Hard Knox - Riley Hart Page 0,66

here or let her get to know you first. I don’t want to hurt her, but I don’t want to hurt you either.”

It was that moment when I knew I loved him. That Knox Wheeler was everything I’d never known I wanted and the best man I’d ever met. I was crazy about him, and that would never go away. “I do,” I finally said. “Feel the same about you, and you’re not hurting me. I trust you, and I trust your judgment where your kids are concerned.”

“Thank you.” He leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. “I didn’t mean to have this conversation in my truck in front of your house. Let’s go in so I can ask your mom’s permission to date her son.” He winked.

“I expect you to actually do that,” I joked in return. “Seriously, please don’t, though.”

Mom was sitting in her favorite chair when we went inside. “Hey. How’d it go at the airport—oh, hi, Knox,” she said, noticing him behind me. Mom stood.

“Hi, Mary Beth. How are you doing?” Knox shook her hand.

“Not too bad. What are you boys up to?”

I opened my mouth to reply, but Knox beat me to it. “I asked Cal if he’d stay with me until the kids get here. I’m planning on talking to them about us, but I just…”

“Need to do it in your own time,” Mom said, this unfamiliar softness to her voice I didn’t quite understand.

“I need to consider them, yeah, and Cal too,” he replied, and my mushy little heart melted even more.

“Well, he must like you a lot if he doesn’t care that you call him Cal,” Mom said with a playful smile.

Knox cleared his throat. “I hope so because I care about him a lot.”

I basically had the best boyfriend ever.

“He’s all right,” I teased, leaning in and wrapping my arm around him. Mom’s eyes got slightly teary. “Hey. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” She waved me off. “I’m glad you’re here and that I get to see this. I didn’t think I’d get to.”

“Oh, Mama.” I stepped closer and pulled her into a hug. We held each other, and I could tell she was crying. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” She wiped her face. “Look at me crying like a big baby.”

“You should come to dinner at the house sometime, especially when the kids are back. It’d be nice if you got to meet them,” Knox told her, and I wanted to kiss him, I was so grateful. Well, I always wanted to kiss him, but even more in that moment.

“I’d like that a lot,” she replied.

We chatted for a few minutes before Knox went with me to gather my things. When we were in my bedroom, with the door closed, he said, “You could have told me you didn’t like to be called Cal.”

I shrugged. “I like it when you use the name.”

He pulled me close and kissed the back of my neck. “You’re mine. I don’t ever wanna let you go.”

I leaned back into him. I didn’t want him to let me go either.

It had been amazing waking up with Knox the next morning. I’d been an octopus all over him and the bed again, and he’d teased me and laughed about it while he made coffee. We had a quick breakfast together, then left for work at the same time, after chatting about what we’d have for dinner.

I swear we were right out of a gay made-for-TV movie, if they actually had gay made-for-TV movies, which they didn’t, and that sucked. But that was what it felt like, and yeah, I was loving it.

After my eight-hour shift at the clinic, I headed to the gym to get a workout in. When I signed up, I thought I needed to give myself a life outside of Knox, and I hadn’t really talked to Josh since I’d canceled on him for going to Richmond.

I parked, and as soon as I walked up to the building, Kellan came around the other corner.

“Oh. Hey!” He gave me a wide smile.

“How are you?” I pulled the door open and signaled for him to go inside.

“I’d be better if I wasn’t about to exercise.”

I laughed. “I hear ya…though it always feels good once I’m here.”

“That makes one of us.” He bumped my hip with his. “Josh got off work a few minutes ago. I’m working out with him. Wanna join us?”

“Yeah, I’d like that.”

Kellan went around the main desk and to