“Because I’ve failed at everything. My parents had no use for me, I’ve been fired from my job, and I’ve never formed a lasting relationship with a lover. Only Presley has stood by me. Now your brother doesn’t want to have anything to do with me. He saw through me right from the start.”
“Mike can be a dick sometimes, but I think when the dust settles and Val has the chance to talk some sense into him, he’ll understand.”
“Maybe, maybe not. He’s never trusted me or thought I was good enough for you. I sense he’s waiting for me to fuck up. But I really believe in what I’m saying. I think…no, IknowI can help him and make him a success.” He blinked, and his gaze shifted away for a second before he cast an almost shy smile that I felt down to my toes. “I want to prove that I can be a permanent part of your life. I’ve never cared what anyone thought about me, but I’d hate for you to doubt me.”
I cupped his face. “I never have. Right from the first, you were someone I couldn’t forget. And when you kept showing up, time after time—”
“Like a stray cat?”
“Like someone who’d found a home but didn’t recognize it.” I rubbed my fingers over his cheek. “I hope you see it now.”
“I just know Mike is never going to come around.”
“Babe, a year ago, would you have ever thought the two of us would be able to talk to each other civilly, never mind have the most amazing, mind-blowing sex?”
“Amazing and mind-blowing, hmm? I’m slipping. Need to up my game if you can still find words for it.” He nuzzled into my fingers and kissed the palm of my hand. The tip of his tongue traced the outline of my fingers. “You might be right. I’m going to take a shower.”
He took off the condom and tossed it into the trash, then left to go to the bathroom. When I heard the shower running, I followed him, wincing at my sore ass but loving it nonetheless. Frisco’s white smile gleamed at me through the steam, and when I entered the stall, we rubbed slippery suds all over each other, rinsed off, and got dressed.
I liked seeing him in my clothes and laughed to myself.What a high school thing to think.
“Want a beer?” I opened my refrigerator.
He raised a brow. “No.” He went to the side table where I kept my liquor, took out the ingredients for his Negroni, and fixed himself one. “I should experiment with different types.” He stared at his glass for a minute before sitting next to me.
We sat for a while, sipping our drinks.
“It’s been a crazy few days, don’t you think?” I slid my bare foot over his. “I feel like it was a lifetime ago when I went in to see Edward, and yet it was only yesterday.”
“It was my whole life in a microcosm—seeing Luca and talking to him, talking to Press about his parents, speaking in that group when I never intended to say anything.”
My heart hurt for him still. “But it helped, no?”
“A little. Maybe. I don’t know. I was glad I could tell Press how much I missed his parents. We never really talked about it.”
I didn’t know how I summoned up the nerve to ask him, but I had to know. “Do you think you’ll ever talk to your mother again?”
His haunted eyes met mine. “Do you think I should?”
I gazed at him helplessly. “I don’t know. On the one hand I’d think yes because it’s been so long, you’re not the same people anymore. And yet…I hate that she hasn’t tried first. She’s your mother.”
He tipped his head. “As you say.”
I laid my head on his shoulder. “I really do think your idea is great. Mike is a bigger idiot than I thought if he turns you down.”
“I have no intention of letting him do so. I can be very persistent when I want something.” He rubbed his cheek to mine and kissed me softly at first, then with increasing hunger. “I like a little bit of a fight. Gets me going.”
My lips smiled against his mouth. “You’re always going. You have two speeds. Fast and out of control.”
“Which one are you ready for now?” He reached for me, when my phone rang and vibrated on the coffee table.
“It’s Mike.” I hit the Speaker button. “What’s up?”
“Val and I were talking.”
“Uh-huh.”
Frisco stilled, his gaze laser-focused on the telephone between us.
