Chapter 23
T o my disappointment, I had to leave Lex alone on his birthday for a few hours to handle some things and drop by my place.
I didn’t get a chance to buy his gift this week since we were together the whole time, but once I finally had a moment, I knew exactly what to get. That part was easy. The silly little extra, though? That took way longer to find.
And because I have no self-control, I also picked up another indecent dress—just for him. The last one for a while, I told myself. But there’s something about the way he looks at me when I wear something sexy that’s impossible to resist. Addictive. And I have a feeling this dress will push him over the edge. Full-on Tex Avery wolf, tongue rolling to the floor and all.
As I walk up to his door, I’m aware of how barely covered I am under my coat. My mom would probably qualify this dress as underwear if she saw it, and I wouldn’t exactly blame her. It’s as revealing as a babydoll, despite the velvety fabric, with a draped cleavage that goes way too low. But given my lack of boobs, it’s not that bad. And it’ll probably get me pinned down on the couch in under three minutes anyway, so I’ll change into something less raunchy, and we’ll move on with our celebrations.
I also prepared a duffel bag with some of my things for the drawers he emptied for me. If he wants me to be a more important part of his personal space, I won’t fight it. But between the bag with the gifts and the one with the groceries I’m holding, I had to leave it in the car. It’ll be another one of the many surprises I’ve planned for tonight.
Juggling the bags, I press the doorbell, straightening my scarf and coat the best I can. Like the gentleman he is, he’ll help me out of them and get his first present tonight .
My enthusiastic grin fades as I discern an unusual commotion inside the apartment. Are those high heels walking toward the door?!
Before I can react or think, the heavy panel opens, and a tall, lean, and blonde woman in her early forties appears on the other side. We stare at each other with matching shock, eyeing one another from head to toe. But then I’m distracted by the activity behind her. There are other people here. At least five. And kids. There are kids in Lex’s apartment.
I’m still unsure what’s happening when he appears in my field of view. The panicked and lost look he sends me is anything but reassuring. Who the fuck are these people? Before he can reach the door, it parts wider, revealing a familiar woman—Lex’s oldest sister, Lucy.
“Hey, Andy. Long time no see,” she greets me. Turning to the unknown woman, she says, “Julia, this is Andrea, the woman I told you about.”
Oh, shit, that’s another one of Lex’s sisters.
Suddenly, it hits me. Holy fuck… The whole family is here.
Pure dread floods me. I’m about to meet Lex’s family and couldn’t have been more unprepared. And it’s not just the outrageous dress.
It’s the fact that I’m wearing nothing underneath it.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” Julia says, extending her hand to me. Lucy takes the bag of groceries from my distracted hold so I can shake it.
I can barely command my arm to move and comply. My mouth opens and closes, too stunned and mortified to say anything. Lex has reached us, and he wordlessly moves them out of the way to join me outside in the hallway. Ignoring their disapproval, he pulls on the door until it’s nearly closed and focuses on me.
“I’m so sorry,” he mumbles, one of his large hands gently squeezing my arm.
“Alexander, what the fuck?!” I mutter.
“They surprised me barely ten minutes ago. I wanted to call you to warn you, but I couldn’t get a single second to myself.”
“Well, you really, really should have, Lex. I’m not ready for this. It’s too soon, and—For God’s sake, I’m not even wearing underwear!”
A flame dances in his eyes for a split second, but he’s quick to dismiss whatever vision or fantasy my revelation conjured. “I’m so fucking sorry, freckles. They know I hate surprises, so I’m not sure what the fuck this is about.”
“I wish you’d texted me, Lex. I would have at least put panties on.” Or turned around and ran for the hills.
I suddenly remember the duffel bag full of alternatives in my car, but before I can strategize, the door swings open. “Alright, love birds, that’s enough secret chitchat,” Lucy orders. “Andy, everyone wants to meet you. Come in!”
Lex rests a supportive hand on my lower back but doesn’t push me forward, waiting for me to decide what I’d rather do. It’s only for an evening. I can handle it. I’m a strong, badass woman, and I’ll endure whatever the next few hours have in store for me.
I shove the bag with Lex’s gift onto his chest. “You need to hide this,” I tell him. “In the depths of hell if you have to, but make it disappear.”
He takes it from me and nods gravely. We step inside, and while Lex beelines to his office with the bag, Lucy stays here to help me with my things.
“I think I’ll keep my coat on,” I say once I’ve discarded my scarf.
“Nonsense, it’s perfectly warm in here.”
Wow, authority definitely runs in their genes. She’s already helping with my coat buttons before I can find another excuse. When some of my dress appears, she raises her eyebrows at the dark blue velvet. “That is… pretty,” she hesitates.
“Uh, well, I was about to spend the evening alone with my boyfriend for his birthday ,” I remind her.
“No judgment here. And it’s so nice that you two made things official. I had a hunch you’d get through that thick skull of his when you stormed out of the restaurant that day.”
She gives me a smile and a wink as she helps me remove my coat. “Phew, Lex will be even more annoyed that we came,” she says once she’s taken me in.
“Why did you come?” When I realize how harsh that sounds, I add, “I mean, he doesn’t like surprises, and it’s my understanding that his birthday was never a big thing for the family. So, why is it this year?”
She winces and looks around at her family members. “It might be my fault. I told Emmy and Jules about you, then our mother heard… I think it made us want to get closer to Lex, to witness this new development in his life.”
“I see… Well, a little warning would be great next time so I can dress kid-friendly,” I say with a grimace, looking down at my dress.
“It’s not that bad, don’t worry,” she reassures me.
Well, that’s because she doesn’t know I have nothing underneath. Thankfully, it’s long enough not to accidentally flash anyone unless I bend over low. Or if a kid falls near me and gets a view right up the beaver. Jesus, I hope no kid will fall around me.
I worriedly scan the room and notice that Lex is returning. He’s with us in seconds and wraps an arm around my hips. “You’re gorgeous, my love,” he whispers, kissing my temple .
That doesn’t help soothe my racing heart. Especially not when I catch someone looking at me from the other side of the room. Lex’s mother is a beautiful woman in her seventies, her dirty blonde hair shaped into a perfect French twist. Her posture is straighter than a queen’s, and there’s something intimidating in the way she keeps her chin slightly up. She’s wearing an off-white flowy shirt tucked into a pair of high-waisted, wide-legged pants with ironing lines on the front. At her neck, there’s a single row of large pearls, identical ones at her ears, and a bracelet that matches on her skinny wrist. There’s something cold and haughty about her, and the look she gives me chills me to my bones.
To my relief, the two men here are too young to be Lex’s father, so I cling to the hope that I’ll be spared having to meet him.
Lucy joins them, and Lex encourages me to come along with a gentle push. I comply, my body on autopilot, and stand there, motionless, as he makes the introductions.
“Everyone, this is Andrea Walker,” he tells them. “Andrea, these are Lucy—whom you already know—her husband Patrick, and their two sons, Theodore and William. Julia is the one who opened the door for you. Her fiancé, Justin, had to stay in Dallas. Then Emilia and Frank, with their daughters Millie and Charlie.”
His hand is still on my back, and while it helps a little, it becomes ridiculously ineffective when we turn to the last person. “And this is my mother, Miriam,” Lex concludes.
She arches her brow, which is very much something Lex does, but the disdain in her expression is entirely new. Fuck, she already hates me. Which makes sense because I look like a hooker. What mother would want that for their son?!
“Hi, everyone,” I shyly say to the group with an awkward wave.
The ten minutes that follow are a nervous blur. Everyone wants a piece of me, curious to know more about the woman who finally harpooned Lex’s heart. The kids are well-behaved, gathered on the couch as the oldest boy plays with a Switch while his brother and cousins watch. Lex’s sisters are warmer than I anticipated, and only Lucy seems to have that intense authority, like Lex.
Well, them and their mother. Whenever I cross Mrs. Coleman’s aloof gaze, I want to disappear into a hole a little more. Why the fuck did I ever buy this dress?!
I notice the grocery bag on the counter and decide to use that as an excuse to get a little breather. Lex, who’s been quite silent this whole time, lets go of me and I walk up to the kitchen island to put away what’s in it. I’ve just gotten the steak out when Lex’s mother joins me .
“So, you’re the woman I’ve heard so much about?” she asks. Her British accent takes me by surprise. I had no idea she wasn’t American, since Lex rarely talks about his parents, and I don’t want to force him to.
“That would be me, yes,” I answer with a forced smile.
I keep emptying the bag, which is a strategic mistake. It’s very clear that I was about to cook mac and cheese with steak, and she notices. When I catch the disdain in her eyes as she glares at the ingredients, I feel compelled to defend myself.
“This was, um, your son’s request. He insisted it was his favorite meal. I can cook, I promise.”
She somehow turns that into a bad thing when she says, “Well, I can’t. I’ve always had others do it for me.”
Charming.
I can feel her hawk eyes on me the whole time I put everything away, but I don’t let it take me down. It doesn’t matter if she likes me or not. All that matters is that Lex does.
“I’m sure I can find something a little less childish to cook for us,” I suggest when I face her again.
She dismisses the offer with a wave as if the idea of doing something as pedestrian as cooking is absurd. “A catering team will arrive soon. They’ll take care of everything.”
Ugh, my cozy little plans alone with Lex are long gone, and I miss them dearly.
Mrs. Coleman crosses her arms in front of her, inquisitively looking down at me. On her perfectly manicured hands, she has several gold and diamond rings—including an obscenely large engagement ring.
“So, how did you and my son become a thing, Miss Walker?”
“Please, call me Andy,” I insist, ignoring the reductive way she framed our relationship. “And we work together. Or I guess I work for him.”
“I already knew that. I meant, how did it all happen?”
We wanted to fuck each other’s brains out because your son is a stone-cold hunk who loves my ass. So we did that for a while, and after he’d railed me within an inch of my life a few times, feelings started growing.
I want to answer that to see her reaction, but I hold back and say, “Well, we worked together a lot since his company bought a project from me, and with all the late nights and talks, we slowly fell in love with one another.”
“What an interesting development… ”
I glimpse at Lex, wishing he’d come to save me from his dragon of a mother. But it’s like he’s zoned out, lost in his own little world in his head as he absentmindedly cracks his knuckles. Miriam Coleman is intimidating as fuck, and I don’t know how to handle her. I needed weeks of psychological preparation, but instead, I have to improvise with a woman who seems deprived of mercy or indulgence. Knowing Lex grew up with her as a mother, I can absolutely understand why he’s so emotionally scarred.
It isn’t Lex who comes to my rescue, but the doorbell that chimes. The catering service Mrs. Coleman hired has arrived, so she leaves me alone to handle that. Lex, who was shaken out of his thoughts by the doorbell, takes her place, pulling me closer to him with a hand on my hip. “As soon as I can, I’m throwing everyone out, and we’ll return to our original plan,” he promises.
“You can’t, Lex. They came all the way from Dallas and New York.”
“But you’re the only one I want to celebrate with.”
“We’ll have other birthdays,” I negotiate.
Resigned, Lex sighs, not hiding his disappointment. After a quick glimpse at his family across the room, he bends toward me, his warm breath caressing the curve of my throat. “Are you truly wearing nothing under your sexy dress?” he asks, his whisper pouring into my ear like an erotic promise. For the first time since I arrived, I’m comfortable. In the familiar bubble of desire and lust he so effortlessly weaves around me, I feel like myself, like nothing can get to me.
“You’ll have to wait and see,” I reply.
“I think I’d like to check now. It’s my birthday, after all, so I can get anything I want.”
He runs his hand down my hip and thigh until it reaches the end of the dress. Slowly, he brings it back up, leisurely raising the dark blue velvet.
His adventurous hand is hidden from the others by the kitchen island, so I’m tempted to let him run his fingers to where my underwear should be. I want him to see how naughty I am for him.
Someone laughs loudly, taking me out of the trance Lex hypnotized me in. I grab his hand firmly and push it down. “You’ll get to see how much of a slut I am after they’re gone, baby.” I soften the rebuttal with a small kiss on his jaw and leave him alone in the kitchen.
On my way to the group, I can barely hold back a proud grin. I love to bend to Lex’s will, but I also love leaving him wanting more. Even if he’ll make me pay for it tenfold.
A lthough I’m always happy to see my sisters, nieces, and nephews, this is an instance I definitely would rather have skipped. But I’m aware of how much preparation and organization this must have taken, so I bite down my desire to throw everyone out.
The caterers are already settled in the kitchen, and a sommelier is passing among us with flutes of champagne. It won’t take long before they’re all out, especially since they came with children. They’ll need to leave to put them to bed. And then I’ll be alone with Andrea.
Her pretty little dress is driving me mad, with most of her back exposed, a front that could flash her nipples with one wrong move, and the mid-thigh skirt that gives easy access to her bare pussy. She definitely bought it with me in mind, as if she knew just how much I’d want to rip it off of her.
She’s the last one to get a glass, and the sommelier leaves us alone, gathered in the sitting area. Lucy loudly clears her throat and raises her flute.
“I can’t believe my baby brother is celebrating his 35th birthday,” she starts. “I still remember that chubby little kid, a little awkward and clumsy.”
Emilia chimes in with, “He isn’t chubby or clumsy anymore, but he’s still awkward.” That gets a few people laughing, including Andrea, who looks at me with a warm smile.
“Little brother,” Lucy continues, “we’re all so proud of everything you’ve accomplished and how far you’ve come. There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t think of those few years you spent with us at Harvard.” Her husband, who lived with us as her boyfriend then, nods. “And being your sister has been one of the great honors of my life, Lexi. So, to you, Alexander, and to the rest of your life.”
She raises her glass as everyone repeats, “To Alexander.”
We all take a sip of champagne, and Julia wriggles with excitement. “Now, the gifts!”
They scatter to fetch things in their bags or coats, and I’m left with Andrea, who sends me an alarmed glance. Earlier, when I handled the bag she wanted me to hide, I couldn’t help but notice it was a wrapped present. Whatever’s in there probably isn’t appropriate for the way our evening turned out, which only piques my curiosity further .
“There you go!” Julia says, handing me a small velvet box. I set my glass on the low table, wait for everyone to return, and open it. It’s a pair of cufflinks with AJLC engraved on them—my initials.
“It’s palladium,” she proudly explains.
“Thank you, Julia.”
Then Lucy hands me a similar but elongated box with a Montblanc fountain pen inside. My initials are also there, in the same font.
“We worked together on that one with Julia,” Lucy explains. “It’s also palladium.”
“I appreciate it, thank you.”
The server walks among us again with a plate of warm bite-size savories, and when the distraction is gone, I take Emilia’s gift. It’s a bottle of Japanese whiskey that she explains is extremely hard to find. Well, at least this gift will serve a purpose. Miriam then hands me a box, and the size and weight tell me it’s a watch. I don’t expect it to be as ugly as it is, though. When did Cartier start making such bad designs?
Again, I’m reminded why my birthday was never something to be excited about. None of these actually matter, and it’s as if they don’t know who I am enough to find more personal ideas. But that might be on me and my inability to let people in.
The kids come one by one to hand me three drawings and what looks like an ashtray—but it’s a bowl made of painted air-dry clay, Millie explains.
“Andrea, don’t you have a gift for Alexander?” Miriam asks once the parade has ended.
My pretty dork panics, eyes wide as she looks at me, unsure of what to say. Well, I don’t know what the fuck I can say either.
“I—uh…” she hesitates, blinking rapidly. “I didn’t—Oh, wait. I have one in my coat,” she suddenly recalls.
She’s off and back in seconds, and her hand trembles slightly as she gives me the small package. “It’s not as… grand as the other gifts, I’m sorry.” She winces.
“Wasn’t there a bag with a gift?” Julia wonders, confused.
“Oh God, no,” Andy denies. “It was work stuff.”
I cannot fucking wait to open that secret gift, especially with the way her cheeks turn pink at the lie. But in the meantime, I have this small one, and I’m also eager to see what she got me. I meticulously open the wrapping paper, and I can’t hold back my laughter when what’s inside appears. What a cheeky little…
“Where did you find this?” I ask her.
“It took me four stores.”
“Definitely worth it,” I approve .
When the others come closer to see what she got me, I show them the keychain and the raccoon hanging on it. Of course, they seem confused as to why this three-dollar gift is getting more appreciation than theirs, but I don’t explain. This is between Andrea and me.
“I love it,” I tell her, giving her hip a brief squeeze.
She looks up at me with a soft smile, and I realize I haven’t gotten to kiss her since she returned. But I can’t do that in front of everyone. Not unless I’m willing to endure the endless teasing it’ll trigger.
“Before we forget, should we handle the ‘work thing’ you brought?” I suggest.
Andrea blinks a couple of times, confused by what I’m trying to do here. I’m not one to play such games, but I’m forced to by my intrusive family.
“Uh—Yes, sure,” she agrees, a little flustered.
I don’t give my family any more thought as I take her hand and pull her to the office. The instant we enter it, I close the door, lock it, and press her onto it. My lips crash with hers with brutish impatience.
Surprised at first by my enthusiasm, she quickly relaxes in my arms. I kiss her with all the passion, all the gratitude, and all the love I hold. Her tempting, soft curves plastered against me drive me mad, and for the tenth time this evening, I want to throw everyone out and spend the rest of the night with her. Only her.
My sweet little raccoon who came to me without underwear because she’s greedy like that and loves to drive me mad. I hear voices outside, and it reminds me we’re on a dangerous path. If we keep kissing like this, I’ll want to fuck her even more than I already do. And that would make waiting for my family to leave even more unbearable.
So, I reluctantly pull away with a groan. When I look back at her doe eyes, I see the need in them and how much she wants me to fuck her right here and right now. And there’s nothing I want to do more than to kneel before her and shove my face between her lush thighs and fuck her wet pussy with my mouth until everyone outside gets the memo and leaves.
But I’d never live that down, so I don’t. “About that other gift?” I say instead.
“You want it now?”
“Yes.”
She seems reluctant, which makes me wonder again what she got me. “Where did you hide it?”
I completely let her go to fetch the bag from a low drawer behind my desk. Once I’m with her, I remove the wrapped package from it. “Can I?” I ask, making sure she’s fine with it .
She nods, so I run a finger under the paper to unstick the tape. Once the box is in view, I look at it, puzzled. I think I recognize what’s in the picture, but there isn’t any label confirming its purpose, so I hesitate to believe it.
“It’s… uh… an anal training kit,” she explains with reddened cheeks. “You mentioned doing that the other day, but I’d like to keep the full use of my sphincter, so we’ll take it slow. I’m not letting your enormous dick ruin my precious butthole.”
I look at the box again before opening it. It’s clearly high-end, given the quality of the packaging. Above the four plugs of various sizes, the inside of the lid says it’s surgical steel and ready to use. There’s also a small vibrator, a bottle of lube, and an enema bulb.
“If you don’t like anal, it’s okay,” Andrea hesitantly says, mistaking my stunned silence for reluctance. “I just—You mentioned fucking my ass, so I figured you might want to—”
“I’ve always wanted to try.”
“Wait. You’ve never had anal?”
“No, I haven’t.”
It’s her turn to be surprised. “How is that possible? You’re thirty-five.”
“I asked my first sexual partner if she wanted to try, and she shamed me for it and ended things shortly after.”
“What a bitch… What about the others?”
“I never asked again, and they never offered—I guess because of my ‘enormous dick,’ as you put it.”
Her confusion slowly switches to joy, and she smiles broadly as she says, “I’m going to be your first, then. I mean, you want to try, right?”
“Andrea, I’ve been wanting to fuck your ass since before I even had your cunt. Of course I want to try.”
Bubbling with excitement, she jumps at me, wrapping her arms around my neck. “I’ll be your first something.”
“You’re my first everything , freckles. My first love, the first person that matters, the first woman I want to spend the rest of my life with…”
She pulls me down for an elated kiss, pressing her grin on my willing lips. She’s so happy that one might think I’ve just proposed to her, not that I’ve agreed to anal sex.
Still holding the box, I scoop her up with my free arm and walk toward my desk. I drop the box on it, let her down, and rip myself away from her to grab her hips and twist her around.
“Lex, what are y—” She stops as my hand wraps around the back of her neck, and when I push to bend her over the desk, she lets out a shocked pant. “Lex, there are people right outsi—”
“I’m not fucking you, Andrea. Just playing with my new toys.”
I flip the skirt of her dress up, groaning as I reveal her bare ass. She really is a fucking tease for coming to my place dressed like this.
“Oh, God,” she moans when I take out the smallest plug from the box. “Are we really doing this?” Her voice is shaky and uneven, but I can’t tell if it’s the arousal or the nerves.
“Only if you want to.”
“I—I’m not sure. I mean, I want to, but maybe this isn’t the best time, baby.”
“I’ll throw them out as soon as we finish dessert. It’ll be less than an hour, Andrea. And you can head to the bathroom to remove it anytime.”
She’s still torn, both tempted and reluctant. I bend over her, over the desk, and kiss the soft curve of her shoulder. “Do it for my birthday,” I rasp in her ear.
“It’s the fifth time you’ve said that today. You’re really milking it.”
“You’re the one who wanted today to be special.”
“I’d say having your bare-assed girlfriend meeting your family was pretty special.”
I chuckle. “You’re right, freckles. That was plenty enough.”
Her shoulder receives another kiss, and I straighten up. I’m about to return the plug to its box when she stops me.
“Wait, I didn’t say no.” She rises to her elbows and eyes the plug with visible interest. “If we do this, you really are throwing everyone out after dessert, Lex.”
“I’ll throw them out regardless.”
She defiantly meets my eyes and offers, “You’ll let me tie you up again, then.”
“Fucking hell,” I groan. I don’t even have to think about it before I agree with a nod. This will be worth whatever torture she’ll come up with once she has me bound and helpless.
Andrea arches her back and spreads her legs in invitation. Fuck, how I love this woman… She’s so giving and always eager to please me. There’s probably nothing she wouldn’t do for me, and the other way around is just as true.
I pick up the lube from the box and pop the lid open. She watches as I squirt some of it on the smooth end of the plug, and her breath hitches just a little when I walk behind her. Nervously, she faces forward as I look down at her puckered asshole. Knowing I’ll get to be in there, to fuck that part of her, has my cock twitching in the confines of my slacks. We’ll go slow, not only because I refuse to hurt her, but also because the more she enjoys it, the more likely we are to reiterate. Which, even though I haven’t even tried it yet, I already know I’ll want to. There’s no way I won’t thoroughly love fucking that incredible ass of hers .
To ensure the small accessory will slide in easily, I lower and spit on the tight hole. “Jesus Christ, Lex,” she mumbles, jumping slightly.
I’m about to guide the plug to it when it hits me that this undeserving object is about to receive an honor I’ve never had before. It doesn’t deserve to experience the warmth and tightness of her ass before I have. So, I scoop the lube off with the tip of my thumb and bring that to the puckered hole instead.
Andrea lets out a trembling breath as I spread the slick solution there, massaging the tight muscle. When I begin pushing, she holds her breath altogether, tense. I’m tempted to bend down and lick her there since it’s always a good way to loosen her up, but something tells me it’ll only worsen her anxiousness. “Stay relaxed, Andrea,” I say. “It won’t hurt if you let me in.”
“I’m trying,” she whimpers.
“Push against my thumb.”
She complies, and my knuckle easily slips in. “There you go, freckles.”
Gently, I massage the taut ring, patiently stretching it until my whole thumb gets swallowed to the base. Slowly, I thrust in and out of her, reveling in her small moans and the way she offers herself even more, lifting her ass higher. Although I already know the answer, I ask, “You like that?”
“Yes, it’s… it’s different. But I like it. A lot.”
“What a good girl you are… You think you’ll like having my thick cock in there, too?”
She lets out a whimper that sounds like my name and says, “Yes.”
“I’ll probably nut in two thrusts. You’re so tight, Andrea.” I push further, trying to get more of my thumb in there, and she jolts. “You’ll also love having my cum in your ass, won’t you? It’ll dribble down your legs like a reminder of how much of a greedy and shameless little slut you are for me.”
“Fuck, Lex! Stop this and get the plug in. Your mother already looks at me like I’m a hooker. I’m not returning out there all flushed like you just fucked me in your office,” she protests.
Shit, she’s right. For a moment there, I completely forgot about everyone outside. Complying with her very reasonable demand, I pull my thumb out of her lubed hole and press the plug there instead.
“Shit, it’s cold,” she complains with a whimper.
“Sorry. I’ll warm it up next time.”
She’s so relaxed that it slips right in, locking in place as the guard settles between her cheeks. Bending over, I kiss her birthmark and look at my handiwork with pride, adjusting my hardened cock in my pants .
She straightens up, lowers her dress, and turns to me with sparkly eyes and pink cheeks. “An hour,” she reminds me.
“I promise.”
“And then you’ll fuck me with it still inside.”
“It would be my pleasure.”
“I’m sure it will,” she retorts with a crooked smile. “Now, let’s go. The sooner we eat, the sooner they’re gone.”
I quickly put away the box, grab a tissue to wipe my thumb until I can wash it properly, and we step out of my office. Despite the unexpected—and unwanted—guests, this is still the best birthday I’ve ever had, and it’s all thanks to the pretty Latina walking beside me. I might not be my parents’ favorite child, but if there’s a god, I’m fairly fucking certain I’m his favorite.
And that’s good enough for me.