AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Mom, that’s not true. You guys are what I value most.”
She smiled. “And now you add Sophie to that list.”
“I do.”
“Then I’m going to give you some unwanted advice.”
He sighed, wiping his hands and giving her his complete attention. “All right.”
“However it looks, what your father and I have, it’s not easy. You have to work for it. Fight for it. Show up every single day and refuse to let it go. That’s what it takes to love someone for the long haul.”
He glanced at Sophie laughing at something Hailey said. Her blond hair shimmered like gold in the late-afternoon sun. After the initial awkwardness of meeting everyone, she’d slid right in, and he could tell by the way his sisters glommed onto her that she was one of them.
They tried on her Chanel sunglasses, oohing and aahing over them, even though to him they were just sunglasses. They had an extensive discussion about shoes that had his eyes glazing over.
But the biggest tell was that Jessica and Hailey had asked Sophie to their next girls’ night out. They loved her. She fit with them.
With him.
He nodded. “I’ll remember that.”
“Good.” His mom gave him a quick hug and tilted her head toward the door. “I’ll meet you outside.”
She took her leave, and he once again started to load the dishwasher. It would only take him a short time and his mom would be grateful, so he was happy to do it.
Five minutes later, Sophie walked in, smiling at him. “Hi.”
He dropped the dish towel and walked over to her, putting his arms around her and brushing his mouth over hers. “Are you glad you came?”
“I am.” She rose to her tiptoes, and he bent down so she could whisper in his ear. “But there’s one thing I want to see.”
“What’s that?” He rubbed a hand down her spine, already thinking illicit thoughts.
“I need to see pictures of you as a kid.” She leaned back to gaze up at him. “I’m finding I have a hard time picturing it.”
“Baby pictures, huh?”
She nodded.
He raised a brow. “What are you willing to do for them?”
“What do you want?” She chuckled huskily.
He had ideas, but he wanted hers instead. “Make me an offer.”
She tilted her head, pretending to think about it. “What about your handcuffs?”
And look at that, they were thinking the same thing. He nipped her bottom lip. “You want me to handcuff you to the bed so I can torture you for a few hours?”
A sly cunning lit her brown eyes. “Nope. I want to handcuff you to the bed and torture you for a few hours.”
He laughed, chucking her under the chin. “Never going to happen.”
“Don’t be a chicken.”
“I’m not, but we both know we like it best when I’m in control.”
She batted her lashes. “True, but I want to see how wild I can make you for precisely that reason.”
