It might be overkill on her part, but I’d rather have a dog, and she’s so much more than that, that is absolutely committed to me and maybe a little bit too much so, including being overprotective, than one who’s indifferent.
What a difference a day makes because the wheels in my head are spinning with all the ways I can commit to my best friend’s little sister.
And they all lead back to one thing that I have to do right away.
Put a ring on her finger and claim her forever.
CHAPTER 8
Kane
What twenty-three year old spends their Saturday nights working?
One who’s investing in their future. That’s who.
And that’s just one more reason why I know Quinn is the one for me. She’s thinks in the long-term and is willing to put the work in today to make her dreams come true tomorrow.
But I’m ready to make her dreams, and definitely mine, come true now.
But I don’t want to interfere with her job, which I know she enjoys. It’s hard enough to get ahead in the ultra-competitive tech world of SF and it can only be tougher if you’re a woman.
And what a woman she’s grown to become.
I sit back on the couch and Malia is immediately in my lap and I’m stroking the top of her head. But then I notice something.
There are a few pictures near the TV and in one I can clearly see Quinn, but she’s really young in that one.
I think back. That would have been my senior season of college football so I was twenty-two. That would make her fifteen. Even from here I can see she looks like a kid.
I carefully slide out from underneath Malia and move over towards the pictures, grabbing the one that I’m suddenly so interested in.
Malia immediately moans.
I take the picture over to her and hold it up.
She starts licking it.
What the heck? Then again she likes to lick about anything and everything.
An idea strikes me and I cover myself up entirely in the picture and then put the picture back in front of her. She licks at the side that Quinn is on.
Next I cover up Quinn and show her again. This time she licks the middle, where I am.
There’s no way what I think is going to happen is going to happen.
I cover up both Quinn and I and put the picture back in front of her. She looks at it curiously, but doesn’t lick it.
“Who is that, girl?” I ask. She just moans a bit but doesn’t do anything when she is only shown Quentin.
Did she recognize Quinn from this picture?
She’s a track dog and all, but that’s based on scent, not visual clues.
But there’s no other explanation. She can sniff with the best of them, but she wouldn’t be able to pick up Quinn’s scent from that picture after all these years. Not to mention all she’d have to go off of in terms of sample size is just the small place from where her hand made contact with the picture...a picture that’s held tight in-between glass and particle board.
So there’s no other answer then. She’s seen her in the picture who knows how many times, and correctly identified her the first time she saw her in real life. My little test just now proved it.
Wait a second.
I flip back the hinges on the back of the frame and the hard particleboard thing comes free and I look at the picture. I remember we all signed it that day so we’d have a memory.
Quinn’s mom and dad wanted one of “all the kids” so they snapped the shot and ran it to one of those one hour photo places. They had what seemed like an endless amount of copies made and I remember signing them all.
But I also remember them asking me if I had one as we were all signing the last one. I told them no and they told me to keep the last one.
Quentin heard it and I know Quinn did too, and she was the last to sign.
And there it is, plain as day. Her name spelled out but the “i” isn’t dotted with a dot. It’s very clearly a heart.
Did she do that on all of them? Is that just the way she signs her name?
Now I have to know.
And I also have to know how I’m going to get to sleep tonight and if she’s just as restless as I am.
Is she really able to get any work done right now?
Or is she in the same predicament as I am?
Or more appropriately predicaments. There’s still that other guy in the photograph that needs addressed.
Her brother.
And my best friend.
And I need to do this right. I’m a real man who knows what he wants and I want her.
And surely he’ll be able to see that and respect that, right?
There’s only one way to find out I think to myself as Malia suddenly sniffs the side of the picture where Quinn signed and then barks.
CHAPTER 9
Quinn
I try and do some work at my apartment but it’s not happening.
How can I look at lines of computer code or do math when all I can think about is him?
I couldn’t even pass a kindergarten spelling test right now my mind is so distracted.
Oh should I say focused.
I’ve finally got what I’ve always wanted right there in front of me. How can I not be excited?
And I was more than excited about the possibilities of something more happening between us tonight, but he told me that’s not how he wants this to happen.
He wanted to invite me over or to come up, but he said it wasn’t right.
“I’m an old fashioned kind of guy,” he said.
When was the last time anyone under about forty-five said that? As a matter of fact I haven’t heard anyone say it in I don’t know how long.
And speaking of long the minutes are passing by so slowly right now as I think about something long and hard of his that I wish I had up to my mouth in place of this pencil.
And there are a lot of things I could fantasize about right now in my shower where I have one of those European style showerheads that attaches to a metal hose which means I can really maneuver it into position.
But I won’t.
I can’t.
He’s doing things right so I have to too.
But how I wish my Mr. Right was here right now.
I exhale hard and try to get into this work. At least at some point I’ll tire myself out and it will be Sunday.
And that will be a new day. We’ll both have had time to sleep and think and it will be different. It won’t just be some spontaneous act.
Not that it was ever going to be for me.
But tomorrow we’ll see just where this thing we have really is going to go.
How far. How long. And how real.
CHAPTER 10
Kane
I drive all night to get back to our hometown way out in the middle of nowhere.
And luckily Quentin’s light is on when I roll up to the curb at seven in the morning.
I tell myself he’s going to be happy for us, but I couldn't quite convince myself into believing it no matter how hard I tried all night.
The drive was long, but I barely remember it. I almost forgot to stop a few times so Malia and I could stretch our legs and get something to eat.
But now Quentin’s going to eat me alive. At least that’s what I’m guessing.
But I want to tell him my plans man to man. I don’t want him to hear about it after the fact and then feel like I did this behind his back and cut me off forever…or at least as long as it takes to win back his forgiveness, not that I should even ever have to but I respect him and I want him in my life.
And in our lives. And that’s the real challenge. I’d give anything to be with Quinn, but I don’t want her to have to give up a single thing in the process…and that includes being alienated or miscommunicated by her brother.
And avoiding that starts by not avoiding him. By knocking on his door and telling him straight up what’s happening and what’s about to happen.
“Ready, gir
l,” I say petting Malia on her neck.
She smiles and I know there’s no time to waste. Quinn is waiting on me back in SF.
I walk up to the front door and just as I raise my hand to knock the door comes open.
“Kane.”
“Quentin.”
“I thought I saw your Jeep pull up.”
“Guilty.”
“Is everything okay?”
“Couldn’t be better,” I say.
“Come on in. I’m…surprised to see you.”
“I’m surprised I drove all night to get here.”
“You what? What’s going on?”
This is the part where I should ask him how he’s been and shoot the breeze for a while. But that’s not the kind of guy I am. I’m here to accomplish one mission…one task…and there’s no point in beating around the bush.
“I came to tell you something.”
“You’re not sick or something are you?”
“Lovesick…if I’m being honest with myself.”
“Whaaaaat? You’ve got to be kidding me. The mighty Kane has fallen to a woman after all these years. Wow, dude. She must be special.”
“The most special which is why I’m here to talk to you about it.”
“You want me to be your best man? Of course! Say no more,” he says and he slaps me hard on the shoulder just like we used to do when we played football. “Hell, come here ya big lug,” he says as he wraps his arms around me.
“I’m super happy for you buddy. Did you propose yet?”
“That’s why I’m here.”
“Well, I’m no expert in that field but maybe together we can come up with some ideas. Maybe at a football game or something? Put it on the Jumbotron during halftime?”
“Ehhhhh,” I say. He’s my best friend, but damn, no wonder the guy is still single. I can see the excitement of doing something like that, but shouldn’t a proposal be private and between just two people? A special moment where two people are only focused on the other and what that commitment means?
And not a crowd of twenty thousand people chanting, “Just say yes! Just say yes!” or something like that?
“Don’t worry. I’ve got more ideas,” he says.
“Since when did you become a wedding planner?”
“I’m not, but come on! This is my best friend we’re talking about.”
“Best friends,” I say holding out my hand which Quentin quickly high fives.
“Always,” he says. “Shoot! I should back up. Who’s the lucky lady? Do I know her?”
“You know her all right. All too well.”
“Really? I don’t remember you having a crush on anybody back in high school or college.”
“I didn’t,” I say.
“She had a crush on you and she wore you down eventually? Women do that sometimes,” he says.
“I’m not so sure that’s true,” I say trying not to get into a side argument with him letting him know he shouldn't be thinking that way or he’ll be single forever and not to mention just have a bad outlook on relationships.
“So she’s someone new, but I know her?”
“New to the whole relationship thing, and yeah…you definitely know her.” I take a deep breath. “It’s—”
“Wait! Let me guess at least. Don’t ruin the fun.”
Now I’m almost irritated. I came here to speak to him man to man and he wants to play kids’ guessing games.
“You know what, man. I’m completely stumped,” he says after a full minute goes by of him trying to come up with a name.
“You ready?” I ask.
“Hit me with it,” he says.
Oh yeah, it’s going to be like a hit alright.
“Quinn,” I say.
He looks puzzled. “We didn’t know any Quinns? Wait. Wasn’t one of the physiotherapists for the football team named that?”
“I have no idea. I wasn’t looking at the physiotherapists in that way. They were there to do a job just like I’m here to do a job.”
“Here to do a job?” Quentin says taking a step back.
Suddenly Malia steps from my side in-between the two of us.
I reach down and give her a good rub under her neck and step to the side of her. I don’t want her getting in-between the two of us, like I’m using her as a shield or some sort of protection for what’s about to happen.
But apparently Malia has plans of her own. She can read the tension that’s quickly filling the area and she wants to protect me.
She’s too good to me. Just like Quinn. I probably don’t deserve either of them, but damn if I wouldn’t put my two girls up against any other two girls in the entire world.
I’ve got the best of both worlds. Now let’s just see if I can save my relationship with my best friend.
“A job to tell you that I’m going to propose to her and I want you to hear it first so it doesn’t come out of nowhere. And that’s how this all happened. It happened so fast but once it started, boy did it ever start.”
“So fast? What do you mean? Who are you talking about?”
“I bumped into her yesterday. I saw that she was all grown up and it just triggered something in me. We spent some time together yesterday and as crazy as it sounds I know she’s the one. I know her history, and the way she was raised, and everything she’s done with her life and she just continues to impress the hell out of me.” I briefly pause taking in Quentin’s puzzled look. “And I know you don’t want to hear this, but to me she’s the most beautiful girl in the world.”
“Who?” he yells.
“Your sister,” I say.
He just stands there looking at me as if he’s waiting on the punchline or something.
My look doesn’t change. My body language doesn’t change. Malia doesn’t flinch either.
“Ah! You almost got me there,” he says as he takes a step towards me and slaps me on the shoulder. “I almost believed you for a second,” he says.
“Believe it because it’s true,” I say as his hand loosens from my shoulder and I feel the life come out of his grip as his hand falls back to his side.
“You're here to tell me…you’re…you’re in love with my…?”
I nod.
“Are you kidding me?”
I shake my head.
“Dude! What the fuck?”
“It’s real, Quentin. I promise—”
“What’s real is you, as in you’re a real asshole! Get the fuck out my house,” he says.
Malia shows her teeth and growls.
“Down girl,” I say.
I take a step backwards, but I’m not going to apologize to him. It’s not necessary. For starters I can’t control who I fall in love with and neither can Quinn, and we sure as hell don’t need to apologize to someone for doing just that.
Especially not the one person who should be happy for the both of us.
I came here as a courtesy and if he can’t accept that then that’s on him.
I walk out of his house and Malia and I are back in the Jeep and pulling away from his curb in less than twenty seconds.
“Thanks for having my back, girl,” I say to Malia.
She makes that noise that malamutes make and I give her a good petting.
I didn’t need her help this time and I didn’t want it to seem like I was bringing her in case anything went down, but regardless it’s nice to know she’s always there for me. She’s always on my side.
And that’s more than I can say about Quentin right about now.
And I need to get on my own side real fast, as in get horizontal. I’m dead tired from that drive and everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours.
I think of that old saying “what a difference a day makes.” I doubt whoever came up with that lost their job, their best friend, and fell in love all in less than twenty-four hours.
I can’t catch any shut eye at my parent’s house because they up and moved to Florida last year. And I really don’t want to just knock o
n the door of some old friends as I’ll have to catch up with them, and tell them why I’m in town.
Possessive K-9 Cop: An Older Man Younger Woman Romance (A Man Who Knows What He Wants Book 74) Page 4