Winning With Him (Men of Summer #2) - Lauren Blakely Page 0,104

shaking his head. “I’m going to sell my place in New York. And I don’t need to buy a place here since I’m living with you.”

I shoot him a searing look. “No, you’re not living with me. We live together.”

“Yes, and my point is, I want us to be . . .”

For a second, it sounds like he’s going to say partners, and I’m not ready for that. Not yet. Doesn’t seem like he is, either, since he takes a breath, then continues, “I want us to be in this together. So, can I pay half the mortgage?”

I bark out a laugh as I move around the counter, set my hands on his shoulders, and meet his eyes. “Sweetheart, I hate to break it to you, but I don’t have a mortgage. I own this house free and clear.” I sweep a kiss to his lips. “Just like I bet you did in New York.”

He dips his head, laughing. “Yes, I owned it outright too.” He raises his face. “I guess that means I’m going to have to buy us a condo on South Beach.”

I smile salaciously. “Miami, here we come.” I glance at the clock. “Want to go see my grandma and grandpa?”

“I absolutely do.”

We get in my car and drive across the bridge to Sausalito, where we meet my grandparents at a coffee shop that looks out on Richardson Bay. There’s a chance we could be seen, so we don’t hold hands.

We have a plan for how we’ll come out.

For now, I walk next to my guy, heading for the two people who are like my parents. They’re waiting in the back corner of the coffee shop, and Grandpa stands and smiles when he spots us. “Good to see you again, Declan,” he says.

“And you too, sir.”

My grandma rises too, and offers her hand to Declan. “I’m Kimberly Campbell, Grant’s grandmother. So great to meet you.”

Declan presses his lips together tightly, his bottom lip quivering. “You are my hero,” he says softly, choking up as he brings her in for a hug.

“Oh,” she says, surprised. “I didn’t expect that.”

“A hug?” I ask.

“No, to be someone’s hero.”

“Well, you are,” Declan says, emotion thick in his voice. “Thank you for everything.”

My throat tightens, and I try to swallow past the hitch in it.

When they separate, Grandma still looks flummoxed. I don’t tell her why Declan adores her already. Some things are just between a man and his man.

We spend the next hour with the two people I love like crazy, and when we leave, my grandpa pulls me aside. “It’s the good obvious,” he says.

“Yes. Yes, it is.”

Later that day, we’re getting ready for the carnival in our bedroom when Declan puts on his unicorn underwear.

I whistle.

“Hell yes,” I say, then twirl my finger in a circle. “Now turn around. Let me admire your ass from every angle.”

He rolls his eyes. “I’m wearing unicorns, Grant. I am not twirling too.”

I sidle up and rope an arm around his waist. “I’ll suck you off if you do.”

Declan turns in a circle.

“Oh yeah,” I say, then I make good on my promise.

When I’m done, we get dressed, brush our teeth, and make our way to the door. As I grab the keys, I rattle off the names of some of the teens he’ll meet this afternoon. “There’s Topaz. She’s a track star at a school in the Presidio and is obsessed with Gossip Girl. If you know who Gossip Girl is, don’t tell her. She’s watching the series for the first time.”

Declan holds up his hands in surrender. “No clue who Gossip Girl is.”

“Nico is a wrestler in South San Francisco, and the president of the queer club at his high school. He’s more deadpan than you. Jason is the quarterback at a nearby school and he loves video games. He hasn’t come out to his teammates yet, but he says he wants to soon.”

Declan repeats that all, taps his temple. “Got it.”

I give him the names of the people who run the charity, then I snap my fingers. “Almost forgot. You know Asher St. James? Former soccer star? He’ll be there. He’s in town from New York, taking pictures for the Alliance.”

“I assume he’ll want our picture?”

“He’s an ace photographer. I’ll definitely want a shot of us by him,” I say.

“So cute. Will you frame it too?”

“Are you mocking me for liking you?”

“A little.”

“In that case, I will blow that picture up to movie-poster size and hang it right here.” I