Page 6 of King
I listened as he explained their arrangement. He told me about the mowing and shit that Hunter and Mia had been doing, which explained why Sinner hadn’t had the prospects over to take care of his yard or gutters yet this season.
He looked a little sheepish. “I’ve seen what people pay for cooked meals like she makes for me, and I’m gettin’ one helluva deal, especially with all the extras she’s always bringin’ me. Don’t you dare say a word to her about it, but about a month after she moved in, I lied to her. Said that I’d realized I’d put the wrong rental amount in the ad and on the lease. Told her I got that house mixed up with another one of my rentals, and that the rent was supposed to be three hundred bucks less. She argued with me, and I’m pretty sure she didn’t entirely believe me, but I tore up the first lease and made her sign the new one at the lower rate.”
I grinned and shook my head at the old coot and his machinations. He was getting soft in his old age, not that I’d ever tell him that. I rubbed the back of my neck to try to ease the tension that had suddenly gathered there. Eleanor sounded like one hell of a woman, and it was clear that my dad thought the world of her.
“I need to apologize for what I said about her, old man.”
“You bet your ass you do. She ain’t one of the club whores, or one of those damned hangarounds you’re always bangin’ at the clubhouse. She’s a nice lady, and she damned sure better be treated like one, especially by my own flesh and blood.”
“All right, I’ll go next door and talk to her after we eat.”
“No, let her simmer down first,” Sinner commanded with a shake of his head. “She’ll be busy with a houseful of teenagers tonight, and they don’t need to hear whatever you need to say to her. Try tomorrow afternoon. Her ex takes Hunter and Mia to lunch on Sundays and brings ‘em home in time for dinner.”
The sound of the back door opening caught my attention, especially since it was accompanied by the smell of steaks fresh off the grill.
Jagger popped his head around the kitchen doorway to let us know that the food was ready, and my stomach growled as if on command.
Thirty minutes later, I had eaten until I was miserably full. It was worth it though, because damn, the food was good. Rome and Jagger almost came to blows over the last spoonful of potato salad, and Molly was determined to ask Eleanor for the recipe for the marinade she’d used on the steaks.
Despite my full belly, I reached for one of the brownies in the container that Jagger just put on the table. I took a bite, and my eyes almost rolled back in my head as the flavor of rich chocolate, creamy caramel, and a hint of sea salt hit my taste buds. Damn, that woman has some serious skills in the kitchen.
I reached for another one, and the thought crossed my mind that I would need to add a few reps to my usual workout routine if I kept eating Eleanor’s cooking. My mind drifted to other ways I could burn some calories – all starring her contorted into the various yoga positions I’d seen earlier. My cock thickened and I shifted in my seat, trying to shut down my thoughts. No way was I going to pop a hard-on at the dinner table, surrounded by my family.
When I stepped outside to leave a couple of hours later – with a baggie full of brownies that my sweet daughter-in-law smuggled to me without my dad or sons noticing – I glanced next door to Eleanor’s place. I put the brownies in my saddlebag, then hesitated before swinging my leg over and mounting the bike. Sinner was right. The conversation I needed to have with his smoking hot neighbor needed to wait until her kids weren’t around to overhear…especially if it ended with her pulling a damned knife on me again. Or better yet, with me kissing the hell out of her. Yeah, I liked that scenario a hell of a lot better.
