Chapter 14
OWEN
Maverick stops me in the kitchen with a beer. He’s standing in front of the sink shaking a container of chicken breasts in hot sauce.
“Can you get over my cousin?” He laughs.
“No, I can’t.” My brow is down, and I’m seething.
How dare that fuckface text Gina out of the blue? She tried to hide it, but the shock was clear on her face. Her cheeks flushed, and she actually looked ashamed. As if she has anything to be ashamed of.
I’m going to find that guy, grab him by the neck, and… block him. With my fist.
“Whoa, who burned your biscuits?” Mav holds up a hand laughing, and I realize he wasn’t in the room for the text.
“Sorry.” I try to shake off the rage and take a cooling sip of beer. “What were you talking about?”
“I was talking about Haddy not changing poopy diapers. The real question is what were you talking about?”
“It’s nothing. Just some guy texting Gina.”
Mav’s brow furrows. “A guy texted Gina…” He nods slowly. “And that bothers you.”
It’s not a question, and I realize I’ve shown my hand. “It’s not like that… It’s because—”
“Because I was right at the wedding!” He laughs, slapping my shoulder. “And you tried to play it off. I knew there was something going on there.”
“It was a text from Baxter.”
“The asshole?” Mav sets the container down hard. “He’d better not be sniffing around here again. I’ll punch him right in the nose.”
“I’ll help you.”
Mav nods, grabbing my shoulder. “You’re a good man, Sly. Have you seen the wedding pictures of you and Gina?”
“No…” I think about walking with her down that aisle, how beautiful she was, how she tried to pull away from me. How I found her crying. How she ran…
“They’re really good. I’ll send you the link.”
A Roooo! from the backyard breaks the tension, and I nod at my friend. “Thanks, now let me see what these ladies are doing.”
I step out onto the back porch to see Gina walking with Spanky. She walks like a supermodel, the leash in one hand and the other extended like a ballerina.
She’s dressed in long, navy track pants and a short, white crop top that shows off her flat stomach in a sexy, casual way. Hell, everything she does is sexy to me.
Spanky clearly knows what he’s doing. His head is high, and he trots, lifting his legs like one of those show horses.
Maddie stands beside Ladybird. She’s wearing black leggings and a purple T-shirt that reads K-Pop Demon Hunters, and her blonde hair is twisted up in little space buns on the top of her head.
She’s not a model, but I’d give her a ribbon for cutest handler. So what if I’m biased.
She watches Gina with all her might. Her little brow is tight over her brown eyes, and she lifts Ladybird’s leash in the air, doing her best to mimic Gina’s form.
Our droopy dog doesn’t budge.
“Come on, Ladybird!” She gives the leash a few tugs until finally the big bloodhound stands, then lifts her front legs and puts them on Maddie’s shoulders. “Oh, Ladybird… No!”
Maddie staggers back, and the dog lands on the ground again.
“She can’t jump on the judge or she’ll be disqualified,” Heather calls. “I learned that from Best in Show.”
“Maybe I should start off with Ladybird,” Gigi returns to where my daughter stands with her hands on her hips beside the big dog. “You can get the feel of walking with Spanky. He’s done it so much, he doesn’t even need a handler.”
“Okay!” Maddie skips over and takes Spanky’s leash. “Like this?”
“That’s right,” Gina calls. “Now walk him around the backyard like Caitlyn does.”
Maddie takes off marching beside Spanky, and the two women stand back watching.
“That’s really good, Maddie!” Gina calls to her. “I think you’ve got it!”
“Now we just have to teach LB!” Maddie calls back, skipping with Spanky.
The white dog jumps beside her, and the women laugh. They’re quiet for a moment, and I’m about to walk up and join them when Heather speaks.
“I’ve been thinking about your reading.” Her tone is tentative. “When I’ve done them in the past, they’re usually about romantic relationships.”
“You’ve done that reading before?”
“Not that one exactly. It’s more about the feelings, the vibes. It’s all the same.” My sister tilts her head. “What’s making you cautious with love?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugs, exhaling a huff. “Dumb Baxter, I guess.”
“The guy who texted? What did he do?”
I know this story, and I’m not looking to hear it again. Still, I want to know more about this reading my sister mentioned, and what it has to do with Gigi and love.
“Six dates is a lot,” my sister says.
“Yeah.” The dejection in Gina’s voice makes my jaw clench. “He said he wanted to be my doggy boy.”
“What does that even mean?” Heather’s tone is disgusted.
“I don’t know. He was always making references I didn’t get.”
“He sounds weird.”
“He didn’t seem weird to me,” Gigi sighs. “I thought he was kind of dorky, but in a cute way. He was just the last in a line of jerks… Or I don’t know, maybe I’m just bad at sex. I don’t seem to have what it takes to keep them coming back for more.”
I’m about to break through the hedge at that. Gigi is not bad at sex, but my sister’s reply stops me.
“No man is nicer than the one who hasn’t slept with you yet.”
“Tell me about it.” Gigi laughs softly, but it doesn’t sound happy. “I just want to matter to someone. I want to love so hard it burns, you know? I want a guy who’ll bring me flowers just because he’s thinking about me.”
“Not because he cheated and feels guilty.”
“Right. Oh, wait… Did that happen to you?”
“Actually, no.” Heather sounds as wistful as Gina. “It’s just a cliche. I’ve been too busy helping with this little lady to date much.”
“Owen said something about that. Like you’re ready for him to retire.”
“He said that?” My sister laughs. “Well, next time he tells you something like that, tell him not to worry. I’ve read my cards, and I’m right where I’m supposed to be.”
“He’ll be glad to hear it.”
She’s right, I am glad.
“Don’t forget to have hope,” my sister tells her. “Remember you’re close to a victory.”
I hear them moving this way, so I walk back to the porch. I turn her words over in my mind, burning… flowers… I wonder what my sister means. If Gina’s close to a victory, I want to be a part of it. I want to be part of all of it.
When I enter the kitchen, Gavin is back. He’s holding a beer, and Mav is turning the chicken breasts over in the air fryer.
“Almost ready,” Mav says. “Is Haddy on her way?”
“Yeah, she just took a minute to feed Lucy.” Gav leans against the counter.
“How’d the diaper change go?” Mav snorts. “Somebody’s got to tell Uncle Hen that Super P is a chip off the ole block.”
“She’s going to get mad if you call her that.” A warning is in Gav’s tone.
“What’s Super P?” I grin, looking from one to the other.
“Don’t you dare, Maverick Murphy!” Haddy enters the kitchen with the baby on her shoulder, patting her little back. “You’re really pushing it tonight.”
Both guys straighten, and Maverick returns quickly to flipping the chicken.
“You know they make this balm,” I jump in to change the subject slightly. “I think it’s called Stink Stick, actually, and it comes in scents like coffee and mint. You put it on your upper lip, and it blocks the odor.”
“Thanks, Owen.” Haddy gives my arm a gentle touch. “My uncle Jack said something about that. I was hoping things would go back to how they were before.”
Looking down, I shake my head. “I hate to break it to you, but those days are over. And when she starts on solid food, well…”
“I’ll see if I can track down one of those stink sticks.” Haddy nods, catching my drift.
“On that note,” Mav straightens. “Who’s ready to eat?”
“Ladybird doesn’t walk fancy.” Maddie’s bottom lip pouts as she sits on the edge of the sofa beside Gina. “She kind of flaps.”
My daughter flails her arms in a way that looks very much like our klutzy bloodhound.
We finished dinner, cleaned the kitchen and wandered into the living room. Gavin sits in an armchair holding his little daughter with Haddy sitting on the arm. Gina and my daughter are watching clips of dog shows on Gina’s large iPad, while Heather cycles through movies on the streaming service.
“She’ll learn.” Gina rubs her hand on my daughter’s back.
It makes me think of home and a real family with a mother for my little girl… What would that be like?
“My Dog Skip?” Heather asks, and Gina gives her a thumbs up.
“No dogs are harmed in the making of that film,” she says, teasing.
“How does that song go?” Mav walks in, giving Haddy a bump. “‘God loves a terrier’? Sing it, Hads.”
Haddy immediately launches into the song with a perfectly pure singing voice. My eyebrows rise, and I sit a little straighter. She’s only two lines in when Ladybird straightens her front legs and sits up, dropping her head back and letting out a long howl.
Mav falls back laughing, and Haddy jumps off the side of Gavin’s chair to kneel in front of our bloodhound as she continues.
“Get your phone!” Gina waves at Maverick. “Take a video!”
Haddy keeps singing, putting her arm around Ladybird’s back as my dog continues to howl, hitting different notes for different lengths of time.
Haddy breaks, falling forward as she laughs. “It’s like she’s trying to sing along!”
“That’s what I said!” Maddie runs over to sit beside them, hugging our dog. “It’s okay, Ladybird. You don’t have to be fancy. You can be a singer!”
“I was thinking about being a pet psychic.” Heather turns to Gina. “What do you think? Know anybody who’d be interested in something like that?”
“Really?” Gina’s nose wrinkles. “I kind of… don’t think that’s real.”
She puts her hands over her eyes like she’s hiding, and it’s all too cute.
“Who cares?” Mav cries. “I bet we could find folks who’d be interested. LA is woo-woo like that. Post it on social media and see what happens.”
“I think I will,” Heather laughs, standing. “Come on, Mads. Let’s get cleaned up and watch a movie in bed.”
My daughter jumps to her feet before skipping to me and throwing her little body against mine in a hug. “We can read a bedtime story tomorrow night, okay, Daddy?”
“Okay, baby.” I give her a tight squeeze. “I love you.”
“I love you, too!” Then she stops and gives Gina a hug. “I love you, Miss Gina!”
“Aw, thank you!” Gina hugs her back. “I love you, too!”
My daughter continues making her way around the room, telling everyone goodnight, but Gina’s response simmers in my chest.
It stays in my mind as we continue visiting a little while longer. I watch her, and it’s like the air around her glows. She smiles, and the room brightens. Her hands move as she tells a story, and it’s like she’s conjuring magic.
Clearly, I’m falling asleep from nonstop hockey.
Gav is the first to call it. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m beat.”
He shifts his sleeping daughter to his shoulder and stands, and Haddy walks over to hug Gina. “I’ll touch base with you tomorrow about calendar distribution.”
“Calendar distribution?” Gina frowns.
“I just mean putting a few in your studio for people to buy. Don’t get all wiggy.”
“I’m not wiggy.” Gina snorts as they head out the door for their house.
“Night, guys. Don’t be too loud.” Mav gives us a wave before disappearing into his first-floor master suite.
That leaves Gina and me alone, facing each other. She blinks up at me briefly, giving me a cautious smile, which I hate. I don’t want her to be guarded around me.
In my very best, nonthreatening tone, I ask, “Do you need to shower? I can wait.”
“I won’t be long.” She walks to the stairs, hesitating at the bottom. “Thanks.”
“No problem.” I lean against the back of the couch, watching as she jogs to the second floor in those track pants.
I think about her shapely legs, and tracing my lips up her inner thighs. Heat moves below my belt, and I wonder what she might say if I suggested we try again.
Before I can think myself out of it, I take out my phone. My thumbs fly quickly over the screen, and I hit send.
My chest is tight, and fever is in my brow. What the hell did I just do? Rubbing my hand over my stomach, I exhale a chuckle. I don’t know, but I’m not sorry.