“That’s what she said,” I snorted.
“God, you didnotjust say that,” he giggled. “The house is beautiful. I only meant I thought Hugh would have some mansion or something. I like that it’s understated.”
“Homes around here are incredibly expensive, but it’s only him. I don’t have a massive home either.”
“It looks old.”
“Yeah, it was built in the early 1900s. It took a lot of work to fix her up, and I helped with that. It’d been a fun project. It was the job that made me fall in love with woodworking. I’d always loved it, and I used to dream of having my own business.”
“Did your uncle push you all to work for him?”
“Yeah, and it’s fine. We make a lot of money.”
I turned off the car and stared at the house. Mine was much newer, so it hadn’t required as much fixing up. But Hugh’s home is stunning on the inside, and I’d like to think I played a big part in that.
“Well, I can’t wait to see the inside.”
I rushed to open Atlas’s door again and gave him my hand to help him out. “You’d better stop before you sweep me off my feet, gorgeous.”
“Wait until I toss you over my shoulder and manhandle you into submission.”
Atlas fanned himself with his free hand. “Do tell…Phew… Hot!”
I chuckled as I led him to the front door, where I knocked. Hugh was quick to open it. He stood there looking sexy as fuck in jeans with strategic rips in them and a form-fitting navy-blue T-shirt. Seriously, he looked good in anything, but I especially loved it when he was dressed casually.
“Hey! There’s my favorite princess,” he said, smiling and taking the Tupperware from Atlas.
“Hello, handsome.”
Hugh grinned and glanced at me, still smiling. His smile always made my heart melt a little. “Hey there, cuz.”
I followed Atlas inside, where we took off our shoes and left them by the front door. The house smelled of wine and garlic, making my mouth water. “Are we having your ribeye steak with red wine reduction?”
“We are.”
“Sounds yummy,” Atlas said before stopping in his tracks. “Oh. My. God. Is that a Sphynx?” He squatted to pick up the cat and hold her.
“She is. That’s Mrs. Peach,” Hugh said.
I would never understand that man and his infatuation with that cat. He was what you’d usually call a ‘manly’ sort of man. You would never have assumed he’d have a hairless cat named Mrs. Peach, and that he dressed her up in little outfits. He was obsessed with her. The hairless part made sense since he was allergic to cats and dogs. His cat was probably the most chill petI’d ever seen in my life. She pretty much let you hold her in any way you wanted.
“Her little pink hoodie with the big ears is to die for!” Atlas gushed.
“You should see her during the Halloween season,” I said, chuckling. “Hugh here has all sorts of costumes for her to wear.”
“Oh, god… I’m going to die of sweetness overload.”
Surprisingly, Hugh’s face pinked at the adoration of Mrs. Peach. He rubbed his neck and didn’t look at us. “Yeah, I’ve got like a whole drawer full of clothes, costumes, and accessories.”
Carrying the cat like an infant, Atlas walked straight into the living room and directly toward the fireplace. I smiled at that. I’d worked my ass off creating a new wooden mantle using reclaimed wood, since the previous one was mostly rotted. It was a replica of the original, but you could tell it was newly built. It was still a stunning piece, if I said so myself.
Atlas fingered the wood like caressing a lover. “Wow,” he said before looking back at me. “This has to be your work.”
“It is.”
“God, your talent is… I’m in awe. And you said you weren’t an artist.Psh.”
“Right? I keep telling Linden that, but he never listens,” Hugh said. “Feel free to look around while I plate our dinner.”
