Hawk let his voice trail off with a wide grin at the sweet, surprised, sexy look on Frankie’s face. It made him wish he had a camera. It was too perfect, just like everything else about the man.
“You…” Frankie paused, then cocked his head to the side. “You want to go to the nursing home with me? And to meet my grandma? I mean, don’t get me wrong, she’s gonna be really happy to meet you, but… are you sure? It’s not exactly how I picture professional athletes spending their downtime.”
Hawk snorted, shaking his head. Professional athlete was what he did… not who he was. And who he was, was someone who had never been more sure of anything in his life.
Yes, he wanted to spend more time with Frankie.
As much time as possible.
All the time.
It may have been just chance that brought them together—well, chance, flowers, and a few cracked ribs—but it had become perfectly clear to him that it was a chance at the kind of happiness he’d never really expected to find for himself. The kind he wasn’t going to give up… not as long as Frankie was on board, too.
“Yeah, I want to,” he said firmly, pulling Frankie closer and kissing him on the side of the forehead before letting him go. “Absolutely. I’m totally, one hundred percent sure. But we’re gonna have to hurry if you still want breakfast…”
Frankie turned and looked at him, then at the clock on his phone again, nibbling his lip in a way that “distracting” didn’t really do justice to. “Will we have time?” he asked, sounding adorably hopeful.
“Yes,” Hawk said, grinning. Then, in a stroke of brilliance, he added, “Although we might have to, uh,” Hawk raised an eyebrow and lowered his voice, “take a shower together. You know… just to save time, of course.”
Frankie laughed—Hawk’s favorite sound in the world. “Of course. Why didn’t I think of that?”
Hawk playfully swatted Frankie’s cute little ass as they both moved to get out of bed. “I guess it’s a good thing I’m here, then. And if you like the showering thing, I’ve got lots more good ideas where that one came from.”
“Oh, yeah?” Frankie stopped in his tracks and turned to face Hawk with a smoldering look that went straight to Hawk’s dick. “I definitely wanna hear more about those ideas.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll give you all the details.” Hawk took a step toward Frankie, but then caught himself. They were definitely gonna be late to the nursing home if they stopped to explore Hawk’s ideas now.
Self-control.
Patience.
Discipline.
Dammit.
Frankie nibbled at his lip again, his gaze flicking down to Hawk’s eager cock and back up over his body and severely testing Hawk’s good intentions. Then he took a deep breath and shook his head a little, as if snapping out of a dream.
Hawk grinned. A really good dream, judging from the reaction his in-the-buff sleep selection totally failed to hide.
“Right,” Frankie said, sounding epically disappointed. Then he squared his shoulders, nodding once. “Nursing home.”
“Yeah,” Hawk agreed, nodding to convince himself. “We should do that.”
Neither of them moved for a few seconds, though, and Hawk wondered if Frankie was weighing his options—trying to decide if it would be worth it to be late after all.
Luckily, he didn’t put Hawk’s self-imposed self-control to the test.
“Okay.” Frankie nodded again, even though he still hadn’t moved. “I’ll help with breakfast and then we can, um, get ready. Together. In the shower.”
It was all the motivation Hawk needed to finally get into gear. He couldn’t resist closing the distance between them and planting one more kiss on Frankie’s forehead, though.
“That sounds like a really good plan,” Hawk said, his lips moving against Frankie’s skin. “And later…” He kissed him again. “After we get back here… we’re going to get back to those ideas I was talking about. Together. Naked.”
Frankie laughed, lacing his fingers with Hawk’s and pulling him out of the bedroom before they could fall back into bed. A good thing, since Hawk—who normally prided himself on doing whatever needed to be done—seemed to be seriously lacking in the ability to move in the direction of not-getting-his-hands-on-Frankie-right-now at the moment.
“I can’t wait,” Frankie said, which made two of them. “But I’m also not letting you get out of here without making breakfast. Since you, um, brought it up.”
It was Hawk’s turn to laugh, especially when Frankie pressed the heel of his hand against the other thing that had come up during their conversation and turned an adorable shade of pink with the comment.
“Absolutely,” Hawk said. It was the only response he felt like he could ever give Frankie, no matter what the question was… because whenever Frankie looked up at him with that smile that was so bright its warmth rivaled the sun, there was no way Hawk could deny him.
And it wasn’t even a matter of exercising the discipline and self-control that he’d just been struggling with. When it came to having Frankie close and seeing him smile, there was only one possible course of action, as far as Hawk was concerned.
All that mattered was making Frankie happy.
Hawk had actually never been to a nursing home, so he wasn’t really sure what to expect. He really hadn’t been prepared for how lively and vibrant and full of energy Frankie’s grandma was, but thinking back on it, he really shouldn’t have been surprised. It certainly hadn’t taken long to figure out where Frankie got his magnetic personality and open nature—but there were a few differences between grandmother and grandson, too.
Like how direct she was, for starters.
“Darling,” she hugged Frankie and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, but her eyes had stayed on Hawk from the moment they’d walked into the large sitting room. “Is this the man I’ve been hearing so much about? Have you finally brought him here to meet me?”
Frankie took a step back, then reached for Hawk’s hand and pulled him closer. “Yep. Nana, this is Hawk. Um, Hawk Hawkins.” He turned his big, bright eyes to Hawk. “Hawk, this is my grandma, Joan Moretti.”
And then there were two pairs of dark eyes looking up at Hawk, nearly identical in the way they sparkled. It was enough to make Hawk smile… and to put the little bout of nerves he’d been experiencing to rest—even if Joan’s bright-eyed stare was quite a bit more intimidating than Frankie’s could have ever been.
“It’s really good to meet you, Mrs. Moretti—”
“Oh, call me Joan, please.” She extended an elegant hand with perfectly manicured, brightly painted nails.
Hawk wasn’t sure how old Frankie’s grandmother was or how long she’d lived in the nursing home, but it was clear that despite any preconceived notions he might have walked in with, she wasn’t just a frail little old lady.
“I’ve been very interested in meeting you, dear,” she said with a grip firm enough to prove his revised opinion right. She nodded in Frankie’s direction. “This one has been pretty happy since you’ve been in the picture, I have to say.”
She was still watching Hawk like… well, like a hawk. He was no stranger to garnering attention from strangers, but something about the fact that Joan was Frankie’s family—and that there were another half-dozen or so people in the room who seemed to know Frankie pretty well and who were also watching the meeting unfold with varying degrees of interest—made him feel a little self-conscious in a way he hadn’t in a long, long time.
There was the inquisitive and wide-eyed woman on the sofa behind Joan. Another woman in a nearby armchair was doing a completely unconvincing job of pretending not to look past her knitting at Hawk, Frankie, and Joan. Then there was the man in a Falcons jersey in the back of the room, who had turned down the TV and shushed the couple sitting next to him as soon as Hawk had started talking.
Even for someone like Hawk, who was used to living his life in front of an audience, being the center of attention in a nursing h
ome was a different sort of experience. Especially this nursing home, where it had been clear from the moment they’d walked in that Frankie was just as much a star in his own right as Hawk was out in the wider world.
All of the cocky swagger he normally had out on the field, or with reporters in the locker room, or at a press conference, felt like it would be completely out of place here. These people didn’t definitely weren’t his usual fan demographic—well, maybe the guy with the jersey was—but they did all seem interested and inquisitive.
“Your grandson is pretty amazing,” Hawk said to Joan, putting on his best smile and attempting to block out his unexpected bout of nerves along with the rest of his audience for the moment. New experience or not, he wasn’t going to let any meet-the-family or fish-out-of-water anxiety keep him from having a good time. After all, Frankie was there with him, so it was already a better day than anything Hawk could’ve been doing by himself. More importantly, he could tell that introducing him to his grandmother mattered to Frankie, and Hawk was fast becoming aware that the things that mattered to Frankie got top-billing on the things that mattered to Hawk list, too.
And if Joan was determined to keep Hawk on his toes, that was fine, too.
Better than fine, actually.
Hawk grinned. He loved a good challenge, and proving that he was worthwhile of her grandson’s affection felt like as worthy a challenge as anything else Hawk had ever done.
Plus, if he was in competition mode, it didn't’ leave much room for nerves.
“He certainly is amazing,” Joan said, taking his much-larger hand in one of hers and patting it with her other hand. “It’s good to see the two of you together. It makes my heart happy.” She held Hawk’s gaze for several long seconds after she spoke. Then, seemingly satisfied with what she saw in his eyes, she dropped his hand and turned back to Frankie. “Now, have you come to check up on our flower-arranging skills, sweetie?”
“I did, actually.” Frankie grinned as he looked around the room. Hawk watched as his eyes flicked over the scattered vases brimming with colorful blooms, a mis-matched plethora that covered every flat surface in the room and gave it a decidedly cheerful air. “It looks like the competition might be pretty stiff this year.”
Hawk might not have been able to tell a peony from a carnation—well, not until he’d met Frankie, anyway—but even he could see that some of the arrangements were good. Some were actually really good, in Hawk’s less-than-expert opinion. He wondered briefly which ones belonged to Joan.
“Stiff?” Joan let out a little snort and shook her head. “I don’t think so, dear. Betty and I have been working non-stop.” She pointed to the end tables on either side of the sofa. “That one and that one, then the one on the coffee table and the two above the fireplace—all of those are ours. I think we’ve got the first-place ribbon in the bag this year.” She turned to the woman behind her. “Don’t you think so, Betty? We’re definitely not gonna lose to You-Know-Who.”
Hawk had no idea who You-Know-Who was, but he could see that Joan wasn’t just boasting. The arrangements that she’d pointed out really did look like they’d been put together by professional florists.
“You’d have my vote,” Hawk said, tossing Joan a quick wink.
“Oh! That reminds me,” she said, turning her gaze back to Frankie. “You should get Hawk to judge the Flower Face-off this year, sweetheart. Remember my idea from before? Don’t you think that would be fun? He even said he’d be happy to do it.”
“I’m not sure he said that, Nana,” Frankie cast a quick look over at Hawk before turning back to his grandmother. “And I don’t think you’re allowed to stack the judging panel in your favor. I’m sure Edna Riley will have something to say about that.”
“Not if we don’t tell her, dear.” She turned to Hawk and smiled. “He’s a handful, isn’t he?”
Hawk grinned. “I can see that he comes by it naturally, ma’am.” He looked over at Frankie, who was flushing a deeper shade of pink by the moment. “If you really do need an extra judge—or just an extra pair of hands—you know I’m down. Just email me the date and time so I can add it to my calendar. We’ll make it official.”
“Okay,” Frankie said, glowing bright enough to make Hawk happy Joan had brought it up. “I can do that. I think it’ll be fun, and I know there are a few people—” he sent a pointed look toward the man in the Falcons jersey, “—who will be way more interested in the Face-off with you here.”
Joan’s friend Betty chimed in from her place on the nearby sofa. “We’ve never had a celebrity here before. Maybe we can even get the news to report on it. Wouldn’t that be something?”
Frankie cocked his head to the side, then nodded. “You know, I never thought about that.” He turned to Hawk again. “Corbin might think it’s a good photo op.”
It was cute to see Frankie looking out for Hawk, looking for photo opportunities and even taking Corbin’s opinion into consideration. Still, he didn’t want to steamroll Frankie’s event. If they did have the press there, he’d have to make sure it was something Frankie really wanted. And that the press stayed focused on Frankie and the seniors. He could already tell that it—and Frankie—were a highlight of the nursing home residents’ year.
“Maybe so, babe.” Hawk reached out and put his arm around Frankie’s waist. “We can figure out all the details later, if you want. I’m happy to help however I can.”
Hawk wasn’t sure whose smile was wider—his, Frankie’s or Joan’s. He leaned in and kissed Frankie’s temple, hiding another grin there when Joan immediately clasped her hands together and beamed at the two of them. Clearly, he wasn’t the only one whose day was made by seeing Frankie happy.
“Frankie, dear, you’re going to have to keep this one,” Joan said.
“You think so?” Frankie looked up at Hawk with a grin that made him wish they were somewhere more private—private… alone… and naked.
Betty snickered from the couch, and Joan gave a decisive nod, answering, “I do. And I approve. Wholeheartedly.”
“I’m glad,” Hawk said, tugging Frankie against his side. “And I’m happy to stick around as long as Frankie will have me.”
Frankie’s body went tense, and he jerked his head around to give Hawk a surprised look. “Yeah?” he asked, his eyes searching Hawk’s face with a look that was half confusion, half hope. “As long as I want?”
“Yeah,” Hawk said, meaning it. “I’m not going anywhere,” he added when Frankie kept staring at him like he was trying to figure out whether Hawk’s answer was part of their “arrangement” or not.
Hawk made a mental note to clarify that for him, sooner rather than later. For now, though, pulling him close and planting another kiss on him would hopefully get the point across. Because even though “not going anywhere” was easier said than done—he did have plans to go back to Atlanta at some point, after all, and then of course all the travel that came with the season—Hawk wasn’t worried. He wanted to be with Frankie, full stop, so he’d find a way to make things work.
He was ready for something real.
Chapter 22
Frankie
Frankie looked at the clock above the desk in the office and sighed. It had been an hour since he’d let Maya go home for the day, and thirty minutes since he’d locked the front door to the shop. Now it was nearly dark outside and he still had a lot to do before he could go home and get some rest.
Ethan and Jack would be back from their honeymoon in about twelve hours, so Frankie wanted to make sure everything was perfect when they walked through the door. The paperwork needed to be in order, the extra stock in the back room needed to be put away, and he wanted to sweep and mop the floor if he had time.
Maybe he should’ve asked Maya to stay a little longer to help with the list of things he still needed to get done… but no. She’d already done so much to help over the past couple of weeks with Ethan and Jack gone. Now that they were returning, she could get back to her own life away f
rom Bridgewater and Chance to Bloom. And while she would’ve no doubt smiled and agreed to stay late on her last day of work, Frankie would’ve felt bad asking.
So he hadn’t.
He was really going to miss having her around, but at the same time, he was looking forward to his friends coming home. These past two weeks had been the first time in years that Frankie hadn’t been able to talk to Ethan on a daily basis—and lately it felt like there was so much to talk about.
Ethan would definitely be excited to hear about all the new developments with Hawk—and even though Frankie was still a little uncertain about their actual relationship status, it certainly felt more like a normal relationship than it had before.
In fact, it felt pretty wonderful.
His grandma had seemed to think they were good together, and Frankie smiled at the memory. He’d never really seen Hawk look nervous around strangers, but he’d spent enough time around his maybe-boyfriend by now to have recognized that Hawk had been on his best behavior. There’d been no loud cockiness at the nursing home, no hint of bravado.
It had been sweet to see him like that, to know that he cared enough about meeting Joan to take it seriously. Frankie appreciated it, and he could tell his grandma had, too—and that she adored Hawk for it.
He looked at the clock again. Another five minutes gone—just more time spent letting his mind wander to Hawk when he should’ve been working. In the three days that had passed since they’d gone to the nursing home, it had seemed like Hawk was the only thing on Frankie’s mind.
Frankie wouldn’t have changed it, though.
He was just so happy around Hawk. None of his real relationships in the past could hold a candle to the way Hawk had made him feel from the very first time they’d met, and those feelings had only grown stronger in the weeks since.
Maybe I’ll call him. Just to… get my mind off him?
Frankie rolled his eyes at the lame excuse. Was he really trying to fool himself?
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