Page 34 of Lorna's Savior
“MONKEY!”Then, she flew across the space and jumped into Andy’s arms.
“What about us? Are we chopped liver or something?” Mac joked from the side.
“Or something.” Pippi laughed. She hugged them, but went back over to Andy to put her arm around his waist. “I see you guys all the time. I think it’s been two or three years since I’ve seen Monkey.”
“Four and a half. The last time we were all together was at your high school graduation.”
“Damn, it’s been that long?” Andy asked in shock. He thought it’d only been a year or two, but he wasn’t about to argue with his mother.
He took direction from his father about restocking the shelves and cleaning the store, and didn’t say anything when the women disappeared. After the four men finished, Andy stood back and sighed. “I’m starving. Can I take you guys out to dinner?”
“No,” Levi said, then grinned to soften the blow. “That’s why your mother and sisters didn’t help with the restocking. They’re over at the house making dinner for the family.”
“I know I have no right to ask, but you’re not talking vegan or vegetarian, are you?”
“Good God, no.” Levi mock-punched him. “I like my meat. If I know your mother, she’s thrown steaks on the grill, and tossed some sort of salad together. We may sell, organic, and herbal remedies, and use them, but we’re still very much meat eaters, and we eat organic.”
“Sounds good to me.” Andy laughed and followed them out the door. He waited on the sidewalk with her brothers while Levi locked up. “What time do you open in the morning?”
“Eight, why?”
“Because my flight leaves at eleven, and I left my briefcase inside, but it’ll be good until tomorrow. Prevents me from doing any work tonight. Tonight’s for family.” Andy had said it as a joke, but realized that he truly wanted to be with his family. It’d been a long, long time since they’d all been together. His parents and sisters lived here in the LA area, while Ren and Mac lived in Colorado, and Andy himself lived in Montana.
The four men walked two blocks and climbed into two vehicles. Andy opted to ride to the house with his father. In the suburbs, they pulled into his old family home, and Andy sat there looking at it, remembering how he had grown up there. Following his father, the first thing he did was take a deep breath of the home, and relished all the memories of growing up there. He smiled when he saw the potpourri sitting in a bowl on the table right inside the door.
He made his way back to the kitchen, and grinned when it was his mother that handed him a beer. He took his first sip, frowned, then looked at the label. “Damn, this is good.”
“Sorry,” Mac said as he stood beside him. “But, it’s only brewed in Colorado. Ren and I brought a few cases with us this trip. You’ll have to make a trip down to see our setup and take some back with you.”
“I’ll have to think about it.” Andy didn’t want to make any commitments he couldn’t keep. “This case has me running all over the country.”
“Can you talk about it?” Sunshine asked.
“Not really. I hope you understand.”
“I do.” She looked at him, then asked, “So, any girlfriend in your life?” Her question caught Andy off guard. She must have seen something in his expression, because she grinned. “Talk to me, Monkey.”
Andy sighed, knowing that no matter how many times he asked his family to call him Andy, they wouldn’t do it. So, he went with the flow.
“There’s a girl. I wouldn’t say she’s in my life, but we’ve hooked up a couple of times.”
“And?” Olive asked. “How do you feel about that?”
“She’s a wonderful girl, and I really like her, but right now, we’re both extremely busy with our lives. She just received a promotion at work, and is working on a major project, while I’m working on my own case that took a turn recently, so I need to concentrate on that. Once the pressure is off me, then I’ll pursue her.”
“Won’t she have pressure from her own job?” Pip frowned at him.
“Yes, but with me not flying all over the country for my job, when I close my case, I can concentrate more on her.”
“How would that work?” Liv frowned at him.
“I could cook her dinner and have it ready when she gets home.”
“You live that close?” Sunshine asked.
“Right next door to each other.” He mentally crossed his fingers, hoping Lorna wouldn’t find out he’d talked about her, but he knew she’d forgive him... Maybe.
“Yes, we met at a nightclub, and the meeting turned into a one-night stand. Then, to my shock, a week later, the apartment next to me, that had been empty for the last four months, suddenly had a tenant. Imagine my surprise when I’m standing out on my deck, and look over and see her standing there. One thing led to another, and I ended up cooking dinner for her.”
