Page 109 of Flaunt
That’s what family does.I hold my breath as he looks at me with the sweetest smile.I don’t deserve you, Sparkles.
He turns onto Honeysuckle Lane and then into his driveway. The garage door rises, and Betsy slides into her spot. Neither of us attempts to move from our seats. We just sit, listening to the gentle tick of the cooling engine, and breathing in the scent of leather.
“I’ve been thinking about something,” he says.
“About what?”
Is it about the puzzle frame? Is he going to extend that and tell me he wants me to be a part of the Carmichael puzzle?
He twists in his seat. “I want chickens.”
My laughter comes out loud and hard. “You what?”
“I don’t know—not many. Thirty, maybe.”
“You want thirty chickens? Banks.” I wipe tears from beneath my eyes. “What are you going to do with thirty chickens?”
“Save them from the butcher, obviously. That and buy them chicken swings. They make those. Did you know that? There are all kinds of chicken toys. You can get chicken strollers, too. Apparently, and I quote, they are ‘perfect for cruising with the finest of chicks, literally.’ We could have the finest of chicks.”
My chest shakes with amusement. “I can’t with you.”
“They would be Jess’s chickens’ cousins. We could take my flock over there to graze sometimes, and he can bring his over here.”
He pulls his buzzing phone from the middle console, holding it so I can see the screen.
Foxx: Is anyone going to Shade House tonight who could pick up a key for me?
Jess: ANOTHER ONE?
Moss: Are you okay, Foxx?
Paige: How many is this? Three? Four?
“He does that to us all the time,” he says, smirking.
“What’s going on with the keys?”
“I have no idea. He keeps losing them around town, I guess. It’s very odd, even for Foxx.”
“Should someone check on him? Make sure he’s mentally fit?”
Banks ponders this. “Yes, but after the race tomorrow. I want to prove his physicalunfitness before we have him checked out.”
“But do you really think Foxx will race you and your brothers? It doesn’t seem like something he’d do.” I sigh. “But what do I know? I don’t know him very well.”
He opens his door. “You wouldn’t think he’d be into it. But if you challenge Foxx’s manhood in something like a race, he can’t back down. He has the Oldest Child Syndrome or something—always something to prove.”
The overhead light catches him just right. His jaw is angular. His eyes are the perfect shade of Caribbean blue. His tie hangs askew around his thick neck, and stubble dots his previously clean-shaven skin.
Thoughts of him taking me on the car in the shop have me aching for him. Remembering his mouth on me makes me wet. Thinking about him charming Mr. Petterson, putting Joshua in his place, and telling me I’m beautiful has my heart full.
And suddenly, there’s only one thing I want to do. I need to do.I want to show this man how much he means to me.
“Wait here,” I say, opening my door.
My legs shake as I walk around the front of his car. He watches me curiously as I approach him.
