“And I feel like shit for letting any amount of time go by where we weren’t talking.”
She waves me off. “It wasn’t just you. It happens to a lot of people. Once we leave high school, we start our path to adulthood, and sometimes things and people get left behind. At least we made it back to each other.”
“We did,” I say with a smile. “And now you’re my girl. Like I’ve always wanted you to be.”
She chokes out a laugh. “I can’t believe we both liked each other, but never said anything. We could’ve had years together.”
“Maybe it was better this way,” I say. “We had our time to be friends, and we had time to be without each other and try out other relationships.”
Midge moans and rolls her eyes. “Eck.”
“Even if they were bad,” I say with a laugh. “And now we’re here.”
“We’re here,” she repeats.
“And we like each other a little more than friends,” I say with a grin.
She brings her thumb and forefinger together. “Just a little.”
“And we’re going to tell people...when?”
She ducks her head and chews on her thumb nail. “Well, London knows.”
“What? Since when?”
“Last week, and you know what gave it away?”
“What?”
“You and that damn chicken piccata!”
I rear back, confused. “What?”
Midge laughs. “You went over to Elijah’s and mentioned having had chicken piccata recently, but I had already told her I had it at my parents’ house. She got suspicious and questioned me about it.”
“Wow. Chicken piccata givin’ us up.”
“But she didn’t tell Royce. She said she’d wait until me and you had a talk about taking us public.”
“Well, that’s two people down. Really, only Royce is left.”
“And Jon and Daniel,” she adds.
“I don’t think they’ll care.”
“Maybe not. I also have to tell my parents, but I’m pretty sure my mom knows.”
“Probably,” I snort. “Moms are perceptive.”
“Well, at least she already adores you.”
“Easy to do,” I say with a grin.
Midge rolls her eyes. “Pft.”
I stand up and reach for her hand. “I have a confession. Come with me.”
She takes my hand and stands up. “Confession scares me.”
“Well, it was a tiny fib. I didn’t want to scare you off by thinking I was a psycho.”
She trails behind me as we march down the hall and toward my room. “Even more scared.”
In the room, I make my way to a vintage wooden secretary desk. It was a piece my parents’ had for years, and I’d always pull open the door, which served as the desk once open, and sit down to draw. I stored my pencils and papers in the little compartments inside, and basically took it over from my mom. She didn’t seem to mind.
Inside, I pull out a folded and wrinkled piece of paper and hand it to Midge.
She eyes me with nervous curiosity before taking the paper and slowly opening it. She flips the paper around and then brings her shaky fingers to her lips as she studies the drawing.
“You do have it,” she whispers.
“Of course I have it.”
She glances up. “Why?”
“Two reasons. One: It’s the first picture I drew after my parents’ died. It took a while to want to do it again. I felt like if they couldn’t see what I was creating, it didn’t deserve to be created. They both played integral parts in me becoming the artist I am, and it felt wrong to do it without them. Elijah helped push me through that type of thinking. He told me they wouldn’t want my talents to go to waste. And then that day you challenged me to do it. Granted, in your own, teasing, shit-talking way, but you were there pushing me to create art again, and I would’ve done anything for you. Two: It’s you, Midge. Why would I throw you away?”
Her lip quivers and then she throws her arms around me, lifting up as high on her tip-toes as she can. I bend down and hold her in my arms.
“You’re so perfect,” she whispers into my neck.
I chuckle. “I’m really not.”
She backs away and takes another look at the paper before handing it to me. “You did a really good job. I’m glad you kept it. Why did you say you didn’t?”
I fold the paper back up and place it back in its’ compartment. “You seemed to be freaking out a little. I said we might be meant for each other, and you froze. I invited you to dinner at my brother’s house, and you almost had a panic attack. I wasn’t about to tell you I’d been keeping a photo of you from ten years ago. It’s the same reason why, when we were at your parents’ house, I didn’t tell you that I liked you when we were kids. I didn’t want you to know just how much you meant to me, and for how long, because you may have packed your bags and skipped town.”
She twists her mouth at me. “I wasn’t having a panic attack.”
“Sure,” I reply with a smirk.
“I hate you.”
I step forward and place my hands on her waist. “Do you?”
She fights her grin. “Yep.”
I lift her up off her feet and she wraps her legs around me. “I think I should prove to you that you don’t.”
“I might take a lot of convincing.”
“I have time, baby girl.”
She squeals when I drop her onto the bed, covering her body with my own.
44
Midge
“Okay, okay,” I pant, turning to the side. “I don’t hate you.”
He smacks me on the ass as he gets out of the bed. “I know.”
I watch as he pulls the condom off, my eyes zoning in on that beautiful piercing. Which reminds me.
“By the way, I went and got some tests done. You know, to make sure I’m not carrying any infectious diseases.”
He snorts. “Sexy.”
“Well, I should have word back this week. Though, I’ve always been careful, and doubt I have anything.”
He throws the condom in the bathroom trash, then wanders back to the bed, crawling toward me with a grin in place. “Someone wants to feel everything, huh?”
I bite my lip. “Yep.”
“Good. Well, I got tested after I found out Zoe cheated on me. No infectious diseases here either.”
“That’s good.”
He kisses my lips then backs up off the bed, standing in front of me, stark naked. “So, I’m about to jump in the shower. Wanna join?”
“How could I say no?”
“I was hoping that’d be the case.”
He gets the water started as I detangle myself from the sheets. A few minutes later, we’re both under the warm spray of the shower.
“You’re big body is blocking most of the water,” I complain.
“It’s not my fault you’re small.”
I smack him in the stomach. “Move.”
He laughs and switches places with me, then grabs his loofa sponge and squeezes some soap on it.
“Do you have separate shampoos and conditioners, or a two-in-one kind of thing?”
“Two-in-one.”
“Ugh. Men. Better than nothing, I suppose.”
He hands it to me, and I wash my hair with this bottle of crap that won’t leave my hair soft and silky, but whatever.
After he’s washed himself up, and I’ve rinsed out my hair, he moves in, rubbing his palms over my hips and cupping my ass. He brings me closer, dipping his head under the stream as he leans down and kisses my neck.
Before we can even get started, the doorbell rings, pulling both of us apart.
“Oh shit. I forgot Royce was coming by.” He does another quick rinse before stepping out of the shower. “Meet me out there?”
“Guess he has to find out somehow. Why not right after we were showering together?” I say with a smirk.
“He’ll be fine.”
I finish up my shower while Cil
lian rushes to the door. As I’m drying off, I can hear their voices traveling down the hall. Cill must’ve left the bedroom door open. Which sucks, because I don’t have any clothes in here. I wrap the plush, white towel around my body, use Cillian’s comb to tame my hair, then I slowly emerge from the bathroom.
As soon as I step into the bedroom, I spot Royce through the open bedroom door, standing at the end of the hall. He does a double take when he sees me.
“Uh, what?” he says, looking back at Cill before glancing in my direction again.
I lift my hand and give him a small smile. “Hey.”
His confused face makes both me and Cill laugh. I keep moving across the room and out of his line of sight, searching for my discarded clothes.
I hear him asking Cill more questions as I get dressed in last night’s garments. I don’t really hear what Cill says, but I hear them chuckling about something.
I appear in the doorway when Cill says, “We’ll see you tonight at E’s.” They both look back at me. “She’s definitely coming this time.”
“Yeah, well, I look forward to hearing this story,” Royce says. “Bye, Midge,” he adds with a stupid grin and small wave.
“Bye, Royce.” I mimic his wave and smile.
Royce punches Cillian in the shoulder before opening the front door.
“Thanks for the gift, man. It’s fucking awesome.”
“No problem, bro. See ya later.”
Once Royce is gone, me and Cill meet in the middle of the hallway. I get on my tip-toes, wrapping my arms around his neck as he leans down and encircles me with his arms.
“Well, one more person down,” he says.
“You know once I tell my parents, you’re gonna have to come over to dinner more often, right?”
He laughs. “That’s fine. It’ll be like the old days.”
“Except now they’ll know we’re fucking.”
“Let’s hope they don’t spend too much time thinking about that,” he replies with a deep laugh.
“So, what time is dinner?”
“Six-thirtyish.”
“What time is it now?”
We walk back down the hall, into his bedroom. “Three-forty.”
“Okay, well, can you take me home so I can change? I’ll probably call my parents, too.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he says, smacking my ass as he goes to his closet to find a shirt. “I’ll pick you up around six.”
“I can meet you there,” I offer.
“Nope. I’m picking you up.”
I roll my eyes, but my smile reveals my happiness. “Okay.”
45
Cillian
At five fifty-five, I’m at Midge’s door with a smile on my face and flowers in hand. She makes a face at me when she sees the flowers.
“What?” I ask behind a laugh.
“You being romantic now, Mr. Kingston?”
“It’s kind of like our first date, right?”
She takes the flowers, and I follow her inside while she finds a vase in her kitchen. “First date with two of your brothers and my best friend?”
I shrug. “Well, okay, maybe not a traditional first date. But we are having dinner, and there most likely will be sex at the end of the night.”
“Hopefully not with the aforementioned people,” she jokes, filling the vase with water.
“Ha-ha. No, not into orgies with my family.”
Once she gets the bouquet settled into the vase, she leans in and inhales their scent. “These are beautiful. Thank you.”
“Not a problem. You ready to go?”
“Yep.”
Twenty minutes later, we pull into Elijah’s driveway.
“We’re first?” she questions.
“Looks like it. Nervous?”
She grins. “A little. Is that weird?”
“I guess I understand. There’s been a shift in our relationship, but Elijah and Royce won’t treat you any differently.”
She takes a breath. “Okay, let’s go.”
On the short walk to the door, I take her hand in mine and look over and smile. We walk right in, because Elijah knows to expect us, so the door is always unlocked around this time.
Elijah’s dog, Sugarfoot, comes trotting around the corner to see who’s here. Sugarfoot is the calmest dog I’ve ever known. He hardly barks, so he’s not the best guard dog, but he loves attention, so he’ll definitely jump up on you and wait for you to pet him.
Midge reaches down and runs her hand over his long, golden fur. Sugarfoot rubs his body against her black jeans, because he loves to leave his fur on everybody’s clothes.
“He sheds a lot,” I say, giving him a couple pats on the side.
“But he’s so cute!” she replies, unbothered.
“This is Sugarfoot. Elijah’s best friend. Probably only friend,” I say with a laugh.
“I heard that,” Elijah calls out.
“Sugarfoot is the cutest name,” Midge squeaks.
Elijah joins us in the foyer, wiping his hands on a towel. “I can’t take credit for that, but it is fitting,” he says, nodding toward the dog’s front left paw. “Looks like he dipped that paw in a bowl of sugar and it just never came off.”
Midge straightens up and faces Elijah. “Thanks for having me tonight.”
E grins. “It’s not a problem. So, you two making things official now, huh?”
I glance at Midge and her red cheeks. “Yeah,” she answers, glancing over at me. “He wore me down.”
“Only took a decade,” Elijah jokes, turning and walking to the kitchen. “Come on, Sugarfoot.” He pats his leg and the dog follows him.
“I wasn’t trying consistently for a decade,” I say, rolling my eyes as we follow him into the kitchen. “Jeez, you’re making me sound like I have no game.”
Midge angles her head in my direction, smirking. “Well…”
“Oh, shut it.”
Elijah chuckles. “Cill, grab the plates, will you?”
“What’s cookin’?” Cill asks, sniffing the air as he reaches for the plates.
“Chicken teriyaki casserole.”
“Ooh, that sounds good,” Midge says. “You always been the chef around here?”
Elijah shakes his head with a laugh. “I was forced to learn. For a while, we all ordered takeout or went to fast food places. If it wasn’t that, it was sandwiches and frozen meals. Easy stuff. But, after a while I started looking into cookbooks and trying to come up with meal ideas.”
“I was good with pizza,” I say with a shrug.
Elijah shakes his head. “And Merrick only wanted macaroni and cheese, and Royce was obsessed with Hot Pockets.”
I remember those early days after Mom and Dad died. We had meals that people brought over for the first two weeks. After that, we ate what we found in the pantry, or like Elijah said, went out to get unhealthy crap from McDonalds or Taco Bell. Not that we complained. Me and Royce were teenagers, and Merrick was only eleven, so we were fine with junk food. Elijah did his best to remain stoic and strong. We barely saw him cry. I can remember one time that he broke down. He suffered in silence. Then one day, he was cooking meals, and making sure we were doing our homework, and really took on the role of guardian.
The front door opens and Royce’s heavy steps mixed with London’s click-clacking heels make their way to the kitchen.
“Hey, family,” Royce greets.
London’s face cracks with a wide grin as she rushes over to Midge, giving her a hug. A few quiet whispers are exchanged between them before both sets of eyes meet mine. Well, no need to wonder who they’re talking about.
Royce leans back against the counter. “So, who’s telling me the story, because apparently, I’m the only one who didn’t know about this,” he says, gesturing between me and Midge.
“Not much to tell,” I say. “We, uhh, got together at the lake house. It continued here. We just made things official. That’s it.”
Royce’s eyes bounce back to Midge. “That was bo
ring. Midge, come on, tell me the good stuff.”
Midge laughs. “But what he said is true.”
“Does nobody have a storytelling gene in their body around here? We got together. It continued,” he mocks. “Really?”
I roll my eyes and cross my arms over my chest. “And how would you tell the story of you and London getting together?”
Lo smiles, leaning against the island next to Midge. “Yes, how would you describe that?”
Royce rubs his hands together, his smile growing. “Well, one day, a woman with sun-kissed hair and sky-blue eyes blew into the bar with an infectious laugh that could cure even the saddest sap. I was frozen in place, watching her saunter toward me. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen, but as soon as she sat down, she got a call from her boyfriend. Not one to back away, I flirted relentlessly. I asked her to break up with him at least once a month. We had a chemistry you couldn’t deny. She was mine the minute she walked into my bar. It took some time, but she finally realized it.”
London watches him with adoration, her smile so wide her cheeks must hurt.
I scoff. “Okay, we get it.”
“Hater.”
“Please,” I say, making my way to Midge. “Me and Midge have history. We have a story that spans a decade.”
“Oh, you’re finally admitting to those old feelings, huh?” Royce teases. “You had been denying those even leading up to our trip to the lake.”
Midge peers up at me through her dark, thick lashes, and I drape my arm over her shoulders. “I didn’t need you giving me shit for what I thought was unrequited...feelings.”
Royce cocks a brow at my hesitation. “So this whole time you’ve both been lusting after each other and never said anything.”
“I said some stuff,” Midge chirps. “To London.”
Midge and London laugh. “It’s true. She did.”
I squeeze her into me. “Like what?”
“Just that you’re gorgeous and amazing and stuff like that,” London answers, waving her hand in the air like it’s no big deal.
“Oh yeah?”
Midge rolls her eyes. “Okay, it’s not a big deal. Everybody knows the Kingston Brothers are the cream of the crop around here.”
Truth or Dare (Kingston Brothers Book 2) Page 22