I follow his line of sight and instantly follow.
It’s the fucking poinsettia on fire. It’s a small containable blaze, but we make no mistake that the leaves are lit up. It’s on the floor and not close enough to the fire in the fireplace but burning the edge of a stocking with Hudson’s name on it.
“What is happening?” Piper sounds panicked.
I feel Gracie and Piper following me, and we all watch Hudson throw a blanket from the sofa onto the plant.
“The candle from the menorah on the mantel, it fell,” Hudson explains as he continues to extinguish the smoke and flame.
Gracie touches my shoulder from behind and sputters a laugh. “Kind of funny, no?”
Her father looks at all of us with a serious stare until his gaze lands on his wife. He tips his nose up. “This is your grandmother. She is haunting us already.”
Piper struggles to take him seriously. “Why?”
“Piper, you know that your grandmother and I got on famously. But I already know what discussion we need to have.”
“Humor me.” Gracie is struggling to keep her hysterics in check.
“Circumcision. We should talk about if the baby is a boy. Otherwise, your great-grandmother is going to ensure I have a nightmare tonight.”
There isn’t an ounce of humor in that sentence.
Closing the passenger-side door,I circle my Porsche and slide into the driver’s seat. Starting the car, I turn to Gracie while we wait for the car to warm up. She’s resting her head against the headrest and staring at me with a tiny smile and entwines our fingers on the middle console.
“Not going to lie. This evening will go down in my history books,” I admit.
She blocks her big smile by biting her bottom lip. “Really? That’s surprising. It was just normal conversation. I mean, marriage, fires, circumcision, or if you will pass the ultimate test of installing a baby seat into your family car that you now have to buy.”
I glance quickly to the backseat of my sports car. “Your dad might have a point on thecar issue.”
“All of the other stuff might come up again, but between us and not anytime soon.”
We both look down on our joined hands. “The next few weeks we can just focus on us and the little things,” I suggest.
“Exactly. I’ve already started packing a few things for your place. I can’t end my lease so fast, but I can start to stay at yours more.”
“Good.”
It’s more than appealing having her at my place every time I return home. No matter the type of day, she brings life and allows me to be carefree for a moment, even if the world around us is full of decisions and pressure.
There are a few seconds of quiet that drift through the car with our eyes tethered. “You know, I’m beginning to realize something about you.” Her voice is floaty and quiet.
“Enlighten me.”
“Behind the steely coach in a flashy suit, you are actually a family man. Maybe you didn’t know, but your mood changes when you are around family. You might come across as annoyed and firm, but inside, you are always smiling. Enjoying the moment. Using it as a reason to forget about the world.”
I want to highlight that she’s been observing me. Instead, I jump into defeat. “Seems you solved me then.” I speak in barely a whisper. “Or…” My thumb begins to rub circles on the top of her hand. “All of what you said is because I’m around you.”
Her pressed lips draw into a wistful smile. “I think I only noticed because it’s what I’m experiencing.”
I could have any woman in my bed, but I want her. I’ve never known addiction until I met her. The instant sight of her lips, a shade of pink roses, and her laugh that is a magnet and every word an adventure.
Now I have the chance to have her. The baby is just a bonus. Maybe that makes me a bad father for not thinking the baby is first and Gracie is the prize. It’s just if I close my eyes, it’s Gracie I’m beginning to inhale in every breath.
Everything inside of me knew from day one that she was an entrapment, purely from our eyes meeting and something crazy leaving her mouth to tease me. I just thought my life with her in it was unimaginable.
Leaning in, I cup her face with my hands and place a gentle kiss on her lips.
