AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“It wouldn’t hurt,” says Bailey.
I can’t let myself forget what led us here, both the good and bad. Especially the bad. They only doubted us because I failed to fight for them.
Never again.
“You’re my family,” I say. “You’re the ones I fight for now. If somebody has a problem—even my own blood relations—you’re the ones whose side I’m on.” Bailey beams; Coop looks a little thunderstruck.
“Don’t you get it?” I say, kissing him softly. “You’re mine.”
Bailey nearly tackles us over in her hurry to hug us close, and I know this is it for me. This is all I want.
They’re mine.
“Hey,” says Bailey, pulling back to look up at me. “Who was on a phone earlier?”
“Bailey girl,” I say, hugging them tight. “You’ll never guess what Ty just told me…”
Epilogue
Cooper
A few months later…
“You’ll find instruction sheets on your workstation,” says Drew. “Take a moment to review the list of equipment you’ll need. There should be enough blenders for everybody but if we turn up short, just let me know and I’ll get you situated. All right, everybody ready? Go ahead and get started.”
“Got your equipment right here,” I mutter, just barely loud enough for Drew to hear. The rest of the class is already buzzing with activity. Sizzle had to rearrange the workstation setup since Drew’s cooking classes have gotten so popular. There’s nearly twice as many people in here as there were when I took his class last summer.
“Knock it off, Lawson,” he murmurs, not looking at me. He’s in instructor mode, so he’s only got eyes for his students right now.
I can fix that.
“I mean it,” he says sternly, catching my eye before I can slide off the stool next to him. “We had an agreement.”
Right. No shenanigans in class. Because we’re grownups now and shenanigans happen at home.
Maturity blows.
Then again, Bailey’s at home, and shenanigans with all three of us are always worth the wait.
I snicker. And go figure, that’s what gets Drew’s attention. His eyes narrow, like he’s trying to see inside my head. Good luck with that, Cap.
I’ve been acting as Drew’s assistant ever since he resumed teaching this class a couple of weeks ago. When he first asked me to do it, I thought it was just an excuse to get me away from my computer—I’ve been working on a new angle and as a result I don’t get out of the house much. But turns out Drew and I work really well together. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so surprised, considering how well we work together under less professional circumstances.
Sizzle hasn’t officially hired me, but neither have they barred me from the premises. Since I don’t do any of the actual teaching, nobody’s at risk of getting hurt. And Drew seems to enjoy the company, though I do my level best to give him as much shit as I did the first time I sat through his class.
“You’re humming again,” he says. He doesn’t look up from the paperwork on his desk.
“Can’t help it,” I say. I’ve had “Hot for Teacher” stuck in my head since we started doing this together. Drew got all flustered the first time he heard me humming it. Cute as hell. Made me want to fuck him over his desk.
Still haven’t struck that one off the bucket list yet, but I have high hopes for next week.
Not tonight, though. Drew’s already warned me he and Bailey have big plans for dinner tonight, and they sadly don’t involve anybody getting fucked over a desk.
Which is just as well. I’m supposed to be paying attention right now anyway. Drew and Bailey tell me the best way to learn something is to teach somebody else, so my new video series is all instructive: first-timers learning to cook. I don’t think they expected me to take their advice so literally, but that’s exactly what I’m doing with these videos—step by step how-to’s for people who, like me this time last year, can’t boil water.
I really hate to admit it, but they’re right. The lessons I had such a hard time retaining even after Drew’s class are starting to stick. I even take a turn cooking at home one night a week. Half the time we have to pitch it and get takeout instead, but it’s getting better. I’m getting better.
Truth is, they make me better. It’s easy to get over feeling frustrated when you’ve got the kind of cheering section I’ve got. Drew provokes me until I stop being mad at myself, and Bailey soothes any leftover frustration until I’m ready to try again. Anybody in the world would succeed under those circumstances.
