Page 51 of The Jackpot Screwer
“Hey,” I cried. “There’s nothing wrong with being ginger.”
“Hmm,” Ellie mused. “I kinda disagree. I mean the color is nice and everything, but everyone knows when it’s you who was the last one to use the soap.”
Hunter and Dad bust out laughing while Mom looked a little perplexed.
“How’s that, sweetheart?” she asked.
“Really, Mom?” Ellie rolled her eyes. “You seriously don’t get it?”
She shook her head as Dad put an arm around her shoulders. “It’s to do with the color of his pubes, honey.”
Mom looked at him for a beat and then gasped. “Ellie, that’s disgusting. And don’t give your brother crap about being ginger. His hair is beautiful. Anyway, I’d call it more titian than ginger.”
“I don’t care that I’m ginger,” I cried. “Who wants to be a guy with boring brown hair.” I looked pointedly at the handsome bastard standing next to me with his arm around my sister.
“Quite right,” Dad agreed with a wink. “Besides you have so much more to look forward to than the guy with boring brown hair.”
“Like what?” Ellie asked, brushing a hand over Hunt’s hair and smiling at him with a soppy loved up look on her face.
“White hair,” Dad cried followed with a roar of laughter that everyone except me joined in with.
“Very funny,” I growled but with a sly grin on my face. You had to love my family.
Still chuckling to himself, Dad started to put the steaks on the grill when the side gate into the yard opened. The first sight I saw was the best birthday gift I could ever want; Bronte. She was dressed in denim shorts and a pink flowy top with cute little sleeves that did nothing to hide the bump she had her hand resting on, while the other held a gift bag. Behind followed her mom, dad and brother Austen.
“Hey everyone,” her sexy voice called, but her eyes were on me.
As soon as she took a step onto the patio, Mani looked up from his chew toy and ran toward Bronte, yapping his delight at seeing her.
“Oh baby,” she crooned, handing the bag off to me and dropping to her knees to give him a belly rub. Mani obliged by rolling over onto his back and kicking his legs with joy. “You miss me?”
My heart thudded an extra beat. He wasn’t the only one, I’d barely seen her in the week since the day I’d paid for her groceries and we’d spent the evening watching a movie.
“Carter, he’s grown so much.”
I looked down at her and nodded. “I know and he’s really missed you, Lollipop. You should come to the apartment to visit with him a little more.”
She grinned and carried on scratching away at Mani’s sweet spot. “Yes, I will. I’ve just been so busy this week with the salon.”
When she looked up at me, she literally took my breath away. I exhaled what little air I still had left in my lungs and felt a crackle of electricity between us, as her big blue eyes blinked slowly. Her chest rose slowly up and down and her hand on Mani’s belly trembled. We still had that connection, that sexual chemistry, but I had to prove to her that I could be the man she needed and the father our baby deserved.
“We’ll eat as soon as Jefferson and the aunts get here,” I said around clearing my throat.
“Oh. Yeah, no problem.” Her eyes darted back down to Mani and the connection was broken.
It was at that moment that the silence between us was broken by the rest of the Delaney clan arriving.
* * *
A couple of hours later, all the food gone, everyone seemed to be pretty relaxed and having a good time. As far as birthdays went my twenty-seventh was turning out to be pretty good. I was spending it with everyone I cared about and I just hoped the following year, with my kid there, would be even better.
I’d had some pretty great gifts too, but the best had been a really cool digital stethoscope from Bronte. She knew mine had just been a cheap one I’d got when I first entered vet school, and I’d been promising myself a new one for ages. The fact that she’d remembered, had to mean something, didn’t it?
Looking over to her, I was happy that she seemed okay. She was sitting with the rest of the women sipping on a glass of Mom’s homemade lemonade and there was a big smile on her face. I’d done everything I could all day to make sure she didn’t have to move or lift a finger. The fact that she looked relaxed meant I’d done my job.
“Hey, son,” Dad called from the fire pit where he was talking with the guys. “Can you check if there’s any more beers in the refrigerator inside and bring them to the outside one.”
I nodded and walked toward the house. As I rounded the corner, I heard giggling and whispering and pulled up short, wondering who the hell it could be. I’d have put money on it being Ellie and Hunt, but I’d just seen them both in the yard with everyone else. Creeping quietly, I poked my head around the corner of the house and there outside our back door was Austen, making out with a girl. Not-so-little-any-longer, fourteen-year-old Austen who was well on his way to second base as his hand hovered over the girl’s chest.
