Page 84 of From Fling to Ring

I’ll be damned.

Jonas puts his hands on his hips and shakes his head. “Genny used to say if a little kid likes you, you can’t be all that bad.”

“Hmmm,” Rake says. “But this is your kid, Jo. We don’t know yet if he’s a dumbass like you.”

He ignores the jab. “You know you love her, right?” he asks.

I look between the two of my buddies. Why is it so hard to say it out loud?

I look down at Lukas. Hell, he took a chance by crawling into my lap. I can surely say what’s been on my mind for weeks.

“Yeah. I fucking love her. Plain and simple.”

Jonas claps his hands loudly, causing Lukas to raise his head and look around. “There you go. Our little Tyler’s growing up,” he says with a laugh.

“Not sure I’d go as far as to say that,” Rake says. “But look, forget what you saw in the freaking notebook. Just get over it. Have some boss-level balls and go talk to her. Work your shit out.”

“Fine. I will. But first Jonas has gotta take this kid back.”

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TYLER

I cross town in my Escalade, grateful for every red light that slows my progress, because I need all the time I can get to think about what I’m going to say to Lucy. This shit is new to me, this mature approach to relationships. I may be a pro on the ice, but I’m a fucking kindergartener when it comes to relationships.

No lie.

It takes me twenty minutes to park my behemoth vehicle, a stupid choice for a city like San Francisco where parking is more valuable than a two-bedroom apartment. I finally wedge my car into a spot that’s only semi-legal, not giving a shit if I get a parking ticket or not. Small price to pay to make things right with my girl.

That’s right. I said my girl.

I press the buzzer on her building’s front door just as someone’s coming out. Being the opportunist that I am, I dash inside and run up the stairs to her apartment.

I knock lightly. “Lucy? It’s me.”

I hear rustling on the other side, and my heart rate speeds up. It’s the moment of truth. I can either make this right, or royally fuck it up.

But no one comes to the door.

Okay. This isn’t going to be a slam-dunk.

“Lucy, c’mon,” I say, knocking more loudly. “We need to talk.”

More rustling. I hear the footsteps of someone coming to the door, so I lean into the peephole. “I know you’re in there, baby. I have some things to say. Please open up.”

I hear the deadbolt unlatch, and the door finally flies open.

I come face-to-face with some guy I don’t know, and all I can think is how’d she move on so fucking fast?

“Who are you?” he growls.

“Who are you?” I answer.

“I’m subletting here, man. Lucy’s gone.”

43

TYLER

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