“In front of the television.” He pulls out a chair. I wait for him to sit down. “Sit,” he says, indicating the chair he’s holding.
“Um.” I move over to the chair and sit down. He takes the chair beside me and opens the pizza box—pepperoni, mushroom, peppers, and sausage. The cheese is cooked to the perfect color, and my mouth waters. “I got it fully loaded.” He grabs a plate and places a slice on it. “Shit,” he holds the plate in front of me, “I should have asked if you are okay with the toppings.”
I grab the plate from him. “This is more than okay. It’s better than okay,” I try to make him feel better. “It’s exactly what I wanted.”
I wait for him to put a piece on his plate, and only when he’s taken the first bite do I dig in. The richness of the sauce hits my tongue, and I groan. “Holy . . .” I moan, chewing the piece, “this is heavenly.”
“Yeah, it’s the best pizza in town.” He takes a bite.
“So tell me about your brother and sisters.”
“I’m the youngest, so they are going to say I’m the most spoiled.” He side-eyes me. “I’m not.” He puts some French fries on his plate before doing the same to mine. “They think I got away with murder.” I laugh at this.
“Which, of course, you didn’t.”
“Exactly. It’s not my fault I was the perfect child.”
“Were you the perfect child”—I take another bite of my pizza—“or was it that you never got caught?”
“I guess we’ll never know,” he retorts proudly.
“What else will they say about you?”
“That I’m thoughtful.” He pushes away from the table and goes to grab us some water. “See? Thoughtful.” He puts the glass down in front of me, making me smile, and he bends to kiss my lips.
“I see that,” I say softly, waiting for him to sit beside me.
“Also, don’t believe anything Daisy says about me. I’d say don’t believe Lizzie either, but she just gave birth to her second child, so her hormones for hating me are gone.”
“So you’re an uncle? You’ve been around babies before?”
“Lizzie has two kids, Vanessa and Blake, who is two weeks old.” I smile at him. “Daisy has one, his name is Christian, but we call him troublemaker. If there is trouble, he’s right there in the middle of it.”
I grin at how his eyes light up. “Carter doesn’t have any kids, but his new girlfriend . . .” He makes a weird face. “I can’t remember her name.” I gasp. “I know, I know, but I’ve met her twice. I think it’s Andrea, but it could also be Anna.”
“Theo, that is so bad.”
“I’ve said maybe five words to her, and ‘Nice to meet you’ were four of them,” he defends himself. “Every time I call him, she’s not there.”
“So you are close with them then?”
“I am. I talk to my father every day. My mother, too, if she’s there, and there is still a family group chat that my mother messages every day saying good morning.”
I feel a sting in my eyes. “That’s so sweet.” I smile, trying not to show him what I’m feeling. “My whole life, that’s what I wanted, a normal childhood. Two parents who showed love, and it wasn’t even a question. Brothers and sisters I could tease and confide in.”
“How many kids do you want?” he asks me, and I shrug.
“More than one,” I admit to him. “I want the baby to have everything I didn’t.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you said yes to being my girlfriend because now I get to give you and our child all that.” I can’t help but smile. “Now, hurry up and eat, so we can clean up and get back to my favorite part of the night.”
“Which is?” I ask innocently.
He grins, and then the grin turns into a megawatt smile. “Baby,” he starts, and everything inside me melts, “my favorite part of any night lately has been with you in my arms.”
I roll my eyes. “Smooth.” I try really fucking hard not to giggle like a schoolgirl. “Very smooth.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
