Chapter 10
Kim
WALKING INTO THE restaurant hand-in-hand with Sage, we stop at the podium and wait for the hostess, who just walked off with a customer, to come back. “You okay?” he questions, and I look up at him, feeling my eyes get squinty. I asked him in the car if I could have my panties back, but he refused. So now my ass is out—not really, but it feels that way. Like, at any moment, someone is going to be all ‘Oh my God, look at her ass. She isn’t even wearing underwear!’
“I would feel better if I had….” My words taper off when the hostess appears in front of us smiling, and I squeeze Sage’s hand, digging my nails into his skin as I do.
“Table for two?” she asks, and Sage shakes his head.
“Mayson party,” he replies, rubbing his thumb over my pulse.
“Awesome. God, there are a lot of you,” she chirps happily. “Follow me.” Looking up at Sage, I widen my eyes at him as the girl skips in front of us and winds us in and out of tables as she leads us to the back of the restaurant into a private room. “Here you go. Enjoy your dinner.” She grins before disappearing out of sight.
Pulling my eyes from her retreating back, I turn to face the room and feel every inch of me freeze. Everyone is looking at us. Everyone. And I swear they all know I don’t have on any flipping underwear under my damn dress.
“You’re here!” Sophie squeaks, breaking into the silence and pushing back her chair. Coming toward us, she greets me with a hug, then Sage. After her, Nico hugs me but pats Sage’s shoulder. Then it’s pandemonium. Everyone is out of their seats and coming over to say hello or to offer their condolences.
By the time I have hugged every last person in the room, I feel spent, like I need a drink—a drink I can’t have. Settling into my seat with Sage next to me, I’m thankful he’s kept his hand in mine. I need it; I need his strength. The loss of Kelly is getting easier to deal with, but times like these, when everyone’s attention is on me, I’m reminded of what happened and I feel uncomfortable. Honestly, I feel like I shouldn’t be getting their ‘I’m sorry for your loss’ statements. Yes, Kelly is gone, but I lost her a long time ago. Really, I don’t think I ever actually had her at all. Listening to everyone talk about what’s happening in the family, work, or mundane things, I’m thankful when I hear Hope call to me from my other side.
“Kimmy, will you help me color my picture?” she asks, and I look down at her and smile. She looks adorable wearing the poufy blue dress I got her from the Disney Store that is the exact replica of Cinderella’s from the movie.
“Of course I will,” I agree quietly, letting go of Sage’s hand as she climbs into my lap. Pulling her coloring book and crayons over, I rest my chin on her shoulder, and for a few minutes, I get lost in coloring a picture of a butterfly flying through a garden of flowers. I didn’t even know how much the thoughtless action would help loosen me up, but by the time we’re ready to order dinner, I’m relaxed and feeling much better.
“So Ellie was telling us that you girls are meeting with a banker to see if they approved you for your loan,” Lilly says, and I swallow the bite of food I have in my mouth and take a sip of water before I answer her.
“We are. The bank has already completed the basic approval forms, and that all came out okay. So hopefully we will have some good news to share,” I reply, looking at Ellie, who is grinning from ear-to-ear.
“I know it’s in the bag.” She shrugs, and I laugh.
“Have you girls thought of a name yet?” Sophie asks.
I look at her and shake my head while Ellie answers. “We’re still looking for a name. We want something fun and original, but I think we’re waiting to see what happens so we don’t jinx ourselves.”
“That’s smart,” November says, and then she mutters, “What about Mayson’s Hair Salon?”
I don’t frown even though I want to.
“Except Kim’s not a Mayson,” April says helpfully.
“Yet. She’s not a Mayson yet,” Sophie whispers.
“Here, here.” November clinks her glass to Sophie’s then Lilly’s and Liz’s.
My face gets hot, and I feel Sage’s hand squeeze my knee. He wasn’t lying. One minute, things are normal, and the next minute, not so much.
“I think you women need to slow down on the drinking,” December says, rolling her eyes at her mom.
“Well, I know none of my girls are going to get married anytime soon, so I need to get in on the wedding planning somewhere. I was pretty good at it.” November’s eyes widen and sparkle. “Maybe I’ll open my own business. November Weddings,” she muses, and I wonder how much exactly she’s had to drink.
“Babe, you’re not doing that, and stop trying to marry off my girls,” Asher grouches, and the men at the table chuckle while his wife glares at him.
“If I marry Kim, I’m just letting everyone here know that I’m taking her to the courthouse or to Vegas,” Sage says.
I frown at him. “Pardon?”
“I’m not suffering through a wedding or wearing a tux.”
“First of all, we have a long way to go before any of that happens. But when I get married, I will have a wedding. Whatever man I marry will wear a tux, and I’ll be wearing a dress and holding flowers.”
“You’re not fucking marrying anyone else,” he growls, squeezing my thigh. “And there will be no wedding. The dress and flowers are cool. You can have both those things in Vegas.”
“I’m not getting married in Vegas,” I snap, and then I look at Ash. “No offense.”
“None taken. I don’t even remember my wedding.” She grins, and I return the expression, shaking my head.
“Vegas or the courthouse. Those are your options.”
“Lord, he’s as bad as you are,” I hear Sophie say, and I look at the end of the table, where she is sitting next to Nico. He’s smiling at Sage with what can only be described as a proud fatherly smile on his face.
“This argument is pointless,” I mumble, ducking my head hoping if we stop talking about it now, my stomach that has filled with stupid butterflies at the idea of marrying Sage will calm the hell down.
Thank God, after that, the subject of mine and Sage’s imaginary wedding is dropped and everyone starts talking about Talon and Bax. Both Sage’s brothers have been living between Montana and Alaska for work, but in the next few months, they are moving home, so they’re looking for land. While everyone is talking about that, I continue coloring with my favorite girl until dinner is over and it’s time to leave the restaurant.
Getting in Sage’s car an hour later, I’m more exhausted than I realized. So exhausted that I fall asleep with my head on Sage’s shoulder and don’t even remember him taking me home to my apartment, stripping me out of my clothes, or putting me into my bed before joining me there.
Hearing a buzzing sound, my eyes open and I see nothing but the hard male chest my cheek is pressed against. I blink, moving my hand that is lying across Sage’s abs, and tip my head back to look at his sleeping face then frown when the buzzing that woke me up starts again. Debating how to get out of bed without waking him, I study him then let out a breath when his leg that is between mine cocks at the knee and his thigh moves deeper between mine.
Looking down at myself, my eyes widen. I’m naked, completely naked. I’ve always been a light sleeper, so the fact I’m naked and don’t remember getting this way means I was out of it last night when he brought me home. Studying his skin pressed against mine, the tingle that has been a constant friend comes back to life full force.
“Dammit,” he sighs when the buzzing starts back up, and I wonder if I should pretend to be asleep but I’m too slow. Before I can close my eyes, he’s up on his elbow and looking down at me as he reaches over my chest and grabs his cell from my bedside table. “What?” he barks into the phone, making me jump from the sudden boom of sound. “Fuck.” His eyes close briefly as he shakes his head. “Yeah, I’ll be there. Give me an hour,” he says before dropping the cell to the bed near my hip.
“Is everything okay?” I question softly, reaching down for the sheet to cover myself from his gaze that is traveling over every inch of my exposed skin. And there is a lot of it to see, since I’m still very much naked.
“I gotta go, which means I’m leaving you naked in bed. Pretty fucking sure that’s the definition of not okay.”
“Oh,” I whisper, and he smiles, touching his mouth to mine before leaning back to look at me once more.
“What time are you meeting with the banker?”
“Two.” I tip my head back to look at the clock and see it’s not even eight. “Ellie and I both have clients before then, so we’ll probably just walk over to the bank from the shop,” I explain.
He nods, brushing a piece of hair from my forehead before tucking it behind my ear. “I’ll be late tonight, so when you get done doing what you’re doing, just head to my place.”
“Sage.”
“Please,” he says quietly, and hearing the soft plea in his voice warms my heart.
“Fine,” I agree, “but I might be late, too. I need to check in with Elizabeth to see if she wants me to watch the boys. She’s been cool about it, but I feel like I’m taking advantage of her by not pitching in as much as I was.”
“I’m sure she understands.”
“She does, but still, it makes me uncomfortable. I don’t like handouts.”
“Baby, she’s not giving you a fucking handout. She’s your friend who cares about you. You need to stop thinking that people taking care of you makes you weak,” he says, and my muscles get tight. I still haven’t told him about my illness, and now I don’t know how to tell him. Now I’m really fucking scared that the minute I do, he’s going to run for the hills. “Stop overthinking.” He taps my forehead, having no idea my stomach is suddenly a complete mess.
“I’ll try,” I agree, giving him what I hope is a convincing smile before asking, “What are you doing today?” I need to think about something, anything else.
“I’ll be in Nashville. A client hired us to look into his wife a few months back, and he called Jax this morning, telling him she was going out today. So we need to follow her.”
“Really? Is she… is she cheating on him?” I ask, and he shakes his head.
“She’s a mom of four kids all under the age of six. We’ve followed her a few times in the past, and she normally grabs a coffee and takes it to the park, where she sits, doing nothing but staring off into the distance like a zombie.”
“She’s tired,” I say quietly, and he nods, running his warm fingers along my jaw.
“Yeah, she’s tired and he’s always working, always out of town. So I’m sure when she gets the chance to take a minute for herself, she’s clamoring for it. And he’s taking her eagerness to get away as her fucking around on him.”
“That’s sad.” I know that Elizabeth is always exhausted, but Jelikai always makes sure she has time to herself. He books her spa days or sends her to the salon. He’s even booked her into a hotel for a night alone so she could just lie in bed and relax. “Maybe you can talk to him,” I suggest as he rubs a thick chunk of my hair between his fingers.
“Tried to tell him what was happening after I followed her the first time, but he didn’t want to hear it. He’s set on the idea that she’s cheating. He doesn’t understand the stress of having kids, because he’s never really around.”
“He sounds like a dick.”
“He is, but on the other hand, I make bank every time he calls to have her watched. And it’s an easy gig, no drama, no need to watch my back. I’ll take it. One day, she’s either going to catch on to what he’s doing or he’s going to finally get it that his wife is struggling and needs help. Either way, they need to find a way to work on their shit and communicate. Otherwise, shit’s gonna go up in smoke and they will have no one to blame but themselves. And when that happens, sadly the kids will be the only ones who suffer.”
“I wish I could help her,” I whisper.
His face softens. “That right there is the reason I couldn’t move on.”
“What?”
“Your soft spot, your kindness, and your need to make the people you don’t even know feel better,” he says, dropping his mouth to mine, which has opened to form a soft O. Then he leans back and runs his fingers along my forehead. “I gotta get up. You mind if I use your toothbrush?” he asks before I’ve even had a chance to recover from his sweet words or gentle touch.
At his question, I feel my face get soft and I shake my head. “No, you’re welcome to it.”
Smiling at my answer, he moves. But then he stops with his knees between mine, and I can feel the heavy, hard length of him come to rest against my lower belly and see his biceps flex as his fists go into the bed on either side of my head.
“Kiss me good. I need something to hold me over until tonight. You passed the fuck out before I even got my car started last night and didn’t even make a peep when I carried you up here, took off your clothes, and put you into bed.”
“I must have been tired,” I whisper as his mouth drops closer to mine.
“Kiss me, Kim,” he repeats his command, ignoring my excuse.
So I do.
I lean up and kiss him, but he’s the one who makes it good. And then he makes it even better when he cups my breast and tweaks my nipple before getting out of bed and sauntering out of my room naked.
Pulling my eyes from his perfect ass, I fall to my back against the pillow and grin up at the closed skylight above me, taking a second to enjoy the feelings that have filled my stomach before I roll out of bed.
After putting on a pair of sleep shorts and a tank, I head to the kitchen and make him a fried egg, cheese, and turkey breakfast sandwich. I’m searching for one of my travel mugs that doesn’t have flowers or some other girly thing on it when I see him wander naked from the bathroom and into my room. I grab the only cup I can find with a lid and quickly make him coffee that is done as soon as he comes out dressed a few minutes later.
“Here you go, for the road.” I smile, handing the sandwich and coffee to him before I open the door.
Recognizing the look in his eyes when he sees what I’ve given him is better than any thank you. Or I think it is, until he drops the stuff to the counter and pulls me against him, planting a kiss on me that causes my toes to curl.
“Thanks, babe,” he mutters against my lips, and I smile then melt against his chest once more when his hand wraps around me and he touches his forehead to mine. “See you tonight.”
“Tonight,” I agree as he lets me go.
Picking up his things, he heads down the stairs, and I watch him take a bite from the sandwich in his hand halfway down.
Yes, I’m most definitely falling for Sage Mayson, I think, closing the door when I hear the garage open.