Page 14 of The Trouble With You

Clearly this was not even close to what she was expecting to hear, and it takes her just a moment for that to sink in. Then she frowns and steps closer, giving his arm a squeeze. “I’m sorry, Brewser.”

“Thanks, sweetheart. I had an inkling, of course. Put off going in for a while. But got it confirmed. I’m taking my time coming to terms with it and I haven’t told many people. If you would keep it between us, I’d appreciate it.”

She nods quickly. “Of course. Let me know if you need anything.”

His gaze meets mine. “Well, that’s what Sutton said. And then casseroles started showing up at my house.”

Understanding dawns on Andi's face. “The casseroles are actually for you.”

I nod. “That was the intention.”

“You should have expected her to do something,” Andi tells Brewser.

He gives me an affectionate look. “I know. I did.”

“He didn’t mean to tell me,” I say. “He was playing frisbee golf like always, but I noticed his one arm wasn’t swinging normally, and he was kind of shuffling. I was concerned, so asked.”

Brewser laughs softly. “Of course, she noticed something no one else did.”

“Of course she did,” Andi says, also smiling at me affectionately.

I just wave that away. I’ve known Brewser all my life. I noticed a change in his gait. It’s not like that makes me special.

“Anyway, the day Lawson and I finally realized neither of us were making these casseroles, Harley and Wilson were with me,” Brewser explains. “I’m not quite ready to tell them about my Parkinson’s. So I said the casseroles must be for Lawson.” He lifts the shoulder. “Beckett had just started getting packages from his secret admirer, and it was on my mind. And the guys had no trouble believing that some girl would have a crush on Lawson.”

Andi laughs. “No, that isn’t hard to believe.”

“Then Brewser had to come and inform me that I was suddenly Lawson’s stalker,” I tell her. “And that I needed to make it sexier.”

Andi is grinning. Anderson Fleury is six years older than me and has been married and divorced. She is far more experienced and cynical than I am about men and relationships. Yet, she seems delighted by all of this.

“Why didn’t you just let Lawson in on Sutton being the casserole fairy later?” she asks Brewser. “He knows about your diagnosis, I assume?”

“He does.” Brewser grins. “But I wanted him to have an admirer. For him.”

I shake my head as Andi’s smile turns softer and affectionate. “You wanted Lawson to feel stalkable?”

Brewser chuckles. “Exactly.”