Page 79 of Comforting the Grump

“In all fairness, I tune you out half the time as well,” Nordin teased him, and I snorted. These guys were a riot. They formed an interesting combination as brothers since they looked nothing alike. Maybe they were half-brothers?

Just then, Hadley looked over my shoulder, narrowing his eyes. “Excuse me,” he said. “I have to go rescue Seb. He’s been cornered by Sharon Willis, and lord knows she drives him up the wall.”

He dashed off, plastering a bright smile on his face.

“The things we do for love,” Lagan muttered.

“Like showing up here.” Jaren pulled his collar with one finger, trying to loosen it. “This is so not my thing. I’d rather be home with Reid and watch a movie.”

“Watch a movie…” Nordin snorted. “I’m assuming that’s code for fucking? Because the two of you are like bunnies.”

“As if you and Tavin are any better,” Jaren fired back.

Nordin shrugged. “We’re not, but we don’t pretend to be either.”

“Your partners couldn’t come?” I asked.

“Reid is out of town for a tattoo convention,” Jaren said. “He’s a tattoo artist.”

“Killian wasn’t feeling well,” Lagan said.

“And Tavin is at home with our six-month-old son. We’re not ready to hire a babysitter.” Nordin’s eyes had grown soft, his whole expression radiating love.

“I wouldn’t leave the house either,” Lagan said, smiling at Nordin. “I want to cuddle that precious thing all day long.”

That was Nordin’s cue to whip out his phone and show off some baby pictures, and I had to admit it was one of the cutest babies I’d ever seen. It was funny, but I’d never seen myself as a father. Even when I was younger, I never imagined myselfhaving kids. A partner, yes, and maybe some pets, but not kids. I loved my nieces and I’d grown to love Keaton’s two sons as well, but what I liked most was that they went home at the end of the day…and not with me.

We chatted for a bit longer with the three brothers, then made our way over to our table as dinner was about to be served. “Is that something you’d want?” Marnin asked softly. “Kids?”

“Funny, I was thinking about the same thing. No, not really. You?” Technically, he had two daughters, of course, but that was different.

“No. I’ve contributed my part, but I’m not father material.”

“I don’t think I am either, and I’m perfectly content being an uncle.”

He played with my fingers. “I’m quite a bit older than you.”

I chuckled. “Geez, I hadn’t noticed.”

“If you change your mind about wanting to have kids?—”

“I won’t.”

“—it will be too late.”

Was he genuinely worried about that? “I promise it’s not something that worries me. I’ve never had the desire to become a father.”

“And the age difference doesn’t bother you either?”

“Not even a little bit.” Why was he asking all this? “Are you having doubts?”

He shot me a puzzled look. “Doubts?”

“About us.”

“Jesus, no. Not at all. That’s not why…” He seemed to search for words. “I want to make sure you don’t have doubts. I’m… I’m scared. This is all new territory for me, and I’m so scared I’ll fuck it up. I want to be the man you need me to be, but I don’t know how.”

Just when I thought I couldn’t possibly love this man more, he said something like that, looking at me with big, brown puppyeyes that melted my insides into a puddle. I cupped his face in both my hands. “I love you the way you are, baby. You don’t need to change anything for me.”

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