Page 16 of The Bad Boy's Homecoming
“It’s my painting.Dalton’s just trying to drive up the price because he’s a sore loser,” Levi said.Then he walked over to the stove and took the lid off the pot of water he had waiting.Next, he pulled the fresh pasta from the fridge.
“The painting isn’t for sale,” Missy said, as she moved toward the kitchen door.“Hi Wesley, bye Wesley.”
“We’ll see,” Levi said, uncovering the gnocchi piled in a bowl and gently placing them in the boiling water.
Missy stopped in her tracks to watch him gently drop the small balls of pasta into the boiling water, and then her eyes roved over all the fresh ingredients he had out.
“Did you make those?”
“Impressed?Homemade is easy, I’ll teach you.”
She shook her head.“Goodnight, everyone, enjoy your evening.I’ll see you in the morning, Mrs.Hart.”
“We’ll be here,” Levi called out to her as he held the door open to watch her get into her car and then waved.
But when he turned back into the kitchen Wes, Dalton, and Gran were eyeing him.
“Don’t you even think about touching that girl, grandson, or I swear I’ll disown you,” Gran said.
“I was just being polite.”
“Emm-hmm, you just mind your manners.Missy’s had enough heartache to last her two lifetimes,” Gran said, then pulled down several glasses from a cabinet by the fridge.
“She’s right, Levi, in all seriousness I do want that painting, but I’ll let you have it if you promise not to pursue Missy,” Dalton said, before he started grabbing at the cheese board Levi made.
“You aren’t actually hitting on Missy are you?”Wes said, crossing his arms over his chest.
Levi couldn’t help but laugh at their concern for Missy.A woman who had just wandered into their lives.
“I’m not sure, I mean she’s a beautiful woman, and I didn’t see a ring.But what do we really even know about her?”
“Answer the question,” Wes ordered.
“If Gran says she’s off limits, I guess that means she’s off limits for all of us,” Levi said, meeting Wes’s glare that faltered.
“Wait, you think I’m interested in Missy, so you wanted to beat me to the punch, like outbidding Dalton?”
“No, I’m just making sure you haven’t set up some strange woman to live with our grandmother because you have the hots for her.”
“Actually, that’s not a bad idea, Wes.How do you feel about Missy?She’s smart, talented, and seems to be content to stay in Sandy Point,” Dalton said.
“I never thought about it.Do you think Missy is sweet on Wes?”Gran said.
“I guess that’s up to Missy,” Levi said.His family was trying to get a rise out of him and it was working.
Wes puffed up his chest.“I agree Missy is beautiful, talented, and smart, but I don’t have a death wish.More importantly she’s too young for me and not my type.”
“Oh poo, that would have worked out nicely,” Gran said.“Then I could keep her forever.”
“What do you mean a death wish, and what exactly has she been through?”Levi said.“Why are you all coddling her?”
Dalton, Wes, and Gran exchanged looks.
“It’s not really our place to tell you Missy’s history,” Wes said, as he took a seat at the kitchen table.“But if you were interested in her, it ends now.You won’t even have time to worry about Gran, if her cousin Declan Shaw thought you were trying to make Missy a member of your fan club.”
Dalton shook his head.“No, not a good idea.Shaw was SF, you know Special Forces.Those are the guys who really know how to take someone out, stealth mode.”
“Whatever, if you won’t tell me what happened to her can you at least tell me why she dropped out of law school?”
