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“I’ll definitely want it. I love it so much.”
Her smile reaches inside me, taking possession of my heart.
In the muted daylight filtering through the dusty shop window, I cradle her jaw and slant my lips over hers.
“I love you,” I whisper. She gasps, and I use her surprise as an opportunity to taste her tongue. “I’ve been in love with you since the night I tasted whiskey on your lips.”
“Oh, Gavin.” She loops her arms around my neck. “I love you, too.”
I pull her close and kiss her like we’re the only two people in the world, or at least the only people in the store. Even the creak of footsteps on the ancient hardwood and the hoarse, guttural sound of someone clearing their throat isn’t enough to tear my lips from hers.
"Alexis?" The sound of her father’s voice, on the other hand...
We break apart and look to find Frank Kelley gaping at us.
"What is the meaning of this?" His eyes bulge behind his dark-framed glasses. “You and...and Gavin?”
I step between him and Alexis, keeping my tone measured.
“Frank, I know this is a shock.” I had hoped we wouldn’t need to have this discussion for at least a few months, but fate clearly had other plans. As if I needed a reminder that illicit affairs always get found out eventually; I should know that better than anyone.
“A shock?” he shouts. “That’s what you call getting involved with my daughter after what you did?”
“Honey, what’s the matter?” Frank’s wife Rachael appears at his side. She looks at her daughter and then at me as awareness dawns across her features.
“How the hell did this happen?” Frank asks.
I squeeze Alexis’s hand to let her know I’m going to handle this. “We ran into each other at Carl’s party.”
“Carl’s party? That was a month ago. I didn’t see you there that night.”
“Because I went out of my way to avoid you.”
“But not the rest of my family, apparently.” He turns to his daughter. “You’ve been keeping this from me for that long?”
“No,” I say. “She hasn’t. We’ve only been seeing each other a few weeks.”
“My daughter can speak for herself.”
I feel Alexis’s anguish in my own chest, the pain of having our secret little paradise ripped wide open.
“Dad,” she says. “Please calm down.”
“Don’t tell me to calm down, young lady. I cannot believe you would involve yourself with a degenerate who stole from your own father.”
The hum of multiple smartphones cuts Frank’s escalating tirade off at the quick. Alexis reaches for her purse just as Rachael withdraws her phone from her coat pocket.
Frank rubs his forehead. “This is unbelievable. I mean the audacity—”
“Everyone, be quiet.” Rachael raises her hand. “Erica’s in labor. She’s on her way to the hospital.”
Alexis’s hand flies to her mouth. “But it’s too soon. Is she okay?”
“I don’t know.” Rachael turns to her husband, who’s still glaring at me like he wants to ring my neck. “Honey, we can deal with this later. It’s an hour’s drive to the hospital. We have to gonow.”
I can tell my former mentor is reluctant to walk away from this exchange. He aims a finger at me. “We are not done here, Gavin.”
“I know,” I say.
