“He won’t tell me, but maybe you can get it out of him,” Aspen teased.
I turned my head at the sound of a baby crying and saw Leigh making her way over to us. “I think someone’s ready for bed,” she said and handed a grumpy Kalen to me.
“He lasted longer than I thought he would,” I told her. “Thanks for watching him.”
“You’re welcome. I just love babies,” she beamed.
“We’ll be back in a little bit,” Grant told Coal and Aspen. “Save us some seats.”
“Will do,” Coal said and wrapped his arm around Aspen’s shoulders.
I made quick work of changing Kalen’s diaper and dressing him in his pajamas. Then, I opened a bottle of water and poured the designated amount into his bottle before adding the formula. I shook it and started feeding him.
“Um, aren’t you supposed to warm that?” Grant asked carefully.
“He won’t drink it warm,” I shrugged. “He’ll spit it out and push it away until it’s cool, then he’ll drink it. Once I figured that out, I started doing it this way.”
Kalen’s eyes started to droop halfway through his bottle, and he was sound asleep by the time he finished. I carefully placed him in the portable crib and exhaled in relief when he didn’t stir. Occasionally, I would think he was asleep and put him down only for his eyes to pop open two seconds before he started crying.
I picked up the baby monitor and gave Grant a thumbs up. We quietly left the room and closed the door behind us.
When we returned to the common room, the tables and chairs had been rearranged in a semi-circle around a large screen hanging from the ceiling. Coal and Aspen were seated at a table front and center with two seats saved for us.
“How’d you guys end up with the best seats in the house?” I asked.
Grant grinned. “Coal’s brother is fighting in the main event. He always gets the good seats, which is why I asked him to save two for us. Perks of being his best friend.”
I’d never watched an organized fight before. The first couple of matches were okay to watch, but it was hard for me to get into it without having a designated person to cheer for. I didn’t know anything about the fighters, so it didn’t matter to me who won. Grant and Coal seemed to be having a great time, and I enjoyed chatting with Aspen between rounds.
But as the night went on, I struggled to stay awake, and I eventually fell asleep on Grant’s shoulder. I woke when the entire room erupted in cheers and looked at the screen to see a man who strongly resembled Coal with his arms raised in the air.
“Did he win?” I asked through a yawn.
“Yeah, he did,” Grant said proudly. “You ready for bed?”
I nodded and yawned again. “Yeah. Sorry for falling asleep. I’m never up this late.”
“I liked having you snuggled up against me all night.”
Yeah, I liked that part too, and I was looking forward to snuggling up against him for the rest of the night.
11
GAME
Ihadn’t seen Blakely since the morning after she spent the night at the clubhouse, and I couldn’t wait any longer. I didn’t care if I looked overeager. I liked her, and despite my road name, I wasn’t interested in playing games.
So, I decided to order takeout and surprise her with dinner. As I walked to her door, I glanced at the bag of food I was carrying and wondered if I’d made the right decision.
Before I could continue second guessing myself, she pushed the door open and smiled. “What are you doing here?”
I held up the bag of food. “I brought dinner. Are you hungry?”
“Yes,” she answered immediately. “You have perfect timing. I was just about to heat up some leftovers.”
I followed her inside and placed the food on the kitchen counter. The house was filled with the smell of cinnamon, brown sugar, and apples. If she had a homemade apple pie in the oven, I was going to have to marry her. “What smells so good?”
“Apple pie,” she confirmed and I almost groaned. “Landon’s been asking me to make one. It’s his favorite.”
