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I turned the page in the book, and Jax’s silly face greeted me. I laughed at the tongue hanging out, just like he always did when he was happy. The next page was one of a landscape, and it looked remarkably like the pasture I’d found her in. It didn’t look like she’d finished it yet, and I wondered if we picnicked there if she might find inspiration again.
When I flipped to the next page, my heart nearly stopped.
It was a picture of Duke.
She’d captured him in his uniform. His face was serious, like always. Next was a picture of Duke on the couch. This must have been when they were watching the game together. Her memory was incredible to draw these after the fact. The next one caught me by surprise. She’d drawn Duke shirtless, in bed with his sheet around his waist. These pictures of Duke had my hopes up that she liked him.
I had to wonder, if I flipped again, would there be a picture of me in here?
I chanced the disappointment and kept going. My breath caught at the sight of me on the next page. It was the morning I woke her when the girls arrived. I hadn’t realized how much she’d paid attention to that moment. I had hooded eyes that flared with a need I could remember all too well. My arm was raised to rest on the casing above the door. Her quick strokes had captured each muscle in my body, which tightened, mimicking the drawing as I remembered seeing her in her panties and tank. Her breasts spilled over the top and her hair was tousled from sleep, but I imagined that’s how it looked after sex, spread across her pillow.
My dick awakened at the memory of her creamy toned legs, the swells of her breasts, and her tiny waist. She was so much smaller than me, I kept imaging what it would be like to hoist her against the wall. My pants were growing tighter with every second. I needed to cool down before I went to dinner.
As much as I wanted to rush through my shower, I stayed in a few minutes longer and let the spray wash away my cum that streaked the tile and wall. I grabbed a fresh shirt and jeans from my dresser and met Duke in the living room, on the couch, right where I’d left him.
I wanted to tell him about the sketches, but I didn’t want to freak him out more than he already was. He liked Abbey, but he didn’t want to admit it. If he knew there was a possibility she liked him, too, he would retreat even further.
“Let’s go,connard.” I smacked Duke on the shoulder. It was the last quarter of the game, but I knew this wasn’t one he particularly cared about. He was a die-hard Cowboys fan, and they didn’t play until Monday night.
“We have leftovers in the fridge. I’ll just eat that. You go on ahead.” He pretended to be glued to the game.
“Fuck that. Get off your ass, Duke, and come with me. Stop hiding, or I will tell Jessie you are in here sulking instead of eating one of your favorite meals. Do you want to hurt her feelings?” His face snapped to mine, and he narrowed his eyes. I was serious, and he knew it.
He marched to the door. With any luck, he’d be more pleasant with some food in him. I didn’t want him scaring Abbey away.
The dining hall was packed when we got there. I immediately scanned the crowd for Abbey and the girls, spotting them near the far end. It didn’t look like there were any free seats nearby, so we’d have to keep an eye on her from afar. By the time we grabbed our plates, a couple spots across from Gavin and Travis opened up. We could see Abbey over their shoulders the whole time. We eased into their conversation.
“How was town?” Gavin asked Duke, who grunted his response with a shoulder shrug. “That bad?”
“I thought you went to grab Abbey’s car?” Travis pointed his fork at Duke.
“And got her a phone and went to lunch,” Duke said between bites.
Gavin and Travis exchanged a look. “You took her out to lunch?” Gavin asked.
“In town?” Travis finished the question. It was weird sometimes when they did that. They did that with Duke too, but I assumed it was what happened when you literally grew up with someone since you could talk. “The Cotton Patch?”
Duke nodded.
I glanced over Gavin’s shoulder to see Abbey laughing at something. She tucked her hair behind her ear and sipped her water. The way her lips wrapped around her straw had my cock pulsing, and the image of her lips on my body had me clenching my fist.
“Is it time for the two of you to fall?” Travis chuckled, following my gaze.
My eyes snapped to his. “Fall?”
“You can’t stop looking at her. Duke took the girl to lunch, and don’t think I haven’t noticed your eyes popping over to her too.” Travis circled his finger at Duke. “You two have it bad for her.”
I shrugged. “I won’t deny it, but he wants to pussyfoot around the idea.”
Duke gave me the middle finger, and we all laughed. Even Duke. Barely.
A smile graced his face. Then his gaze lingered over Travis’ shoulder before he let out a long breath. “She deserves better than me.”
“Duke, how many times do we have to tell you? You deserve to be happy. You can’t let what happened to you define the rest of your life. If this is what you want, you should go for it.”
I sent a silent thank you to Gavin for his much-needed words. If anyone could talk some reason into Duke, it was Gavin. Plus, he and Travis had fallen first out of everyone. And now they were happily in love with Blake and expanding their family.
I took a quick peek at Abbey again to see her looking toward us. When she saw me, she smiled and went back to her conversation with the girls. I would have bet anything her cheeks were a rosy color, but the lighting in here was horrendous.
