Page 78 of Of Pranks and Passion

“Easton?”

“Hmm?”

“Are you okay? You said you liked your family, but tonight you were… combative.”

I considered his question carefully. I’d been…off balance for a while. More irritated than usual. Something was bothering me, but until tonight, I couldn’t quite put my finger on what. Pushing up onto my elbows, I frowned down at him. He was too damn cute, with his messy brown hair and chocolate eyes.

“It should be criminal to be that cute.”

He rolled his eyes playfully. “I guess that means I fit in better with you.” He poked me in the side. “Answer the question.”

Ugh. Fine.

“You said a while back that someone like me could have a relationship if it was different from the normal shit. Would you be happy in a relationship like that?”

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

GARY

Every ounceof my being practically vibrated with hope and longing. It wasn’t guaranteed that he was asking because he wanted to be with me. It could just be a general question.

“I, uh… Yes. I think I would.”

His brow furrowed, like he didn’t believe me. “Really? You don’t want flowers and chocolates and stupid love poems?”

I bit back a laugh and shook my head. “No. I think that’d just make me feel guilty. I can’t really afford to reciprocate. Besides, it’d feel forced. Being in a relationship like this? Where we’re friends and lovers without all the pressure? I’d be happy with that.” And because I could tell he was uncomfortable talking about this, I added in, “I definitely want chocolate though. Put it on the grocery list or something. We could get the kind you melt and lick off each other.”

The smile that spread across his face was wicked. Ohhhh… I was kidding, but if that actually ended up happening, I was not going to tell him no.

We were getting distracted, and as much as I wanted to continue the dirty talk and see where it led, I didn’t want to ignore what had happened earlier.

“Why do you ask?”

The look he gave me said he wasn’t happy I was redirecting the conversation, but I bit my lip to keep from commenting and waited.

“I don’t like when people say I can’t keep you. I didn’t want to trap you in half a relationship, but I don’t like the thought of letting you walk away when your family is gone. You’re mine. I want it to stay that way.”

No amount of biting my lip was going to stop the smile from breaking out over my face. Maybe after dealing with my family for so long, I was finally getting rewarded with everything I wanted. Friends, freedom, and Easton. It couldn’t get any better than that, right?

Easton rolled his eyes, but he was smiling when he said, “Fucking stop, Gary. You look like I just asked you to marry me.”

“Technically, you already did that,” I pointed out with a teasing grin. “And I’m allowed to be happy. I don’t want to end this after the wedding, either.”

I wasnotgoing to tell him how I felt about him. He was breaching a subject he wasn’t comfortable with. That was enough for now. Maybe eventually he’d feel the same, and I could broach the subject of being in love with him, but right now, I wasn’t going to take more than I was offered. Easton wanted a relationship with me. He wanted this to be real. I wasn’t lying before. If this was how far our relationship would go? I’d be happy with that. Because with him, I felt safe, wanted, and happy. That was more than I ever got with my family.

“So should I call you my boyfriend-fiancé? Or my fiancé-boyfriend?” I said on a laugh, throwing my arms around his neck.

“That’s not a thing.” He nipped my lip and laid his head back on my chest. “Use whatever label you want, you know I don’t care about that. All I care about is that people know you’re mine.”

Possessive caveman for the win.

I expected moreawkwardness the following morning, but Easton must’ve worked something out with his family, because the atmosphere was relaxed and happy. It was Christmas Eve, and Mrs. Warner had a lot of plans, but they were mostly canceled thanks to the weather, so it was a calmer day. Easton did hover a lot. He didn’t seem to want to leave me alone around his dad. I remembered his request the night before, but I didn’t think I could pull off straight up telling that man no to his face, so I got anxious any time Easton wasn’t right next to me.

Evie and Sierra sat next to me on the couch when Easton got up to use the restroom. Sierra looked a lot more casual now in a soft-looking sweater and jeans. She even smiled when she sat next to me, sipping her coffee like it was the life nectar we all knew it to be.

“So. Do you have any plans yet for the wedding?” Evie asked. She was excited about it. Mrs. Warner seemed eager to talk about it too and made a beeline for us when she overheard the question.

“Uh, no. Not really. I honestly never thought about getting married before Easton asked. I don’t even know what goes into it.”

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