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“Never, and I wouldn’t do that to someone else’s child either. Marisol is a good example. She’s not blood to us, but she’s my niece, and I’d do anything for her. If we learned tomorrow that she had a health problem, we’d all rally around her, not walk away and build a wall to protect her. That’s not how my family is.”
“I know. I love your family,” she said almost wistfully.
“They are pretty awesome, aren’t they?” I tapped my fork for a moment on my plate. “And just so you know, they are aware that we slept together.”
Her eyes went wide as her fork halted an inch from her open mouth. “Why?”
I laughed. “Um, funny story,” I said, and then I proceeded to tell her about it.
She threw her head back and laughed. “I can’t believe you said that at the dinner table, and with your daughter there! What did she do?”
“She gave me the stink eye and left. I spoke with her later, and she understands.”
“I bet she thinks a lot of me.”
“I don’t know what she thinks. She asked if you were going to be her new mom now.” She went stone cold. “Don’t worry, I told her we weren’t anywhere near that.”
“Well, I’m glad you said that because I was serious in what I said earlier, Brad. I’m not in a place to get involved with someone.”
“Is that why you haven’t been very chatty this last week?”
“Partially, and also because I was busy. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea here. I like you, probably more than I should, but I can’t give you that happy family that you want. I have two girls that need my attention when they move here, and I can’t step into another woman’s shoes for your kids at the same time.”
“I’m not asking you to.” I set my fork down and took her hand. “I’m only asking for your friendship and for us to get to know one another more. If something develops later, we’ll deal with it then. I want to get to know you more, Nolan, and I want to help you get that house together as quickly as you can so that you can bring your girls home.”
“Think we might be able to still have sex once in a while?” she asked as a small smile slipped over her lips.
I squeezed her hand and replied huskily, “Why do you think I suggested you come over here so I can give you a massage?”
Chapter Seventeen
Nolan
Iwas well aware that the only reason I told him all that was because I was tired, and my filter had expired for the day. Usually, I didn’t air my dirty laundry because people would turn their noses up and talk behind my back. I knew Brad was different, though. I also knew that he liked me and that he wouldn’t go around discussing my children or me.
Brad felt safe to me. He also hadn’t batted an eye when I told him about the medical conditions that my children had. Some men would have run from that alone or wouldn’t have even wanted to know in the first place because they were only after one thing. Brad wasn’t.
Although he was alluding to sex now, and I was all for that. Forget dinner. Food could be eaten anytime. I only had a limited amount of time to enjoy the fruits of the flesh without children present. It was time to take advantage of that.
I glanced at his plate. “You done eating yet?”
He eyed my plate and then his. “How about you finish what’s on your plate, and I finish mine. We drink the rest of our wine, and then I give you a massage. Does that work?”
“Would it be weird if I asked to take a shower first?”
“Not at all.”
“Then it’s a deal.” I went back to eating with more interest than I previously had, and I noticed he was eating a bit faster, too, although we did share some general chitchat about the job he was working on now while we finished.
Once done, he put the plates in the sink and the remainder of the food in the fridge, filled our wineglasses again, and then took me by the hand and led me up the stairs.
Unlike downstairs, there were no pictures of Cheryl in the bedroom. In fact, there was nothing to remark that a woman had ever lived there. It was decorated in masculine tones, with limited items lying on the dressers. I was happy to see that because having the ghost of another woman around you could be somewhat overwhelming at times.
Rick’s only presence was in the girls’ rooms by way of a photograph. Anything left behind after our divorce was tossed in the trash.
Brad led me to the bathroom. “It shouldn’t be too messy in there. The housekeeper cleaned two days ago.”
“You have a housekeeper?”
