
Queenie’s face lit up. “Guess I have some work to do.” When the waiter came to refill their coffee, Queenie excused herself from the table. “I’ll be right back.” She stood, pinning her mother with a stern look. “Paws off my chocolate croissant.”
Camila pressed her lips together to hide her cheeky smile and ordered more before the waiter walked off too. “She’s so excited to have us meet you. She hasn’t introduced us to anyone since college. Have you met Allison and her family yet?”
“Yes, just this week—along with Jessica and her kids. Queenie said they’re the siblings she never had.”
Boyd didn’t miss the flicker of sadness over Camila’s eyes before she hid them behind a bright smile. “Well, she seems very happy around you.”
“She has brought lots of joy to my life too.” With a grin so bright that it hurt his cheeks, he recalled, “She actually sent me flowers the other night and I felt like the luckiest man alive.”
Pouting, Christopher feigned offence. “I never get flowers.”
Camila patted her husband’s hand. “I’ll fill your next new toolbox with tulips.”
Christopher entwined their fingers and lifted them to his mouth, his smile leaving dimples in his cheeks. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Queenie returned to the table, and the four fell into easy conversation.
When Christopher called the waiter to pay, Queenie shook her head with a mischievous twinkle to her eyes.
“I paid already.” Both Boyd and Christopher opened their mouths to protest, immediately silenced by a stern look.
“I was not about to deal with both of your egos wanting to pay, so I took care of it. Besides, I enjoy spoiling my parents. And you,” she added, turning to Boyd, “have been spoiling me plenty. It’s time you let me pay for something. ”
Both men pouted, while Camila found the situation rather amusing. She rose from her seat, pulling her daughter into a hug. “Thank you. Even though your father won’t admit it, he appreciates it.”
Back at their cars, Christopher gave him a firm handshake and Camila pulled him in for a hug. “Have fun this afternoon.”
“Thank you, Mom.” With a kiss to her father’s cheek, Queenie waved them goodbye and took Boyd’s hand. Boyd helped her into her seat and the moment he took his, Queenie pulled him into a passionate kiss. “Told you they’d love you.”
“Next time I’ll have to keep a close eye on you. If I’d known what you were up to I wouldn’t have let you out of my sight.”
She laughed and caressed his cheek with her thumb. “I’ll have to figure something else out, huh?”
Once back at his place, he encouraged Queenie into a hot bath, basking in the sunlight that streamed through the windows.
He set her up with towels and connected her phone to the speakers before hiding in his office and getting some work done.
Some time later, he came up for air to still find her submerged in the water.
“Have you grown fins yet?”
“Unfortunately, not.” Queenie lifted a hand from the bubbles and studied her fingers. “But I do seem a little wrinkly.”
With a towel in one hand, he helped her out of the tub with the other. “What are you wearing this evening?”
“I thought a romper would be the safest bet. I don’t want your friends to remember me for showing off a little too much when I bent over for a ball.”
“Wise choice.”
Once he saw what she’d decided to wear, he matched it with a dark blue polo. As he styled his hair and combed through his beard, she sat on the counter next to him.
Queenie worried her bottom lip before meeting his gaze. “Can we talk about last night?”
“I’m all ears.”
“Did I go too far?”
“Not at all. I hope I didn’t give you that impression.”
“You seemed so out of it afterwards. I didn’t realise you were so tuckered out until we drove home.”
“I made you sit with your back to me on purpose, Queenie,” he hummed, brushing her cheek with his knuckles. “I knew you would go easy on me if you saw what it did to me.”
Queenie leaned into his touch. “I’ve never done anything like that. I was enjoying myself. I just was afraid I’d lost you in the midst of it.”
“You didn’t and I appreciate you checking on me.” He kissed her forehead and with flushed cheeks he added, “I appreciated the way you took care of me after much more. ”
“I was so worried,” she admitted, her cheek rubbing against his palm.
“I didn’t mean to worry you. You made me feel all warm and gooey inside.”
She kissed his palm, a weight visibly lifting from her shoulders. “I’m glad we can talk openly about these types of things.”
He allowed Queenie to stay on the counter while he got ready, loving how she made even the most mundane tasks something he rather looked forward to.
Oliver already waited for them in their assigned booth, flirting with the waitress who was taking his order.
“You know, if you don’t tread lightly, they’ll assign us that guy over there,” Boyd warned, clapping his friend on the shoulder.
Oliver rolled his eyes, distracted by Queenie. “So, this is the woman who has you wrapped around her little finger?”
“Oliver, meet Queenie.”
They shook hands, and Boyd tried to ignore the way Oliver’s gaze flitted to Queenie’s left arm. “Welcome to the inner circle.”
“Well, I heard if I do better than Boyd tonight I might be invited to the course. I couldn’t resist the chance to show off.”
“Believe me, that’s not as hard as it sounds. Your man has many strengths, but golf is definitely not one of them.” Oliver whisked her away and helped her find a club for her size, seeming to probe her with all kinds of questions.
“Alone?” Archie asked, dropping to the seat next to him. “ I thought we were to meet that wonderful woman you’ve been chewing our ears off about?”
“Oliver happened,” he said, indicating the two of them as he stood to pull Lee-Ann into a hug. “How are you?”
“Excited for the evening away from the little monsters. It’s been a while since we both got to escape together.”
Archie fused his brows and stared over at Oliver. “Has he been behaving?”
“Yes, he’s been very polite, though I can’t say the same for his attitude towards that waitress.”
“Nothing new there.” Lee-Ann’s eyes rested on Oliver and Queenie with curiosity before she looked at him again. “Have you spent all day with Queenie?”