Page 28 of Hold You Close
Fact—I want to rip his clothes off and fuck his brains out.
Those four things combined equals a disastrous outcome. But my best friend was a romantic at heart. She believed love conquered everything. She was a fool when it came to that line of thinking.
Ian raises his chin. “Or maybe it was bound to happen. Maybe we’ve been fighting it for so long we finally snapped. Maybe I’ve wanted to kiss you for—”
“Oh my God!” Morgan’s voice breaks the moment. “You guys kissed?”
“Great,” Ian groans.
“I knew it! I knew you liked her! Is that what took you guys so long? I was coming to find you because Chris thought maybe you got lost, but instead you were kissing. Are you guys like, together now?”
Oh, to be twelve again. However, I don’t miss the key thing she said. “You like me?”
Morgan snorts. “Of course he does. You know how stupid boys are. They’re only mean to girls they like. Since you guys can’t seem to be nice to each other at all, it’s obvious.”
“Go inside before I ground you or whatever it is adults do,” Ian instructs her.
“Telling the truth is always best, Uncle Ian,” Morgan tosses back at him.
“The women in my life are going to drive me to drink,” he says as the screen door shuts. “It’s no wonder men die first. We can’t wait to get away from you all!”
I laugh. “Yeah, because men are such a treat.”
“I am. I can’t speak for anyone else,” Ian says as we walk in.
“Right.”
When we get in the house the sight before me brings tears to my eyes. Christopher is asleep with Ruby on his chest. She has her thumb in her mouth, and is passed out. He looks like his father right now. Ruby’s other hand is gripping his shirt, holding on to her brother.
“Should we move her?” I ask.
He nods. “I’ll put her to bed.”
Ian lifts her effortlessly into his arms, and she stirs a little, but settles. Chris sits up straight. “It’s okay, honey,” I whisper. “Why don’t you head up and get some sleep?”
Chris gets up, shuffling his feet. I head into the kitchen and clean up a bit, as well as start a list of . . . well, real food.
I open the fridge again and then compose the list.
Milk
Fruit
Vegetables
Juice
Cheese
Just buy the damn store since you have nothing.
How the hell does he function? Seriously, there’s nothing here that’s actually edible. I give up on the list and head upstairs to check on the kids. Morgan is in her room, her earbuds in, as she lies on the bed. I knock softly on the open door, and she sits up.
“Hey,” I say as I enter. “You doing okay?”
She shrugs. “I’m not sure.”
“I get that.” I move to her bed and sit beside her. “Want to talk about it?”
