Page 71 of A Thirst for Franc

“No, it’s nothing like that.” The only danger it brought was ruining my reputation, making me an outcast in my own community.

“Good. It was nice meeting you, then. I hope all my first thoughts about you are proven wrong.”

“They will be.”

With a nod and the slightest of smiles, Chardonnay headed out just as fast as she flew in.

I tossed my keys on the entryway table, surprised Quinn wasn’t at the door to meet me. I was getting used to her greeting me as soon as I walked in. Sneaking in a kiss before Gio exploded from wherever he was. Maybe she was upstairs. I moved toward the stairs but caught the slightest glimmer of red out of the corner of my eye and switched course to the kitchen.

The scent of fresh sage, thyme, and rosemary greeted me, reminding me I never ate lunch today. I was too focused on finishing the day and getting home.

Quinn stared out the window, chin resting on her palm, elbow on the counter. She was beautiful, and I watched her for a moment before going up behind her and wrapping her in my arms.

“Oh hey,” she said, as if she didn’t even hear me moving.

“You okay?”

“Yup, fine. How was your day?”

“Exhausting. Yours?”

“Pretty boring. Gio’s been in bed all day, and I think I can recite the entire Incredibles movie word for word.”

I laughed against her neck. “He loves that movie. Is he still throwing up?”

“He hasn’t since this morning. Your sister stopped by and brought him a new video game. It stopped the Incredibles loop.”

“What sister?” I asked, and my earlier conversation with Chardonnay popped into my head.

“Chardonnay.”

I closed my eyes, willing my annoyance and frustration away, but god only knew what the hell Char was doing at my house in the middle of the day. My guess was that it wasn’t a friendly visit. “I can only imagine what she said. Look, I’m sorry. She’s—”

“Protective.”

“Not the word I’d use.”

“I’ll admit, she is quite intimidating, and she said things that… well, they took me off guard. At first I was angry, frustrated, and a lot of other emotions. Then I realized she’s doing what I would do for any of my siblings. She wanted to make sure I didn’t have any ill intent. I can’t hate her for something I completely understand.”

“Still, she had no right. My entire family thinks because I let Gio’s mom walk all over me, I’m going to let every woman who comes into my life do the same.”

“Call me selfish, but I hope that is a very short list.”

“Right now, it’s only you.”

She turned in my arms and tugged on the collar of my polo. “Good.” She leaned up, pressing her lips to mine, and I sunk into her softness. I hated I didn’t anticipate Chardonnay showing up at the house, and I hated even more I was about to make Quinn’s day that much worse.

“I got a call from Bill,” I said when I reluctantly pulled away from her lips.

“Is my car ready? Can we pick it up?”

I ran my hand down her arm and took her hand in mine. “The engine control module is fried.”

“I don’t know what that means, but it sounds really expensive.”

She worried her lip between her teeth, tension pulling at the corners of her eyes. Hating to see any discomfort, I reached up, stroking my finger along the apple of her cheek. “It means it’s not fixable.”

“What?” Her eyes widened, and she leaned back from me. “Everything is fixable.”

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