by Harper Sloan
Charlie’s looking back and forth between us like she’s confused about what he’s saying. Grabbing her hand, I bring it to my lips and plant a kiss on it as I look him right in the face.
“I never said I wasn’t interested, but at the time, I didn’t think anything would happen. Our relationship has progressed since then, and well, we’re together and I’m lucky as hell that she’s mine.”
Silently, he watches us for a few moments before a huge grin spreads across his face. “Well, you’re damn right about that,” he says before turning to her. “Guess you finally found a soldier with some balls. Nice going, Charlie.”
I’m not even sure I want to know what that means. I’m saved by the bell when the doorbell rings. Wade’s about to get out of his chair, but Charlie quickly jumps up. “I’ll get it, Dad,” she says before she scurries out of the room.
Shaking his head, he looks at me and lifts his beer in my direction. “She’s all yours now,” he says, and I grin as I raise my bottle. I have no problem toasting to that.
Charlie reenters the room with a shit-eating grin on her face. I’m about to ask her what’s going on when Dr. Branch comes into view. I almost lose it when I see what she’s wearing. She looks different out of her lab coat and dress clothes, but the fact that she’s in jeans and an Auburn jersey makes me want to kiss her.
Wade rises from his chair, but not before he lets out, “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Charlie is failing at trying to contain her laughter as she rejoins me on the couch.
When Wade approaches Olivia and greets her with a kiss on the cheek, I have to fight the urge to take out my phone and snap a picture of these two in warring jerseys. Leading her to the loveseat, he takes a seat next to her.
“You never told me you were an Auburn fan,” he says accusingly.
Setting her chin, she glares at him. “The way that I see it, it only matters on one day of the year, so instead of getting you all in a huff, I decided to keep that little fact to myself.”
Holy shit. Go Dr. B! Wade shakes his head as Charlie and I try not to laugh. I kind of feel like a voyeur as I watch them, but when I see Wade grin as she leans back against him, I know things will be just fine—at least until the Iron Bowl. Watching Wade and Olivia in the same room as their rival teams play each other should be pretty interesting.
Surprisingly, I find that I’m enjoying being around Charlie and her dad. For the first time, I feel like a boyfriend and it doesn’t bother me. We spend the afternoon watching Alabama crush Virginia Tech, but the way Wade and Charlie are acting you’d think they were winning the National Championship. Once the game is over, we get up to leave when Dr. Branch—or well, Olivia as she told me to call her since I’m no longer her patient—invites us to go to dinner with them. Charlie looks at me, and I shrug, not caring either way.
Charlie answers for us. “Sure, Olivia. That sounds great.”
The two of them start discussing what type of food they want, and Wade gestures for me to follow him into the kitchen.
“If I know those two, they’ll be arguing over whether they want sushi or Italian,” he says, pulling two beers out of the fridge and handing me one. “We might as well enjoy ourselves while they’re sorting dinner plans out.”
“So you and Doc B? Is it serious?” I ask, even though I know I have no right. I’m trying to get the inside scoop for Charlie.
Looking me up and down, he counters with, “How about you and my girl? How serious is that?”
Check freaking mate. “We’re just starting out. We’ve been a couple for”—I pause to check my watch—“less than twenty-four hours now. So we’re not exactly serious, but I can assure you that I do care about her.”
Slapping me on the shoulder, he grins. “I’m not worried about that. I can see the way you look at her. Be good to her, Knox. She deserves it.” He finishes off his beer as his face turns serious. “But if you hurt her, I’ll kick your ass. I may be an old man, but I figure I can get in a swing or two before you could take me down.”
Before I can respond, the girls enter the kitchen, declaring that they’ve decided on Mexican. We go to leave, and although I know Wade wants to ride in Evelyn, Olivia coaxes him into her car. I make him a promise he can drive her another day.
Entering the restaurant, the four of us are led to a booth. Instead of sitting next to me, Charlie slides in next to her dad, leaving me to sit across from her for some reason. I’d much rather be sitting next to my girl, but I’ll deal for now. After we get our drinks and order, the table falls silent until Charlie speaks up.
“So, Olivia, how long have you and Dad been dating?” Damn, my girl goes straight for the jugular.
Olivia takes a sip of her margarita before responding. “Well, we’ve been friends for a couple of years, but it just recently developed into something more.” Wade grins at her, and Charlie looks back and forth between the two of them.
“I’m glad, Olivia. I love seeing Dad happy, even if you are wearing an Auburn jersey,” she says, smiling at her. She’s definitely her father’s daughter. I want to lean across the table and attack her mouth, but I settle for messing with her foot, wishing I could be close to her right now.
I start to slide my shoe up her leg when I suddenly feel a sharp pain on my shin, the result of someone kicking me. Holy shit. That fucking hurt. “Fuck,” I say before I can censor myself around her dad.
Wade grins at me, and I wonder what the hell he’s thinking. “Hey, Knox, I think you have a problem if you can’t tell the difference between my size 11s and Charlie’s much smaller feet. As much as I enjoy a little attention, I’d rather rub feet with someone other than my daughter’s boyfriend.”
Charlie snickers, and I shrug, feeling only slightly embarrassed. I was caught and I can get over it, even though my girl’s trying not to laugh at me. I like to pride myself in my masculinity, and I’d never knowingly play footsie with another fucking man. Sipping my beer, I brush it off, and the rest of the dinner goes off without a hitch as I make sure to keep my feet to myself.
When the check comes, Wade moves to pick it up off the table, but I swipe it out from under him at the last minute. Moving to grab my wallet, I watch as he scowls at me and sticks his hand out, waiting for me to hand it over.
“The bill, Knox,” he orders, and I grin, wondering how many times he’s used that tone with Charlie. Glancing over at her, I notice she’s watching our standoff with playful eyes.
“It’s cool, Wade. I got it.” I try not to smirk when I see him glare at me, and I know it’s really only a matter of time before I give in. Watching him get all riled up lets me know exactly where his daughter gets it from.
“I’m not letting my daughter’s boyfriend pay the bill. This is not a double date. That’d just be weird, so put your damn wallet away. This is me, a father, taking his daughter and her man, along with his woman, out for dinner. Give me the damn check.”
“Yes, sir,” I say, trying to keep a straight face as I pass him the bill, and he scowls again.
By the time we leave, I have to reaffirm my promise that he can drive Evelyn to get back into his good graces. For the first time, I actually care what a girl’s father thinks of me, and if I have to use Evelyn, then I’ll hand over the keys any time he asks. Okay, not any time, but for Charlie, I’d at least consider it.
THE DAY spent with Dad and Olivia yesterday went really well, and I’m feeling happy that he and I are both in relationships with people we care about. From what I can tell Olivia is really into Dad, and he seems completely taken by her. He couldn’t stop watching her all throughout dinner, and I started to think Knox and I needed to get a different table. I’m happy for him, and I’m hoping this is the beginning of something good for him.
I know he had fun teasing Knox, but I could tell that he had a respect for him, especially when Knox gave him shit right back. When we got home, I tried to go to my own room, but Knox wouldn’t hear of it and I was too tired to argue with him. That and the thought of bei
ng in his bed were extremely appealing as opposed to the idea of sleeping in mine alone.
He’s in the shower while I’m making breakfast, and I shake my head when I can’t find the measuring cup I need. I swear, Knox never puts anything back in the right place. Finally, I find it in a random drawer, but my eyes spot a postcard that looks out of place. Pulling it out, I read the invitation just as Knox enters the room. He freezes when he sees it in my hand
“Are you going?” I ask, wondering if he’s actually considering going to a party at his parents’ place after all these years.
Sighing, he leans back against the island. “Honestly, I wasn’t even considering it until yesterday. Watching you and your dad together kind of made me miss having my family. And I don’t know. Maybe this is their way of trying to reach out. I feel like I need to at least give it a chance, you know? I mean, what happened was a casualty of my relationship with Megan, and I’m beginning to wonder if that’s worth spending the rest of my life without family.”
I’m actually amazed, because two months ago he could barely even talk about them. “Well, as long as you have Cohen with you, I’m sure it’ll be fine,” I tell him, turning back to scramble the eggs in the skillet. But at the same time, I have to wonder how good of an idea it is.
Feeling him behind me, I lean back as he wraps his arms around me. “Not just Cohen, but you, too, sweetheart. I can’t do this without you. I need you by my side. I want you with me.”
Turning around, I look up at him. “You want me to come? And meet your family?” As much as I’d love to go with him, the thought of meeting the people who discarded him so easily sounds like an awful idea. I’m not sure I’d be able to keep my cool if they treat him the way they have been since he joined the service.
“I don’t just want you there, I need you there. Until you, I never thought I could really move on with my life. But you’ve shown me that the past isn’t worth dwelling on and I need to just live for the future. I know I’ll never have the relationship with my parents like you have with Wade, but I’d like to at least be able to exchange Christmas cards or something.”
“Knox, you’re stronger than you give yourself credit for. You don’t need me to do this. But if you want me, I’ll be there with you every step of the way, for as long as you need.”
He leans down and places a kiss on my lips. “I know it’s only been two freaking days, but I feel like it’s been so much longer, and I can’t imagine doing this without you. That probably makes me sound like a pussy, but somehow I’m okay with that.”
Placing a hand on his cheek, I smile up at him. “If that makes you a pussy, then you’re my pussy. And while I never felt like swinging to the other side, for you, I think I could do it.”
Shaking his head at me, he lifts me up onto the counter and presses his hard erection in between my legs.
“As much as I like the idea of watching you with another woman, there’s no fucking way I’m sharing this,” he growls, his hand coming up to palm my breast. I’m pushing against him, ready for him to push my shorts aside and take me right here, when a burning smell fills my nose. Opening my eyes, I see the eggs smoking, and I jump down from the counter to pull them off the burner.
He’s chuckling behind me, and I turn to glare at him. “I’ve never, not once in my life, burned eggs. But you get all testosteroney on me and I lose my damn mind!”
“They’re just eggs, babe. No need to freak out,” he says, and my mind suddenly reels from the new term of endearment he’s using. It’s been two freaking days, yet I already feel like we’ve been dating for much longer than that. I guess when you’re living together, you get everything up front, and our relationship is nothing traditional. I feel so comfortable around him, and we made the transition from roommates more easily than I ever imagined possible. My whole ‘I’m keeping my own room’ stance is going to fly out the window the moment he tosses me onto his bed.
“So when do we leave?” I ask, getting back to the topic at hand.
He runs his hand over his head as he looks at the invitation and then checks the calendar hanging on the side of the refrigerator. “The party’s in two weeks, the Saturday before Labor Day. It’s only about an hour away, so we can get up and go. We’ll just make it a day trip.”
I’m relieved that we won’t have to stay there overnight, but I’m also really proud that he’s agreeing to go. I think it’ll be good for him—to either heal open wounds or get closure—and I’m both ecstatic and nervous that he wants me there with him.
“Whatever you want to do is fine with me,” I tell him as I bring our plates with overcooked eggs to the island. He smothers them with ketchup as I head to the fridge to grab some fruit. “Hey, it’s your fault I ruined the eggs.”
Leaning over, he places a kiss on my cheek when I sit down. “They’re fine, sweetheart. Eat up. You need your strength for your sparring match with your dad later on.”
Shaking my head, I grin at him as I force myself to eat. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. Before we left the restaurant last night, Dad said he didn’t want to box with me today.”
His eyebrows furrow as he drops his fork to his plate. “Why not?”
I’m trying to keep a straight face. “He said he wants to spar with you.”
KNOX’S LEG keeps shaking nervously as we make our way towards the gym. I know I’m awful for messing with him like this, and I should tell him I was just kidding, but the way he’s been acting since I said that Dad wanted to box with him has been ridiculously cute. He kept pacing the living room floor, talking to himself and then to me, wondering whether or not he should fight with all he has or take it easy on Dad. Weighing both options, he wasn’t sure what to do because he didn’t want to hurt anyone’s ego, but he also didn’t want it to seem like he didn’t respect Dad as a boxer. Watching him was cracking me up. It was also really sweet that he actually cared about how Dad would feel either way. I could be way off base, but I’m kind of taking it as a testament to the fact that he really does care about me. I mean, if he’s worried about how my dad feels about him, that’s got to mean something, right?
Instead of being a good girlfriend and telling him I was just kidding around, I let him stew over it. Pulling into the gym parking lot, he finds a spot. Shutting off the engine, he turns towards me.
“Seriously, Charlie, what should I do? If I take him down, he might hate me. But if he knows I’m going easy on him, he’ll probably be just as pissed.” He shakes his head, his eyes pleading with me to tell him to do, and now I’m really beginning to feel bad.
I’m about to tell him that he has nothing to worry about when Kale knocks on his window. Sighing, Knox opens his door and gets out. I follow, and the three of us walk into the building together.
“It’s about time, you two,” Kale says, smirking at both of us.
“What the hell are you talking about, Montgomery?” Knox asks.
He looks back and forth between Knox and me. “Lucy told me that you’re finally admitting that you’re a thing.”
Knox turns to look at me, raising his eyebrows. “A thing?” Biting my lip, I try to suppress the smile that’s threatening to cross my face.
“Hey, those are his words not mine.” I can tell that he’s still waiting for an explanation. “And I may have called Lucy yesterday from the restaurant bathroom and told her everything that happened.”
“That’s why you were in there so long?” he asks, his eyes narrowing as the rest of my comment registers. “What do you mean, everything?”
Before I can answer, Kale does for me. “She means everything. Up top, bro. I don’t even think I have stamina like that.” He lifts his hand up, waiting for Knox to give him a high-five, and I resist the urge to punch him in the stomach for that.
Dad’s voice interrupts the conversation. “Montgomery, you better not talking about my daughter, or I’ll show you how much stamina this old man has by kicking your ass.”
Placing his hand on the small of my back, Knox le
ans downs, his lips coming to my ear. “We’ll talk about this later, sweetheart,” he growls, sounding slightly annoyed.
I start to protest, knowing I didn’t tell Lucy anything that happened in the bedroom and that Kale’s just trying to get under his skin. “Knox—” but he cuts me off before I can even say anything else.
“Later.”
Leaving me to stand there, I glare at Kale. “I want you in the ring after my session with Dad. You’re going to pay for that.”
Grinning, he holds his hands up. “Come on, he makes it way too easy. I mean, look at him. You know he’s punching that bag pretending it’s my face.”
Looking over to where Knox is working a punching bag, I know Kale’s probably right. My guess is that Knox doesn’t like his sexual activities discussed, and I don’t blame him. I’d probably get pretty pissy if I found out I was locker room talk. When Knox says he doesn’t share, I’m pretty sure he also means the details.
“What’s his deal?” Dad asks, having changed into his sparring clothes.
Shaking my head, I pull my gloves out of my bag to put them on. When Knox sees that’s Dad’s ready to go, he walks over to us before I can answer him.
“Wade,” Knox says, nodding at him before climbing between the ropes and getting into the ring Dad and I usually use. We watch him circle the ring, letting out a few punches as he warms up. Stopping, he looks over at us. “Well?” he asks, gesturing towards Dad.
Dad looks at me and then over at him. “Well, what?”
“Are you going to stand there and watch me all day or are we going to do this?” Knox asks him, his gloved hands on his hips. While I feel bad that I instigated this, I can’t help the giggles that rise to the surface and bubble over.
“Wellington, are you challenging me? Seriously?” Dad asks, sounding surprised.
At this point, I’m doubling over. When I look up, wiping my eyes, Knox is glaring at me.
“Excuse me, sir, but your daughter told me this morning that you wanted to spar with me, not her.”