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“And she lights yours. Although you’ve been fighting less lately,” Flip says.
“I wonder why that is.” Dallas eyes me from the side.
“What was that?” Flip asks.
“We should check out the New York game,” Dallas says. “See how they’re playing so we know what we’re in for later in the season.” He flips through the channels until he finds replays of tonight’s other game.
My heart is pounding, though the guys have moved on. It seems Roman isn’t the only one who’s noticed.
The hall leading to our condo smells like pumpkin spice. My mouth is watering by the time I open the door, and not just because the house smells like freshly baked pies. Bea is standing in the kitchen wearing a pair of ridiculous socks, shorts, an oversized T-shirt, and an apron. Her hair is fixed on top of her head in a knot, and she has smudges of flour on her neck.
“Damn, it smells good in here.” Flip drops his bag and heads for her.
She turns around, a wide smile on her face, and accepts a brief hug. I look away, jealous that he can do that and I can’t. Not being able to touch her when other people are around is wearing on me. I crave those stolen moments when Flip disappears into the bathroom or his bedroom and I can hug her from behind and bury my face in her hair. It makes me wish we hadn’t started this with a pact I don’t know how to get out of.
“Your timing is perfect!” she says. “I made an extra pie. I figured waiting until dinner tomorrow night would be torture. Come sit down, and I’ll cut you both a slice. I also made too much filling for the pecan pie, so there are tarts. You can try those, too!”
There’s a bottle of red wine on the counter and a mostly empty glass beside it.
She grabs plates from the cupboard and rushes back to cut slices of pie. She tops them with fresh whipped cream and pushes them toward us.
Flip drops into the chair opposite her, and I take the one next to him. He digs in, shoveling a huge bite into his mouth. “This is so good,” he mumbles. After he swallows, he asks, “Grandma Madden’s recipe?”
I slide my fork through the pumpkin and pastry, gathering whipped cream before I take a bite. It’s incredible. But then everything Bea makes is.
We eat the entire pie, and Flip passes out. Thanks to his food coma, I take Bea to my room. I’m soft with her. Gentle, because last time I was hard. I don’t want to be too much for her. I want to give her a reason to stay, not leave.
The next day, we wake up and get ready to drive over to my dad’s for Thanksgiving dinner.
“I have an idea,” I say once we’ve loaded Flip’s car with pies, sweet potato casserole, and the gift Bea picked up for my brother, since we’re also celebrating his birthday. She offered to make a cake, but Brody only likes ice cream cake, and my dad has taken care of that.
“What’s that?” Flip asks as he closes the trunk.
“Bea should drive my brother’s car over. That way, he’ll think it’s hers, and it’ll be more of a surprise.”
“Uh…” Bea pushes her lips out. “I haven’t driven to your dad’s place like…ever. And this is a brand-new car. I don’t want that kind of responsibility.”
“How about I drive most of the way, and we switch spots when we’re around the corner?” I suggest.
“Yeah, okay. That would work,” Bea agrees.
She rounds the passenger side of my brother’s soon-to-be-birthday present, and Flip frowns. “Why doesn’t Rix drive with me until we get close to your dad’s? Don’t want you two killing each other before we even get there.”
Because I want half an hour to huff Bea’s shampoo before we have to spend the rest of the day behaving. “Sure. That works.”
When we’re two streets away from my dad’s place, Flip pulls over, and Bea hops out of his car and into my brother’s birthday present.
“I saw what you tried to do there,” she says as I tell her where to turn. My dad lives in the same house my brothers and I grew up in.
“I thought we’d get half an hour without an audience.”
“So you could get a car handy?” Bea glances at my crotch before she turns right.
“Mostly so I could tell you all the dirty shit I want to do to you later. But I wouldn’t have been opposed to a car handy.”
She rolls her eyes and smiles. “Brody will be so excited when he realizes this car is his.”
“Yeah. He’s been drooling over this one for a while. He only works one shift a week because of hockey, so saving has been hard,” I say.
