She’s Mine Now

by Parker, Weston

  He shot me a grin. “Now you’re talking. I was worried it would be more difficult to get you to buy into this plan.”

  “I bought into this plan months ago. It was only the patients we’d be leaving behind that worried me, but this is close enough to the hospital that we’d easily be able to commute if necessary for emergency situations.

  “Exactly.” He gestured toward the upper level. “We could have our offices and storage up there, but I also thought we could have a playroom for kids who need to wait for their parents and a waiting room for parents who’d like to have coffee while their kids are in their sessions.”

  “Great ideas.” I took a deep breath as I envisioned what he had just described. “This space is fucking perfect. Thank you for finding it.”

  “It was the least I could do. It’s going to cost you some money to get it into shape but I’ll—”

  “Fifty-fifty, remember?”

  “Yeah.” He shrugged. “But you’re going to be investing a lot more than me if you take the renovations and equipment into consideration. Maybe I should look for some secondhand equipment to even things out.”

  I waved him off. “Nope, we wanted a state-of-the-art facility and that’s what we’re going to have. You found this place for us, Hunter. That’s already more than doing your share. You’re also going to be running the business side of things. We already agreed to being fifty-fifty partners. There’s no backing out now.”

  “Let me know if you change your mind.”

  “I won’t.” Without a doubt, I knew Hunter more than deserved to be an equal partner. “Let’s check out the upstairs. Then we’re having lunch to celebrate. I’m buying.”

  “If you’re buying, who am I to say no?” He skirted around a pile of what appeared to be discarded building supplies and headed for the stairs. “Cleaning this place up is going to be a bitch.”

  “I’ll get an industrial cleaning crew in. They’ll get it done sooner and better than we could. This place is going to need more than a couple of guys with brooms and mops if it’s going to pass for a medical facility.”

  “Good point.”

  Our footsteps echoed on the metal stairs as we ascended. When we got to the top, Hunter paused to prop his forearms against the railing and peer down at what would become the heart of our practice.

  “I think we’re going to do well here,” he said.

  “Yeah. Me too.” It was only a little better than a dump at the moment, but in a few months, we could be up and running with barely a memory of what it looked like today. “We should take some pictures of our progress for the reception area.”

  “I doubt anyone but us will be interested in that.”

  I shrugged. “But it’s our space now, right? It doesn’t matter what anyone else is interested in.”

  “Really, no one else?” he asked with a teasing note to his voice. “Not even April? If she tells you it’s a tacky idea, will you still do it?”

  “Yes.”

  He rolled his eyes, chuckled, and stepped away from the railing. “If you say so. I kind of thought you were going to give half of your half to your new wife, which would mean she could take down our tacky crap.”

  “Let’s just get to work on the building. We can get April to weigh in on the tacky crap later if you’re so intent on having her as a partner.” I was joking, but I also instantly imagined a sweeping front desk with her sitting behind it.

  I smiled. That would definitely be a sight I could get used to seeing every morning.

  Chapter 24

  APRIL

  “What do you want to do today, baby?” I asked Adi on Saturday morning. We’d just had breakfast and were lounging around after doing the dishes.

  Neither of us would be content with sitting still for very long, though. It just wasn’t us.

  Adi lifted her shoulders. “I don’t know. Maybe we should find out what Luna and Cyrus are up to? I miss them.”

  “They’re both working.” One of the things that hadn’t changed about my friend since she’d married her Prince Charming was her work ethic. They’d hired people to help out whenever they weren’t in the city, but otherwise, she still insisted on working full time.

  Few people ever thought about what happened after the happily-ever-after, but for Luna, it had really been everything she’d ever wanted. She had a loving, devoted husband who made her laugh and, much to my disappointment, was her best friend. It didn’t hurt that he was hot as hell or loaded either, but she refused to admit that had anything to do with it.

  She got to travel and she’d also gotten to not only keep her flower shop but expand it. She and Cyrus had worked together to turn her into one of the most sought-after florists in the city for weddings and functions.

  Her happily-ever-after had really seen every one of her dreams coming true—and then some. Unfortunately, that now meant that I had to share her with not only Cyrus but every starry-eyed bride in the city.

  They vied for her attention and she gave it to them since she adored love and weddings even more now than she had before. I hadn’t even known it could be possible for her, but it had been, and it had happened.

  Where I used to see her a few times a week, I now had to make do with once every few weeks. Well, except for that time right after the accident when she’d popped in every day.

  It had taken some adjusting on my part, but she was so happy that I really couldn’t complain about the time-sharing. It was the natural course of life, I supposed.

  Adi snapped me out of my reverie when she got off the couch. I looked up at her, frowning when she started toward the door.

  “Where are you going?” I asked.

  “Didn’t you hear the knocking?”

  “Nope.” I jumped up and motioned for her to stay behind me. With that fucking gate downstairs having been open again this morning, God only knew who could be at the other side. Just in case it was Craig or one of his buddies, I didn’t want Adi anywhere within grabbing distance.

  “Who is it?” I called once I reached the door.

  “Chris.”

  Unexpected warmth spread through my chest at the sound of his voice. I undid the latch with shaky fingers and smiled as I stepped back to let him in.

  “Hey.”

  He grinned, holding up two gorgeous bouquets of flowers. “Good morning, ladies. Happy Saturday.”

  Adi came out from behind me and squealed when he handed a bouquet to her. She brought it to her nose immediately and inhaled deeply. “These are so pretty. Did you get them from Luna? She knows Gerbera daisies are my favorite.”

  Confusion flicked across Chris’s eyes, but he shook his head. “I didn’t know they were your favorite or that I could get flowers from Luna, but I’ll keep that in mind.”

  He brushed a chaste kiss against my cheek before stepping into the apartment and pressing the other bouquet into my hands.

  “Thank you,” I murmured. “These are beautiful. What’s the occasion?”

  “I wanted to show you something,” he said. “Are you available today?”

  “We sure are.” Adi beamed at him, clutching the flowers to her chest. “What do you want to show us?”

  “Something I’m really excited about. I thought I’d bring the flowers to help butter you up so you would say yes.”

  “As if you need to butter us up.” I rolled my eyes, laughing as I shut the door. “We haven’t said no to you yet, have we? Actually, now that I think about it, we should say no sometime. Aren’t we supposed to be playing hard to get?”

  “Nope.” He winked as he passed me, then scooped Adi up for a hug. “I like you just the way you are. So what do you say? Will you come with me? No questions asked?”

  His green eyes were lit up with excitement when he glanced at me after setting my daughter back down on her feet. As he straightened up, he came to stand next to me, so close that our arms touched.

  Goosebumps raced across my skin, and I sighed when I realized today wasn’t going to be the day
when I’d start playing hard to get with him. “I’m not good at no questions asked, but we’ll come with you.”

  “Thank you.” He jerked his head toward the door. “Are you ready to go now, or did you have something to do before we can leave?”

  “Hold your horses, cowboy.” I held up my flowers. “Somebody brought us these. I’d better get them in some water before we go anywhere. Luna will never forgive me if I let bouquets like this wither and dry out the same minute we get them.”

  “Luna again?” he asked, nudging his shoulder into mine. “I feel like I need to meet the mythical Luna. She keeps coming up.”

  My hands trembled a little at the thought of introducing Chris to the power couple. They’d both go into overdrive and would probably be planning our wedding for the week after. Call me crazy, but I wasn’t even close to ready to even think about getting married again.

  As much as I liked Chris, this was all very new. Cyrus and Luna might just be a little intense in their excitement about meeting someone I was dating.

  “Yeah, I’ll find out when they’re available. They’re pretty busy.” I held my hand out for Adi’s bouquet. “I’ll go get these in vases. You put on some shoes and we’ll meet you at the door.”

  Chris came to the kitchen with me, leaning with his hip against the counter while I fished out two vases from a trip to Brazil Luna had given me for Christmas last year.

  “What are they so busy with? It’s okay if it’s just that you don’t want me to meet them yet.”

  “They’re busy people,” I said vaguely. “Traveling, working, fu—” I cut myself off and cleared my throat. Luna would kill me if I actually said fucking to someone she didn’t even know. “Fun.”

  “Fun?” Chris laughed, arching a brow while I filled the vases with water. “Is that what the cool kids are calling it these days?”

  I shrugged but I couldn’t quite hide my smile. “I wouldn’t know. I’m not one of the cool kids. Anyway, I’m sure they’d love to meet you too, but I’m afraid meeting them would send you running for the hills.”

  “Would I be the one running for the hills, or would you?” He tilted his head to the side, giving me a meaningful look before taking one of the vases and dumping a bouquet into it.

  “Luna would also kill you if she saw you treating flowers that way, so maybe you wouldn’t be running for the hills. Maybe Cyrus would just be having his henchman burying you in them.”

  He chuckled but moved forward until he was right in front of me. He took the second vase out of my hands and gently set it down on the counter beside us. He brought his palms to my hips and splayed his fingers across my back, tugging me closer to him.

  Once I was there, he lowered his head to plant a soft kiss on my lips. “I wouldn’t run for the hills unless you were running with me, April. I don’t know where this is going either, and I don’t want to scare you off, but you don’t have to be so afraid all the time that I’m going to disappear in a puff of smoke. I thought we’d established that.”

  “We have but…” I trailed off when I heard Adi’s bedroom door closing. “We’d better go.”

  I moved out of his grasp and went to hunt for my purse, wondering why my heart was like putty in this guy’s hands. Any other guy who tried saying something like that to me, I’d laugh in his face and probably mock him just a little bit.

  But with Chris? The damn butterflies were back. I’m not going to disappear in a puff of smoke.

  I liked the sound of that.

  Or at least, I did until we got to the building he wanted to show us. An ominous feeling in my stomach squished all the butterflies.

  A realtor’s sign with a SOLD sticker hung from a stand planted in the overgrown grass. “What is this place?”

  “It’s my new practice.” He grinned, slinging his one arm across my shoulders and the other over Adi’s. “What do you think?”

  “You’re leaving the hospital?” My tummy sank. “When?”

  “It’s going to take us months to renovate this place,” he said cheerfully. “I’ll also probably remain on staff there in some capacity for at least the first couple of months after we leave. I’m working on a deal with the board, but until I know for sure it’ll work, I won’t leave anyone high and dry.”

  “I’m proud of you,” I said but my throat felt like it was closing. I really hadn’t seen this one coming. I wasn’t a clingy, needy little sap, though. Rallying mentally, I even managed to force a smile. “Really, I’m so proud of you. This is going to be great.”

  “Yeah, it should be.” He turned his head and waited for me to do the same, then looked into my eyes with something that looked a lot like hope. “Would you come work for us when we get the place up and running?”

  “Seriously?” I felt my jaw loosening.

  He nodded. “Seriously.”

  I glanced up at the building and then back at him, finding him still looking at me. A hesitant smile formed on my lips. “I’ll have to weigh my options.”

  “I’ll take it.” He nodded in the direction of what could best be described as an abandoned warehouse. “I won’t give you the tour now. The cleaners still have to come in. Once they’re done, I’d love to show you around.”

  “I’d love to see it,” Adi said. “I think it’ll be very cool to work here.”

  “I’m glad you agree.” He smiled at her. “How do you feel about celebratory ice cream? There’s a place just around the corner that I think will help me convince your mom to say yes to my offer.”

  The ominous feeling dissipated somewhat. Just because he was leaving the hospital didn’t mean he was already going back on the promise he’d made less than half an hour ago.

  He wasn’t disappearing into a puff of smoke, even if the warehouse would’ve been a pretty cool place for a magic trick like that.

  Watching him and Adi together, I couldn’t deny that the immediate disappointment I felt over him leaving the hospital might have been a touch of an overreaction. I was so used to people leaving me or just plain leaving me behind that I’d automatically assumed the worst.

  But he’d brought us here when he’d only found out about the place himself yesterday apparently. He wanted us to be a part of it, to celebrate with him, and to stick by him when he did it.

  That’s what family is supposed to do, right?

  My head jerked when I realized I’d just thought of him as family. But I had. That was what he was starting to feel like, and I had to admit that I kind of liked the feeling.

  Chapter 25

  CHRIS

  April was pale when they came in for Adi’s therapy session. As soon as I saw her, I knew something was wrong.

  Not only was she pale, but her eyes seemed like they’d been stuck open with invisible sticky tape, and her mouth was slightly open like she’d forgotten how to close it. A mostly dormant protective instinct roared to life deep down inside me, and my fingers curled into my palms.

  Hunter noticed April’s expression too. He frowned at her when they pushed through the doors, then elbowed me in the side and bent his head closer to mine. “Go talk to her. I’ve got Adi.”

  “Thanks.” I met them a little more than halfway across the room, smiling at Adi when I reached them. “Hey, sweetheart. I need to have a chat with your mom real quick. Hunter’s ready to start warming up with you.”

  “Okay.” She gave me a hug around the waist before she released me and fist-bumped with Hunter. “Hi, Hunter.”

  The two of them got along like a house on fire, and he had her in hysterics almost immediately. April, however, looked like she might be about to start crying.

  “Whatever it is we need to talk about, could we not do it today?” she asked, her eyes tinted with a red so watery that it didn’t take a genius to figure out she was close to tears.

  I took her hand and guided her to the office, closing the door and dropping the blinds for privacy. “What happened?”

  “Nothing,” she said without lifting her gaze to mine. She co
llapsed in the chair and immediately hung her head, covering her face with her hands. “Okay, it’s not nothing. It’s Craig.”

  That protective instinct growled and red spots danced across my vision. “What did he do now?”

  “I thought he was bluffing,” she said so softly it was almost like she’d said it to herself.

  With two strides, I was in front of her, sinking down to my haunches. My pulse started to spike and I felt the sudden urge to break something—or someone.

  “Bluffing about what?”

  She released a shuddering breath into her hands before she looked up. “He’s going to take me to court.”

  “What for?”

  Tears glistened in her eyes as her shoulders slumped. “For Adi. When he first told me he was going to sue for full custody, I really thought he was bluffing. But I just got a message from someone claiming to be a lawyer who wants me to call them.”

  I scooted forward on my knees to wrap my arms around her. “He’ll never get custody. Too much bad shit has happened with him. His employment record is spotty, he’s never supported her, and he hardly ever sees her.”

  “I know.” She buried her head in the crook of my neck. “The truth and the evidence should support my case but I wouldn’t be able to present that case if I don’t have a good lawyer. I can’t afford any lawyer, never mind a good one. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

  “You’re not alone in this, April,” I murmured, lifting a hand to stroke her hair. “I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry. I’ll find us the best lawyer in the city.”

  She pulled away from me with a firm shake of her head. “That’s not why I told you. I’ll make a plan. I was just shocked by that message, and I guess my stupid face gave me away.”

  “Your face isn’t stupid.” I cupped her cheeks in my palms and swiped a few stray tears away with my thumbs. “I know that’s not why you told me, but it doesn’t change anything. Believe it or not, I’m not even offering for you. I’m offering for Adi.”