Page 51 of King
He’d sent a selfie a few hours later. He’d clearly been at the gym, judging by the weight equipment in the background and the glistening sheen of sweat covering every inch of visible skin, which had been a lot considering he was wearing a skintight black tank top and equally tight bike shorts.
Dante: I had to add an extra workout thanks to those delicious cookies of yours that Sinner dropped off at the clubhouse the other day. Totally fucking worth it, sugar.
And later that night, just before I went to bed, came another text.
Dante: I made pancakes for dinner tonight, and it made me think of my mom. When I was a little kid, Saturday mornings were special, because my mom made us blueberry pancakes for breakfast. Luckily, she taught me how to make them for my boys when they were little, so I can still have them even now that she’s gone. I’d love to make them for you sometime, for breakfast or for dinner. Your choice. Goodnight, sugar.
I wiped away a tear and typed back a single word…goodnight.
Monday morning brought a vase overflowing with asters in a riotous bloom of color.“Asters represent patience, which I’m clearly going to need to win you over. Have a good day, sugar.”
Mia had opened the door to the delivery driver and had gushed over the pretty flowers. Hunter had just smirked when I’d tucked the card into my back pocket and lied that King had sent them as a thank you for looking out for Pop. I was pretty sure neither of them believed me, especially given the other bouquets in the house, but they didn’t push the issue.
I had a meeting with a client late in the day, and noticed his bike parked in Pop’s driveway as I pulled back into my garage. When I walked into the kitchen, Dante was sitting at the kitchen table with Hunter, discussing football. My son jumped up to greet me, then tried and failed to hide his smile as he said goodbye to Dante and hurried from the room. Yeah, he wasn’t being obvious at all.
“I just wanted to return those containers to you,” Dante said as he stood and motioned to the two cookie tins on the counter. “How was your day?”
“It was fine,” I replied warily. “I…uh…got your flowers. Again. Thank you, but there’s really no point in wasting your money –”
“It’s not a waste of money if you liked them. Now, Hunter told me that you guys are taking Mia over to the high school tonight so she can practice driving in the empty parking lot, so I won’t keep you. Have fun, sugar. Be safe.”
I’d been left confused by his casual nonchalance and had wondered what game he was playing now.
My nerves had been shot by the time I got ready for bed later that night, partly from the stress of Mia’s first driving attempt and partly from dealing with Dante. When his final text came through, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Dante: I hope the driving lesson went better than the first one I had with Jag and Rome years ago. Jagalmost took out Sinner’s mailbox, and Rome ran over my mom’s favorite rose bush. I’m pretty sure that’s when I got my first gray hairs. Goodnight, sugar.
I worked from home again on Tuesday and had to laugh as my doorbell rang just after lunch. Lenny, the delivery driver, greeted me with a grin. He and I were now on a first-name basis.
“Looks like you’ve got some gladioluses today, Ella.” I didn’t bother offering a tip as he handed them over, since he’d made it clear that Dante had already taken care of that on each of his three previous deliveries.
I read the card as soon as he’d left.“Gladiolus represent honor, faithfulness, and strength of character. I believe in the very same things. Give me a chance, and I’ll prove it to you. Have a good day, sugar.”
I smiled as I read the card for a second time, desperately wanting to believe the words that he had written. I finally forced myself to set the card aside and turned my attention to my laptop, determined to get some actual work done instead of mooning over a man who was turning out to be nothing like I’d expected.
I’d invited Pop to join us for dinner that night. His best friend, Viking, was over at Pop’s watching some kind of race on TV, so I extended the invitation to include him as well. I hoped that their presence would help keep my mind off Dante and the whole sexy, silver fox vibe that made my knees weak and my panties wet.
It wasn’t the first time Viking had joined us for dinner with Pop, and I always got a kick out of watching the two old men squabbling back and forth. They reminded me of Camille and Kim when they got together; each saying something just to rile the other one up. Before they left to head back over to Pop’shouse, Viking commented on the various bouquets of flowers setting on just about every table.
“Pretty flowers you’ve got there, honey. It looks like you’ve got yourself quite an admirer.”
Pop grinned slyly and elbowed his old friend. “Those are from King, if I’m not mistaken.” He looked at me with a teasing twinkle in his eye. “I think you’ve made quite an impression on my son, darlin’.”
“He sent them as an apology for…a little misunderstanding. I’m not sure why there are so many,” I responded lamely, trying to skirt the truth without outright lying to them.
“Yeah, I heard about the knife incident,” Viking said with a chuckle. “You can’t blame him too much for being a jackass, Ella. He gets it from his dad.”
Viking just cackled as Pop flipped him off, and they were still bickering with each other when I sent them on their way with a container of brownies to share.
Again, as I was getting ready for bed, my text notification chimed.
Dante: I heard that you had guests for dinner tonight, and that you make one hell of a pot roast. Thanks for looking after those old farts. You’re a good woman, and it shows in everything you do. Goodnight, sugar.
Wednesday’s delivery was a basket filled with gardenias.“Gardenias stand for sweetness, which reminds me of the way you taste. Have a good day, sugar.”I blushed as I read the card, then tucked it into my pocket so the kids wouldn’t see it.
Mia had offered to watch Ethan and Everly that afternoon, while Rome and Abby met with the wedding coordinator about last-minute wedding details. I was thrilled that they were getting married again, and I loved spending time with their kiddos.
Mia was playing on the floor in the living room with Everly, and I smiled every time I heard that sweet baby giggling at something my daughter was doing. Ethan was eagerly helping me chop a mountain of strawberries in preparation for making some jam when the sound of a vehicle pulling into my driveway drifted in through the open kitchen window. I glanced out to see Dante getting out of his truck and cursed under my breath. I wasn’t mentally prepared to see him yet, especially since I’d been on edge from his text message an hour ago, wondering what he’d meant by the last line. I guess now I knew.
