Page 13 of The Best Man Problem
Lincoln took a beer and headed with his friends to his small kitchen table that would probably also be his desk until he bought a new one. He’d arrived with the minimal amount of things. Only what he could pack in a moving pod. He didn’t need the trappings of his old life; he was here to start fresh. A new place, a new job, possibly even a new fling?
A vision of Lilly smiling filled his mind. Bright green eyes dancing with humor, full red lips opening wide as a laugh escaped her at one of his corny jokes.
“Okay, just one more.”
Lilly’s lips curled into a wide grin as she shook her head. “How do you know so many pirate jokes?”
He shrugged. “My dad was the king of dad jokes, and pirate-themed ones were his favorite.” And she kept laughing at them, which was making him feel like a god, so he’d keep telling them until he ran out.
With a slight nod, she picked up her glass, finishing off the drink she’d allowed him to buy her. “Okay, lay it on me.”
Reaching into the recesses of his memory for his best one, he rubbed his hands together. “Okay, so a pirate walks into a bar with a steering wheel in his pants. The bartender says ‘What’s that doing there?’ The pirate says—”
“Arrrrrr, it’s drivin’ me nuts.”
His mouth dropped open in shock. “Holy cow, you’re a secret dorky-humor aficionado.”
She laughed, the sound heating every inch of his body. When was the last time he’d had so much fun just talking with someone?
“No.” She lifted one shoulder. “I just hang out with a bunch of firefighters from time to time, and they like jokes middle schoolers would tell.”
“Hey,” he protested but could tell she was just ribbing him from the gleam in her beautiful bright green eyes. Lincoln vowed then and there to tell all the bad jokes in his arsenal if it would make this woman laugh.
The woman had a great laugh. When he’d woken the next day to find her gone, he’d felt a slight pang of loss, wondering if he’d ever hear it again.
She might not want to sleep with him again, but they would be seeing each other frequently over the next month. Nothing said he couldn’t try to make her laugh. He would swear the sun brightened when she did. Which was saying something, considering the only time he’d heard her laugh had been during nighttime.
They had amazing chemistry. Even the other day in her office, he’d felt the sparks fly. The shock of seeing her had only intensified, electrifying his entire system the closer he got to her. Sure, the fact that she denied knowing him had killed the buzz a little, but he understood her need for professionalism. She didn’t date anyone in the wedding party. Okay, he could understand that in her line of work.
But I won’t be in the wedding party forever.
By this time next month, Kenneth and Marie would be married, and that meant they would no longer be Lilly’s clients, which also meant he would no longer be connected in any way to her job. Therefore, he had four weeks to get to know the woman and convince her to give him another shot. They didn’t have to have a serious relationship or anything. He wasn’t too keen on doing that again any time soon. But nothing said they couldn’t enjoy each other’s company. Naked company. An entire month of mental foreplay.
A smile curved his lips. He might die getting there, but what a hell of a way to go.
Chapter Five
“Knock, knock, guess who?”
Lilly glanced up from the computer on her desk at the familiar sound of her third business partner, best friend, and former roommate. “Pru!”
Since Mo’s desk was closer to the office door, the smaller woman got to their friend first, gently relieving Pru of one of the cuddly, cooing bundles she was carrying.
“Oh, thank you,” Pru muttered as Lilly hurried over to take the other baby. “Finn dropped us off at the front. He didn’t want the twins or me to walk too far in this weather.”
It was pretty mild for January in Colorado. A small smattering of snow was left over from the last storm, but the sun shone brightly, and the temp was holding out at a mild fifty-two degrees. Practically flip-flop weather. But Pru’s husband was the cautious type. Especially when it came to his wife and children.
A warm yearning panged in Lilly’s heart. She could only imagine having a man as devoted and adoring as Finn. Her friend was lucky. Pru and Finn complemented each other in almost every way. They matched on paper and had amazing passion. Something like that only came around once in a great while. She was thrilled for her friend, truly, but a part of her ached for the pure and utter happiness she saw radiating off Pru since the woman had given her heart to the man she loved.
Lilly wanted that.
“I didn’t think you were coming back to work until next week.”
Simon giggled as she bounced him in her arms, the sweet baby boy staring at her, eyes wide with a toothless, slobbering grin.
“I’m not, but we got back from the hot springs yesterday, and I wanted to come in today to say hi. Plus, Finn wanted to check in at the station.”
Pru’s husband was one of Denver’s finest firefighters. A tough job, but one he loved. With the demands of his job and the babies being almost seven months old, the couple had decided to take a short honeymoon close to home at the hot springs in Glenwood Springs. One thing the women always told a couple—even if it’s only a few nights at a local hotel, take a honeymoon. Because it was the one thing that always seemed to get swept away for a future date that never came.
