Page 58 of Mountain Daddy
Which is a damn miracle. For me. Because I have yet to tell Jessie that I found myone-night stand girl.
And I certainly haven’t told her myone-night stand girlis Joe’s new live-in offspring.
Joe grins and nods to my hand. “Did you bring me flowers?”
The guy Joe was talking to laughs.
“This is how those rumors get started.” I shake my head. “It’s a succulent, not a flower.” I lift the little plant. “And it’s for Kendra, not you.”
My sister is a plant person, so I know a bit, but I’d never heard of thisstring of pearlsbefore. I really just bought it because the little pot the plant was in reminded me of Kendra’s nail polish. It’s not the same exact color—more blue than the periwinkle Kendra wears.I looked up the name of it.But the color was close enough to make me pause.
Plus, this is a welcome party, so a gift shouldn’t seem too out of place.
A welcome party because she lives here now.
My gaze lifts past Joe. And I lock eyes withher.
My girl.
“I’ll be back,” I say as I slap Joe on the back again. Then I walk away, not giving him a chance to protest or come with me.
The deck is low, and I descend the short staircase to the lawn in two steps.
Kendra looks away first, moving her attention back to the two guys in front of her—a pair of carpenters from Joe’s shop—but it just gives me more time to take her in.
She’s summer perfection.
The beauty to my beast.
My worn jeans and gray T-shirt are a stark contrast to her girliness.
I shift the plant in my grip.
Act normal. Act like an adult who has control over his body.
I come to a stop at Kendra’s side.
“Rocky.” The carpenters greet me in unison.
I nod my acknowledgment before I dip my chin, looking down at the woman whose shoulder is inches away from my arm. “Kendra.”
The side of her mouth pulls up, the smallest amount. “Luther.”
One of the guys makes a sound of surprise. “Wait, what?”
I glance at him before holding out the plant for Kendra. “Not sure you still deserve this after outing me like that.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” Kendra takes the pot out of my hand. “It was an honest mistake.”
I watch her trail a finger down one of the bauble-like strands.
And I feel a ridiculous amount of pride at my color choice when I see her nails are still that pretty purple-y blue.
“Hold up.” The guy holds a hand up. “Is your name really Luther?”
I turn to him, letting my body shift a little closer to Kendra. “It is, but only she gets to call me that.”
The guy still looks confused, but his friend narrows his eyes. I may have played my hand too loudly, but I don’t care. What’ll these guys do? Go tell their boss that his friend was actingtoo friendlywith his daughter? No. They won’t say shit.
