Page 108 of Flaunt
“Because Maddox and Jess had a pissing match between them.” He looks at me over his shoulder. “Clearly, they’re wrong.”
“Oh, you think you’ll win, huh?” I tease.
“It’s a sure thing. The only one that might give me some kind of competition is Jess, but he’s not in the shape I am anymore. His cardio is ass.”
I grin. “I’ll vouch for your cardio.”
He chuckles, squeezing my leg again before withdrawing his hand.
“You’ve been wonderful tonight,” I say softly. “Thank you for going with me and dealing with all of that. I was really proud to be there with you.”
He sits a little taller in his seat.
“You handled Joshua perfectly. It’s like you knew what he wanted and refused to give it to him.”
His jaw flexes. “Trust me, I wanted to tear him apart limb by limb. But, in the end,you would’ve paid for that, and I wouldn’t let him use me to hurt you.”
My insides pull at the pure sincerity in his voice.What an amazing, thoughtful, intelligent man.And … I think he wants me as his.I hope I’m right.
“Banks …”
“Yeah, babe?”
I take a deep, ragged breath. “You succeeded.”
He looks at me with a confused look painted on his handsome face. “With what?”
“You made me want you.”
A slow smile slips across his lips as his hand finds my thigh again. “Really?”
“Yes. But is it okay to admit that I’m nervous?”
“It’s always okay to say how you feel. But why are you nervous?”
I sigh. “You and your family are like this perfect puzzle. Each one of you has a piece, and all your edges are crisp.”
He laughs.
“Have you ever worked a puzzle? Because if you have, you know how important that is.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
“You should. Because crisp edges can make or break a dynamic. And I’m coming into your life with a soggy edge, a wobbly one, and a weak one.” I pause. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m a hell of a piece. Integral to the corner, as a matter of fact.”
He laughs again, louder this time.
“But what if I don’t quite snap into place?” I ask. “What if I never quite fit down into the landscape like I should, so instead of looking like a finished picture of an orchard, I’m an apple that keeps popping out of the picture.”
He considers this. “Okay, two options. First, we just put some glue down, shove you in, and then set a glass on top of you so you can’t pop up anymore.”
“Sounds painful.”
“It might be. We’d have to think about that one. But you never know. It could unlock a kink.”
I giggle.
“The second option is to find a frame and put the puzzle in it. That way, if the apple starts to fall, there’s something to catch it. Because that’s what family does.” He shrugs.
