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“You got yourself a painting, sweetheart.” Harrison winks at her, heading toward the clerk who’s waiting to catalog our choices so that we can proceed with the paperwork.
“Are you crazy?” Summer ogles me in disbelief. “Babe, that’s a lot of money—”
“It’s for a good cause.” Grasping her hand, I don’t give her a chance to argue back as I move us along to another piece that I think she’ll like.
This one is a little more subtle. The black-and-white beach photography has a fuzzy white-noise quality to it, with only the lighthouse stripes having a hint of red to it. I think it would be perfect for the long wall at the back of the house. Summer has added a few red accents to the room with the handwoven rug and matching cushions, while the rest of the furniture is dark and chunky.
We add the panoramic shot to the list, along with a few pieces from the main floor. While I sit and finish the sale, Summer has another roam of the gallery.
“So things are serious, huh?” Harrison asks while I sign my way through the paperwork.
“She’s not the kind of girl that you fuck around, and I’m not the kind of guy that lets a good thing get away.”
“Yeah, my mom called to ask why I can’t settle like Agnes’s boy.” He levels me with a less than amused stare. “I loved Aggie until that call. Now I’m the fucking asshole that has to deal with my mother’s guilt trips.”
“If it bothers you that much, maybe you should give monogamy a try.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Have you met me? Do you know how much of my inheritance has been lost to my father’s ex-wives?”
“That’s because your father steps out on all his wives.”
“Fucking asshole,” he spits with a grimace. “Talking of exes, what’s the deal with the psycho?”
“Heather?”
“Shut the fuck up, man. You might as well break a thousand mirrors by saying her name. But yeah, her.”
“My attorney has the paperwork for the sole guardianship ready. Summer and I are heading out of town in a few weeks for her cousin’s engagement party, so he’s filing pretty soon.” With a sigh, I sign the last dotted line and sit back in my chair to look at him.
“How soon?”
“Later today. After what she did to Summer, I can’t risk her going crazy again. Especially not with Easton. It’s not exactly going to be easy, but I think it’s what needs to happen. I have to protect the people I love. If anything were to happen to East or Summer…”
“Love…” he echoes. “It’s a big word. Last person that started talking about it knocked his girlfriend up…Summer doesn’t look knocked up.”
“Because she’s not, and she won’t be for a while. Not until she’s got where she wants to be.”
“What happened to not wanting any more kids?” Harrison quirks a brow at me.
I hadn’t even realized that I’d been thinking about it somewhere in the back of my mind. He’s right though. After Easton was born and all the shit that went down, I swore I never wanted to do any of it again. But now as I look at Summer meandering over with Seb, Kate, and the kids in tow, I can’t imagine not putting my baby in her.
“Fucking hell, why can’t any of you stick to your fucking word. That bastard went and got all homemaker with Kate, and now you and Miss Sunshine…what the fuck is wrong with you guys?”
“It’s called growing up. You’ll have to do it at some point.”
Harrison pulls a stupid face at my statement, muttering, “Yada, yada, yada…”
The minute the other guys approach us, he turns into a kid, chasing Easton around the open, minimalistic space while the rest of us make plans for the rest of the day. Summer and Kate are taking the kids out while Seb and Harrison are going to help me move what’s left of our things at the hotel. Under my attorney’s advice, it will look a lot better if we’re settled into our home by the time we get to the hearing.
“Okay, so we’ll meet you back at the house later?” Summer asks, checking the diaper bag for everything they might need, even though she was the one that packed it this morning before we dropped East off at Seb’s place.
“We can pick up dinner on the way back. Saves us having to cook,” Kate offers while taking Lou from Seb. “My mum—”
“Mom,” Seb enunciates, correcting her British accent. “She already looks like a madam with that big bow turban on her head and that dress. There’s no way she’s sounding like one too.”
“No…that still doesn’t earn you make-up nookie.” Kate levels him with a so-help-me-God stare before she continues. “Anyway, my mother is meeting us later as well. She offered to watch the kids back at the house while we get things unpacked.”
“Are you seriously going to stick around to help with everything?”
