Page 45 of Peak of Love
Dane:I can see you prefer eggs benedict over our worm offerings.
Celina:There’s really no accounting for taste. Hey, I appreciate that you’re doing this with them. They’re having the best day. Thanks, Dane!
He knew he shouldn’t be annoyed every time she thanked him. As if what he did wasn’t for him as much as for the boys.
He put the phone away before he said something he’d regret, like,would you have thanked Asher for being with the boys?No, because a real father was expected to take care of his sons.
Well, he was a poor substitute, but he was going to be the best uncle possible. No thanks necessary. More and more, he realized how his presence was no longer just about having fun. It was about paying attention.
Jonas came across as easygoing, yet he was trying too hard to cover up for his twin’s mood swings. Dane was fascinated by the kid’s ability to be cheerful and energetic. He loved Jonas’s natural optimism. He wanted to ensure he applied that strength to his own unique challenges.
Jerome, on the other hand, embodied an intensity that Dane remembered from Asher’s childhood. There was passion and recklessness in that boy. He would do anything to protect the people he loved. Dane wanted to be part of stoking his fierceness into a strength devoid of destructiveness.
Dane could never regret the choices he had made to keep him in town and be closer to them. To watch them grow up was the singular honor of his life. And to help them find their way, his greatest wish.
For now, all they wanted from him was to dig in the dirt and laugh at their jokes. He could do that.
Best Earth Day ever.
“What are you working on?” Tori asked when she finally got out of bed at noon.
“One of my indie authors is asking me to do some developmental editing.”
“How is that different from… editing?” Tori asked while filling her coffee cup to the brim.
“We talk about it anddevelopher ideas as she’s writing the story.” Sarcasm came out like an accent when Celina talked to her older sister. She couldn’t help it.
“Oh, that sounds fun!”
Celina snickered because her sister would pretend to be interested in anything that didn’t involve explaining why she was there.
Tori had called last weekend to announce that she had sublet her apartment, took a leave of absence from her job, and was about to begin a month-long hiatus that started with a culinary expedition in Paris. Also, could she stay with Celina for a few days before she left?
As much as Celina wanted to demand some rhyme or reason for this uncharacteristic life choice, she was simply thrilled to have Tori around.
“Let’s develop it together!”
“What? Not a chance,” Celina snapped.
“Does she write fiction? Thrillers? Or is it like a boring documentary thingy about her life and shit.”
“Excuse me, autobiographies can be fascinating!”
“Yeah, whatever,” Tori dismissed with a wave.
“Actually, she’s a romance writer. She’s moving from traditional contemporary romance to dark erotica under another name.”
“No way! Let me see.” Tori leaned into the laptop.
Celina slammed the device down and shook her head. “You will not read my client’s work without her consent.”
“OK, fine but like, how dark? Howerotic, exactly?”
“You’re impossible.” Celina tried to sound stern though she couldn’t help ask, “What do you know about dark erotica, anyway?”
Tori’s eyes peeked over the rim of her coffee mug. “Wouldn’t you like to find out.”
“Nothing, I bet,” Celina dared, knowing her sister couldn’t resist a challenge.
