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I signaled to Andrea to fill my cup with coffee. "Bullshit, you’re great." Hunter said chuckling, "Is that why you look like you're going to throw up?"
I ran both hands through my hair and looked at my much-older brother, ignoring what he had just said and thinking about what needed to be done before I could go to Sophie's. "I guess I'll feel better once I am at her place and everything is out in the open and done." I shrugged.
Hunter chuckled. "Yeah, once your balls deep in her, eh."
"What can I get for my favorite men this morning?" Natasha asked, stepping up to the side of the table.
"Our usual: poached on toast," Hunter said, handing over the menu.
"Sure thing," she said, taking the menus and winking at me as she walked away.
"So, did you get that paperwork finished?"
I nodded. "Yeah it’s done."
"Good." Hunter picked up his coffee cup and took a mouthful.
"Yeah, it is good. There is only one problem."
"What is that?"
"Well, the more I read it, the more worried I'm getting. I just don't want to come across as being an asshole, you know?"
"Dude, what is wrong with you? You are protecting yourself. You're being smart. That's it. Just look at it that way. People get fucking crazy when things go wrong or when they are faced with a situation that they can't handle. You know that, or you should. We all deal with it all the time. I can look it over, if you want, and make sure you haven't missed anything?"
I nodded, drinking down the rest of my coffee just in time for Andrea to come around for refills. "I know they do. It’s just I feel that I should be able to trust her."
"You should, but it doesn't mean that you can't put extra precautions in place. Just relax."
My brother was right; there was nothing wrong with a form of protection. It would be something I would suggest to any of my clients. An hour later, fully caffeinated and with full bellies, we stood in the parking lot by our cars while Hunter went over the papers I had drafted. "Good news is everything looks good. I'll witness it once they are signed," he said, handing me the folder. "Where you headed now?" Hunter asked, pulling his car door open.
"The market. I need to pick up a bottle or two of wine and some flowers or something."
"You don't think she has thought of that?"
"I'm sure she has, but I don't want to come off as a total asshole." I laughed. "Just because this is an agreement doesn't mean she doesn't deserve to be treated like a lady."
"All right, man, talk to you later. I have to get home to Autumn and the kids."
I waved as he pulled from his parking spot and climbed into my car. The market was jammed as I maneuvered myself through the aisle looking for Sophie's favorite bottle of wine. Finally spotting it, I grabbed two bottles and made my way to the front of the store, but not before I stopped at the flower stand and grabbed a dozen red roses and got in line to pay for my purchase. While waiting, I grabbed my phone from my back pocket and typed out a message to Sophie, letting her know I would be there shortly. She responded quickly, giving me a simple thumbs-up emoji, the same as always.
A half hour later, I stood outside her door listening to her bang dishes around in the kitchen. I set my bag down on the ground, took a deep breath, and lifted my hand to knock.
"Coming," I heard her call from inside, and suddenly I felt nervous, my stomach flipping. I ran my hand through my hair, picked up my duffel bag off the floor, and flung it over my shoulder. The door opened, and Sophie stood inside, a nervous look on her face, even though she was doing her best to hide it behind a smile.
"Here, these are for you," I said, holding out the wrapped flowers and a brown bag containing the two bottles of wine.
Her face lit up with a smile as she reached out and took the flowers. "Thank you. I guess you should come in," she said nervously and stepped off to the side to let me in.
I followed her into the familiar apartment and shut the door behind me, while she busied herself in the kitchen putting the flowers in a vase.
"Where should I put my bag?" I called.
"In the bedroom." She smiled, carrying the flowers and setting them on the table.
I made my way down the hall to her bedroom and looked inside. Everything had its place. The bed was made perfectly, not a wrinkle in sight. I stepped inside the door and set my bag on the floor by the bed, which immediately looked out of place in the picture-perfect room. I bent down and pulled the documents from inside the bag, holding them tightly, thinking it might be better to get this over and done with first than to wait until later. I didn't want to get in the moment with her and then decide to spring this on her tomorrow or later in the week.
I pushed my sleeves up and headed back out to the front room to find Sophie sitting on the couch, two glasses of wine in front of her. She patted the spot beside her for me to sit down, but not before she noticed the folder that I carried with me. I blew out a breath and took a seat as I watched the unsure look in her eyes.
