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Finally closing his mouth, his cheeks flush my most favorite color. "Uh, you just don't seem like a pink kind of girl."
"Mom loves pink," Bug mumbles over a bite of cheesy fries. "We have pink-fit-jammie nights!"
"I want to come to the next one!" Gabby basically shouts, topping off my wine.Have I thanked her yet for being amazing?
"Okay, I'll let you know. All undergarments have to be pink, too. We watch movies and eat chocolate." I give her a wink, reaching for the buffalo wings and my own mini cup of ranch.
"Yay! My favorite color is purple, so we pair well together." She sends me a wink of her own before moaning around the taco dip.
"What do you guys do for a living?"
Leo perks up, sending the butterflies in my tummy into overdrive. His bright blue eyes sparkle with excitement. "You already know what I do. I own the coffee shop where we first met!" Layla nods her head beneath his chin.
I could eat him. "What made you decide to own a coffee shop?"
He looks thoughtful for a moment. "My mom used to own a few when I was younger, so I spent a lot of time hanging out and people-watching while I was supposed to be doing homework." I slow my chewing down when he shifts in his seat uncomfortably. "Being the youngest out of five siblings, I guess it became my favorite thing to do, and being at work with her were the main one-on-one moments I got to spend with her."
Marcus slips his hand on top of Leo's in comfort. I feel like I am finally understanding more about why he is so quiet. I wonder how often they listened to or noticed him in a house full of older children. My heart aches for the little boy he used to be.
“So, you find comfort in your coffee shop?”
Leo beams at me, his teeth shining brightly. "Yes, I love it there. My mom has helped me a lot over the years, and my crew fangirl over her so hard."
"That's amazing. I'm so happy for you. It really is a beautiful shop." I can't help but want to meet the woman who raised this man. Dangerous thoughts.
"Thank you, Beauty." I offer him a soft smile, our eyes lingering on each other a little longer than normal.
Jackson clears his throat. "I own a few rental properties, but I'm at the point where I don't have to do much. I have a great team, two of them being Jude and Gabby."
"Yeah, I go through applications, technical stuff, and a lot of things that our big boss man is too good to do himself." Jude snorts at the same time JJ growls at him in annoyance.
Pixie intervenes before they can start bickering. "I run the people side of things and help out where I can. It's a temp job while I figure out where I want to go from here." She shrugs, appreciation for her brother lingering in her gaze.
"That's great! I love that you all work together. What do you do, Marcus?" The loyalty and support these people offer each other is truly awe-inspiring. I swallow down the emotion that is fighting to ruin the evening. I just can't help but wonder what it would be like to have so many people in your corner. This is what I want, sure, but I will make it my life’s fucking mission to make sure Layla has this kind of support when she gets older.
"I'm an accountant for them, and I have a few other clients as well," he shrugs, a small grin on his face as he looks around the table.
The feeling of being out of place is getting heavier as I learn how their lives are so intertwined. The sheer love and admiration coming from Gabby is far different from the vibes wafting off the men. Their gazes are filled with pride, longing, and tenderness, no matter which of them they look at. Gabby was right. These four men are in love with each other.
"My mommy is a writer!" All focus snaps to me at the declaration my daughter just made. Damn it, I was doing so well at keeping the attention off myself.
"You what?" Jude's mouth is open again in shock. For real, who does he think I am? I must scowl at him because his sheepish look flares with guilt. "I'm sorry, you are just very closed off, and I'm just now realizing I truly don't know anything about you at all. I'd like to hear about your writing, baby girl."
My eyes burn at his words. I suppose they don't know me at all, and for some unknown reason, I fucking hate it.Wasn't that the point of leading this conversation? So, they wouldn't know me? Now here I am, weepy over the fact that Jude wants to know me.
"I uh. Yeah, I am an author. I've written about nine books now. I'm self-published, and yeah, I guess it's become my career." Shrugging, I grab the bowl of chocolate-covered almonds in front of me.
"That's amazing, Rylee!" I'm surprised it's Jackson who looks so amazed. "What do you write? Where can I find your work?"
This is new territory for me. The only other person who knows I'm an author besides Layla is my ex. And he was not supportive at all. In fact, I'm pretty sure he called it childish and stupid, amongst plenty of other horrible things.
"Oh, thanks. I write psychological mystery romance. You won’t be able to find me. I write under a pen name." No way in hell am I telling them I write stories about traumatized women who fall in love with multiple men. That would open up a whole tirade of questions that I refuse to answer.
Gabby beams at me before taking another sip of her wine. She's like a fucking vault by how she’s keeping my secrets. Not that she knows more than anything past what I do, and that Layla and I need to keep moving.
"I must know more!" Marcus is practically bouncing in his seat with excitement. Jude's jaw is on the table again, and JJ doesn't look far off from exploding.
I give Leo a questioning look, hoping he will clue me into their excitement. He chuckles, offering Bug another cracker with hummus. "Jackson is a book worm so his response is not all that out of character. And Jude and Marc are excited because it's a really amazing career to have, Rylee. Be proud of your work, and if you can make a living for yourself and your daughter, you must do great work. We are amazed, Beauty, don't look so shocked."
