Page 57 of Worth the Risk

My sister tilts her head in curiosity as she studies me. “I didn’t realize you two had contact.”

Sitting down, I lean back, throw my feet on my desk, and take a sip of my coffee. “Want to make this about your daughter or me?” I counter.

“I’m concerned about April. She must be heartbroken, but I hate myself for not giving in to the red flags and telling April she could do better.”

“Fate stepped in then.” I hold my coffee up to her in a toast. “I’ll reach out to April if you want. Maybe she could use a weekend here at Lake Spark.”

“That would be a good idea.” Catherine brushes a piece of lint off her slacks. A silence overtakes us, and she examines me before giving me a pointed look. “You’re sleeping with my daughter’s best friend?”

I grin because of her bluntness. “I would like the think we are more than that, but yes. Piper and I met before we realized how we’re connected. Funny, huh?” I stay calm and collected, in fact unaffected by my sister’s facial expression of intrigue.

“Yet April has no clue,” she highlights the fact.

“Piper was going to tell her the other day, but April wasn’t in a great place. I’d do it myself, however they should figure it out between them. I don’t want to get in the way of their friendship.”

“How noble of you.” I sense sarcastic undertones in her words. Catherine gives me a stern look before she throws her hand in the air. “You’re right, though, it’s for them to work it out.” She studies me for another hot second. “Piper? Really? I mean, she is a lovely girl, don’t get me wrong. But your niece’s best friend? Like, really? Is this a mid-life crisis thing?”

I give her a pointed unimpressed look and swing my feet off my desk to sit up straight. “It’s not. She’s good for me.”

“April may be crushed.”

“Why? Wouldn’t she want her best friend and favorite uncle together?” I place my coffee to the side.

My sister gives a short laugh. “Listen to that statement you just said. And I don’t know, maybe she’ll be thrilled. She has a lot going on right now, so I can’t predict it.”

“Well, I’m not going to hide my relationship with Piper anymore.”

“Uh-oh. Bullheaded Hudson is coming out. You were this way when you discovered you have a son. Determined as hell and nobody could get in your way. Just be sensitive, please, it involves my daughter,” she reminds me.

I nod in understanding. “Is it so wrong to grab hold of what you want when you discover what you have?”

Catherine chortles. “Well, I’ll be damned. You are under a spell, and let’s just all hope it doesn’t wear off when you’re out in the open, no longer sneaking around, or that Piper is just as ready as you seem about a future.”

Her statement takes me off guard because she’s right. Piper needs to be on the same wavelength, or we have no chance.

“Is that concern I hear?” My brows lift.

She folds her arms over her chest and taps her fingers along her forearms. “It’s logic. She’s young, maybe doesn’t want to jump into all the things you do, well, at least not on your timeline. But heaven help us if you actually listen to me.”

I smile to myself because I hear the caring undertones but admire her ability to still lecture me as an adult. “I’ll take it into consideration.”

My phone in my pocket vibrates, and I pull it out to see that Piper sent a message.

Piper

Hey, I know you’re supposed to be in focus mode during training, but I’m going to try and head up to Lake Spark later this week. I’ll drive up, avoid foxes and killer pinecones. Hopefully won’t have terrible timing again too. I want to see you.

A hint of a smile tilts on my lips, and my sister’s advice now only hangs by a thread in the back of my head.

Because I’ve got everything under control. Even the slither of doubt within can’t shake my standpoint that I’ll get exactly what I want.

18

HUDSON

With my hands in my jean pockets, I lean against the door pane to stare at the woman in my bed. It’s the kind of view a guy could get used to. Piper is wearing one of my old hoodies, legs bare, and her knees are up which means the glimpse of bare skin confirms she only has a thong on.

She tosses her tablet to the side as she looks up to greet me with warm eyes and a welcoming smile. “There you are.”

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