Page 65 of Found By You

He eyes me suspiciously. “You sure?” I nod and peck him on the lips. “Use the one upstairs. Down the hall, second door on the left.”

I escape the most awkward after-dinner conversation I’ve ever been a part of and find the bathroom. I wash my hands and take my time walking back to the stairs when a wall of family pictures catches my eye.

I lean in to get a closer look. There are a few group pictures of when all the Montgomery siblings were young. It’s hard to figure out who is who between some of the brothers, but boy were they cute chunky things when they were babies.

Going down the timeline of photos, around the teen years I start to notice a pretty, slender blonde in several photos with Duke. It’s soon apparent who she is when I get to his wedding photo. Rachel.

She’s in a short white summer dress, beaming on Duke’s arm dressed in tan slacks and a white dress shirt. I narrow my eyes at the sand between their toes, appearing to be on a beach somewhere.

“We eloped on vacation,” Duke says from behind, startling me to jump and turn to him.

“Sorry, I was just—”

“It’s fine,” he says, standing beside me. His dark eyes harden when he stares at the picture.

“She’s very pretty,” I say quietly.

“She was,” he corrects.

Smooth, Maci. “How long were you two, um, together for?” I ask.

“We dated in high school on and off. Broke it off and went our separate ways for a good chunk of time. Found our way back to each other in the end. We were together for another three years before I asked her to marry me,” he says. “I hate sand, but she always wanted to get married on the beach. So we did. We were married for about a year before the plane crash.”

And that was five years ago… My heart sinks. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” He turns away from the gallery of memories to face me. “It was a long time ago. I was a different person then.”

“Was she your longest relationship?”

“Yeah, altogether was probably six years,” he tells me. “What about you? How many large men have you dated?”

I snort. “Two years is my longest. And the only large man I’ve ever dated is you.”

Duke cocks a smug grin as he steps closer, his muscular arms trapping me against him. “Good to know I can tear any of your exes apart if I need to.”

I roll my eyes and pop up on my tippy toes to kiss him. “Your grandma is mean.”

Duke grunts. “Yeah, well, you just missed the show. They’re leaving now. Figured I’d come check on you.”

“Aw, don’t lie.” I squeeze him. “You just missed me.”

He grins from ear to ear, gripping my ass as he claims my lips in a hot and heavy kiss that has me clenching my thighs. I moan into his mouth, and he groans. “Fuckin’ hell, angel. Tell me you’re ready to get the hell out of here,” he says, smacking my ass playfully.

I hum, pretending to think it over. “Can I have another slice of pie first?”

He chuckles. “The chocolate peanut butter pie?” I nod. “Anything you want, doll face,” he says, taking my hand and leading the way to the kitchen.

“Drop that pie, Rhett,” Duke demands as we cross the threshold.

Rhett freezes with a forkful of the last slice of chocolate peanut butter pie halfway to his mouth. “Why?” he asks a split second before Butch snatches the fork and plate from his hands. “Dude.” Rhett lunges for his plate, but Butch hands it straight to Duke. “What the fuck? I had it first.”

“And now you don’t,” Duke deadpans, setting the plate on the island and pulling out the stool for me to sit.

I smile, hopping up on the stool. “We can share.”

“No,” Duke grunts.

Rhett snarls, grabbing a fork off the counter with a wicked grin on his face. He dives over the island in an attempt to stab the pie. Butch grabs him, and before I know what’s happening, Levi is racing in—four Montgomery brothers in a wrestle on the kitchen floor over a slice of pie.

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