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“I heard about Teddy bidding to fix up your place. It’s about damn time you tapped out.”
I sighed, knowing it was only a matter of time before he brought it up. The Ricci siblings were close, all six of them, and nothing stayed secret for long. “Yep. She hates me for some reason, but she seems willing to take on the job at hand, so I guess that’s what’s important.”
At one point in time, I would have considered me and Teddy friends, but one day she just hated me and nothing I said or did changed that fact. Women were complicated creatures, which was why I preferred to keep my interactions with them simple. Casual. Easy.
“For some reason?” I’d known Antonio long enough to recognize the incredulity in his tone and turned to look at him. “She has a damn good reason, and the fact that you don’t remember it means it’s probably a good thing to just follow her lead and keep your distance.”
“Ouch.”
“Uncle Cal has an owie?” Rosie held my cheeks in her little hands, concern in her eyes.
“It’s an inside hurt, princess, I’ll be fine. So will you.” I set Rosie on her feet and turned to her father. “She needs to rest today, but you need to see a local specialist to make sure you’re doing everything you can to help her.”
Antonio nodded. “I’m not trying to be a dick, Cal. She’s my sister.”
“And she’s perfectly safe with me.” Mostly. The reminder of a lush pink mouth and perfectly formed tits called me out as a liar, but Antonio didn’t need to know that. “In fact, I think this might be the perfect time to renew our friendship. Maybe then she’ll stop avoiding me.” She was the only woman in town to walk the other way when I entered a room—and that wasn’t ego talking, that was a fact.
“She’s my sister, Cal,” Antonio growled and his expression was serious, but still I risked life and limb by smiling back.
“You think I’d hurt her?”
“Not on purpose, but Teddy mentioned a crying woman at your place recently.”
I waved off his concern. “A simple misunderstanding. Alana thought because her feelings had changed, so had mine.”
“And if you hurt my sister, I’ll be forced to hurt my best friend.”
“I expect nothing less, but you have nothing to worry about. Teddy’s gotten gorgeous, sure, but my only interest is in being her friend again.” I didn’t know it was a lie until the words crossed my lips, but they were out there now and I couldn’t take them back, especially when they seemed to give Antonio a sense of relief.
“Uncle Cal?” Rosie tugged on my shirt hem until I looked down at her.
“Yes, Princess?” I crouched down so we were eye to eye.
“Are you coming to the barbecue at Uncle Cenzo’s? He’s making burgers and ribs. I love ribs.”
“My favorite princess and ribs? I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” At her excited hug, I smiled and squeezed her tight. “I’ll even bring my famous princess cupcakes.”
“Why are they famous?”
“Because once you taste them, I’ll be famous for my princess cupcakes.”
She giggled and hugged me a little tighter.
“Thank you, Uncle Cal.”
“My pleasure, sweetheart.”
When I looked up, Antonio was smiling at both of us. “You’re asking for trouble, Cal, and we both know it.”
Maybe I was asking for trouble. Or maybe I was on my way to the unthinkable: being friends with a beautiful woman.
Teddy
“All right Rob, your wet bar is officially done.” It was a quick job, completed over a day and a half once all the supplies had arrived. “It doesn’t look half bad, if I do say so myself.”
Rob stood a few feet away from me and inspected his newly installed wet bar, a slow smile spreading across his face. “It’s perfect, Teddy. Even better than I imagined.” He ran his fingers across the bar and then the sink, the wine glass rack, and the little antique cart that held a variety of fancy cocktails glasses. “Where did this come from?”
“Consider it a gift. A good mixologist needs glasses, right? These will get you started.”
“Aw, damn, girl. You’re a sweetheart under that tough shell.” His beefy arms pulled me into a crushing hug that was, thankfully, over quickly. “Thank you, Teddy.”
“My pleasure.” And it was. Rob was a decent guy and other than my brothers, I didn’t know too many of those. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten your promise to make me something, but right now I still have to get ready for my brother’s barbecue.” Apparently, attendance was mandatory this weekend, even though one of the Ricci boys cooked out nearly every Saturday.
“Anytime. Maybe next weekend I’ll be the one cooking out and mixing drinks.”
“Meat and booze? Sounds like a perfect Jackson’s Ridge party to me.”
We said our goodbyes and I left, rushing home for a quick shower and a change of clothes before picking up Hannah, because she had a few dishes to show off and she hated to drive.
