“Damn right I am,” Des and I say at the same time. I yelp before dissolving into a fit of giggles when Alex rolls me over him so that he’s between Desmond and me.
“Oh, come on, at least share her old man,” Des whines, sitting up so that he can see me over Alex. “I swear I won’t take her this time. We can all just cuddle for a little while.”
That sounds great to me, and when I look up at Alex, he seems to be considering it.
“But what about Addy? She’ll be up soon if she’s not already.” I look toward the door, half expecting her to come barging in at any moment.
“She’s making pancakes with Dad.” I turn back to look at Des, who waves his phone in the air, seeming all too proud of himself. “I texted him last night and let him know you were finally tucked in for a good night's sleep so he would be on Princess duty today.”
Wow.
That was incredibly sweet and thoughtful of him.
Which only makes me feel worse for avoiding them and, more specifically, him sleeping here.
He must see it on my face because he reaches out and boops my nose.
“None of that, Kitten.”
“None of what?” I sass, going cross-eyed to look at his finger.
He pulls back, gesturing at my face while making one of his own. “Whatever that look is, none of that.”
“Agreed.” Alex doesn’t even crack an eye open, and I roll my eyes at the pair of them.
“You can’t even see my face.”
“Don’t need to love. I can imagine it. That adorable little pout and the way your brows pinch together with those sad little puppy dog eyes that could make even the strongest of men break,” he rattles off, still without opening his eyes, and I’m pretty sure he’s delusional.
“Exactly!” Des exclaims, slapping a hand to the bed. “Wow, that was spot on.”
“No, it wasn’t,” I argue because I’m not pouting and puppy dog eyes that could break a man… They must be mistaken.
Alex cracks an eye open and peers up at me. “Yes, it was.”
“Okay.” It takes all of my willpower, but I manage to untangle myself from Alex’s arms. “I need to get up and ready for the day, which means you two need to go and do the same.”
“Orrrr, we could get ready in here.” Desmond wiggles his brows at me.
“Yeah, I happen to know from experience that your shower is plenty big enough for all of us.”
My face heats, but I stand strong.
“Of course, you know that. This is your house.” I move to my dresser, pull out underwear and a bra, then go to my closet to find an outfit. I settle on jeans and a T-shirt with a cardigan over it. The weather has been getting cooler, and while it’s not quite fall yet, I feel more comfortable with a layer I can take off and put back on as needed.
I nearly walk right into Alex as I head back out.
“Yes, let’s pretend I know about your shower because I own the house. I promise you that before you moved in, I’d never spent more than a few minutes in any of the guests' rooms, let alone the bathrooms. So how, I wonder, do I know something like that about your shower?” The cocky grin on his face makes me purse my lips, but before I can think of something worth saying, Des butts in.
“I’d like to make it known you're not the only one who knows about her shower, old man.”
Alex rolls his eyes but doesn't turn away from me, and I can’t help the smile that tugs at my lips.
I love their relationship. I know Alex is his uncle, but they get along so well that it’s almost more like they're brothers. It’s silly, fun, and perfect for them.
It’s also incredibly attractive, though I’m not sure that’s a normal thing to be attracted to.
“So what do you say? How about we all get ready together?”
