6 #2
She looked so crestfallen he smirked and shook his head. “I’m not broke, Glory. I won’t have to survive on broth and crackers.
That budget you mentioned? I started one when I was fifteen with my first real job.”
“You had a job at fifteen?”
He almost asked, You didn’t? Not a good idea, though, given her reaction.
“Lawn care. I worked with a great guy who had his own equipment. Not just cutting grass, but trimming bushes, edging driveways, working on flower beds. I got my first paycheck and . . .” It had leveled him.
His own money. His. To spend or not spend however he wanted.
Yet another memory to make him smile. “I took Tanner and Addie out to a restaurant,
with both of them bitching endlessly because they didn’t want me to spend money on them.”
“Oh, Kam.”
“Damn, babe, don’t look like that.” Laughing, he cupped her face, then pressed a quick kiss to her mouth. Weird, how quickly
he’d gotten used to doing that. “It wasn’t a sad thing, I swear. They weren’t complaining about me, they just . . .” Loved me enough that they wanted me to keep it all. His throat got so tight that he had to swallow before he could continue. “Addie was everything I’d never had before, like
a mom and dad, grandparents, caregiver, encourager, and teacher all rolled into one superwoman. Before her, I didn’t even
know someone could be like her.”
Glory smiled, and that was much better than her upset.
“I wanted to treat her to something since she’d treated me so many times.” Without thinking about it, he brought Glory against
him, one hand coasting up and down her back. “Tanner was always looking out for me. Even when I first showed up and was a
total dickhead.”
She hugged him close. “I think you maybe had reason?”
“Maybe.” He’d been so afraid to trust in anything good. Anything that didn’t hurt or insult. “But Tanner stuck with me. Knocked
me around when necessary, too.” Usually when Kam wouldn’t stop attacking him. Remembering that brought out a short laugh.
“I used to go after him just because.” Just because he was bigger and better grounded. Older and more comfortable. Just because
the idea of having a brother as awesome as Tanner had scared him to death.
Back then, he’d felt unwanted and useless—things he’d always been told.
“Once they got seated at the restaurant, they settled down and enjoyed the meal. Addie told me it was wonderful, and then
she explained that I didn’t need to take her out to show her I cared.” She’d had tears in her eyes as she’d spoken, but no
sadness. By then, Kam had learned to tell the difference. “She said I showed her love every time I helped out around the house,
whenever I gave her a hug or let her hug me, when I enjoyed the food she cooked, or appreciated the clothes she bought.”
“She knew you loved her.”
He nodded. “She knew. She didn’t need me to buy her dinner to prove it. But then Tanner jumped in and took my side. He made
it all sound so logical, saying I should be able to treat the people I cared about if I wanted to—as long as I saved one third
of each paycheck.”
Glory gave a startled laugh. “A little push and pull, huh? Smart. So did you?”
“Yup. Every paycheck since that first one. But I talked with Tanner a lot, too. He was only three years older, but man, he
seemed so grown up. He had all these plans, things we’d talked about before, but since I was making money, too, I felt more
a part of it. We’d sit at the kitchen table together and go over things. College and cars, repairs to the house. I can’t remember
a time when Tanner wasn’t planning, looking for a way to make things better—for himself, for me and Addie.”
“And now for every kid who needs a helping hand.”
“Yeah.” There was no man he admired more than his brother. “Tanner is forward thinking, you know? He knew Addie couldn’t do
it all on her own, so together, we worked on that.”
Emotion glazed her eyes again. “You worked as a family.”
How special was it that Glory really got it? “Family was, and always will be, a priority for us.”
“I love that, Kam. Thank you for sharing with me.”
Never had he known a woman to so freely throw around the love word. Glory never gave it a thought, he assumed, because she wasn’t looking to tie him down, not like the other women had.
Shara, especially, had come after him hot and heavy. She’d seemed so nice at first, though—much like Glory. Polished, pretending
to adore his family . . .
“What?” Glory drew back. “You’re looking at me like I insulted you.”
“No, sorry. I was just thinking.”
Sympathizing, she stroked his shoulder and asked with concern, “About something unpleasant?”
“Doesn’t matter.” He did his best to get the image of Shara out of his head.
“You can tell me. Or not. I mean, I won’t pressure you, but if you want to talk, I don’t mind.”
“So magnanimous.”
Hurt by that, she withdrew—and he hated it.
Hitching her purse strap over her shoulder, she glanced at the door. “We should get going.”
Damn it. They’d been connecting before he’d tripped up. Not that he’d meant to go into his past. Usually, he wouldn’t have.
Sometimes with Glory, it just felt right.
Hoping to bring her back around, he moved closer. “I’ve spent some of my savings. College, my car, the remodel Tanner and
I did for Addie—but those were big things I’d planned for. Always, no matter what, I make sure I have enough for emergencies.”
“And new plans?”
“Sure.”
As if she, too, felt the loss of harmony, Glory grew hesitant. And quiet.
“What?” he teased, almost desperate to regain the moment. “Don’t hold back now.”
Serious eyes took his measure. “All right. I just wondered what other big plans you might have, if not now, then later.”
Way to hit him with the big stuff. The roll of his shoulder didn’t quite hide his uneasiness over the things he craved. A woman who loves me enough to be my wife through good times and bad, kids I can coddle and protect, a home of my own, and
a future to embrace . . . Not about to spit that out, he removed the significance and spoke in hypotheticals. “The usual stuff, I guess. House, security,
and all that.”
She, too, lightened up in a deliberate bid to remove the tension. “A retirement plan?”
“Sure. Hey, I can’t stay young and healthy forever.” He thought of Addie, now in her early seventies, and it scared him like
nothing else could. She might be a little slower these days, but she was still going strong. He wanted to be able to pamper
her, so she’d last through the rest of his lifetime.
Of course, Addie knew that wouldn’t be possible, and that’s why she’d spent so much time talking to him and Tanner about finding
the right one, the person who would make you feel whole even when problems tried to tear you down. She’d had that once, but
her perfect someone had passed away too soon. According to Addie, she’d had a lonely life until God had given her Tanner,
and then Kam.
He liked how she looked at it, as if they’d been special gifts instead of burdens.
Absently, he crushed Glory closer, pressed his cheek to the softness of her hair, and then kissed her temple.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah, fine.” But somehow holding you has become a habit. “Tell you what. Write out what you think I should get, and how much you think it’ll cost, and I’ll figure out what I can get and when.”
Showing her pleasure, she pressed back to clap her hands. “You’ll let me help?”
“With choosing and arranging if you want, but not with buying.”
Her playful pout was cute, making him grin.
“Take it or leave it, babe.”
She put up her nose and said, “I’ll take it—for now. But don’t think for a single moment that you can boss me around, Kam
Norwood.”
No, he wouldn’t even try. But neither would he let her get away with flaunting her money. Not for him anyway. An upbringing
of wealth showed in her decorum, how she moved, and the ease with which she indulged her life—but that wasn’t him. Hell, he’d
crawled from the sewer, and now he preferred to make it on his own.
Yes, Glory had chosen a moderate house, and her Mustang was sporty, not a luxury car, but he doubted she had to budget very
often.
Working for Callie’s parents, he assumed she had a high income. Liz might criticize her too often, but she’d raised Glory
alongside Callie, so she had to consider her a daughter.
That probably accounted for a lot of financial pampering.
Kam preferred making his own way. As much as he loved Addie, he was ready to embrace complete independence.
If he got to embrace it with Glory, that only made it better.
Dinner, Glory soon discovered, wasn’t just with Addie. They arrived a few minutes late and found the driveway full of cars.
“Looks like a party,” Kam said, as he got out to circle the SUV. It was obvious by his careless tone that the idea of a crowd didn’t bother him at all.
Unfortunately, Glory didn’t feel the same. She recognized Frank’s BMW, meaning Callie’s parents were joining them. Overall,
she’d had a nice day, but now the glow faded and a chill left her stiff.
She should have changed her clothes and touched up her makeup. Too late now.
Painfully self-conscious, she got out when Kam opened her door. Dreading the evening, she allowed him to tug her along until,
near the large garage, he paused and looked down at her.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
A smile and stiff lips didn’t mesh well. “Nothing. I’m fine.”
“Bull.” Scrutinizing her, he curved his hand around her jaw and lifted her face. “Tell me what’s going on.”
He had a bad habit of wanting to look her in the eyes. Usually, she didn’t mind, but now, while she was feeling cornered,
she didn’t appreciate it. “We’re running late. I hope they didn’t hold dinner for us.”
“Five minutes is not late.”
She could debate that with him.
“Besides, Addie always waits. It won’t be a problem.”
Somewhere behind them, Callie said, “Good to know, because I’m starved.”
Together, Glory and Kam turned to see her cousin and Tanner, hand in hand, coming around the line of wild honeysuckle bushes
that separated the two properties.
With a wicked grin, Tanner said, “She’s worked up an appetite.”