the clock would start ticking and I did not work well under pressure. Deadlines were my mortal enemy, guaranteeing a bad mood and questionable decisions to get the job done in time.
When you added the fact that I knew surprises surely lurked under that squeaking wood, just waiting to set me back a week or two, it was easy to see why I postponed the project day after day.
After day.
For some copper-haired reason, I’d been feeling invincible lately, so Friday morning after Kennedy left for work and Maxine left for who knew what, I got busy.
Earbuds in. Old wood out.
The hiss and thump of the nail gun.
The promise of a great fucking night ahead. Of course, you could rearrange that sentence and it’d still be true. There was also a promise of a great night fucking ahead.
I grinned. “Man, of course I come up with something like that without Lucas or Collin around to hear it.”
And so, I laughed to myself, imagining their groans of reluctant appreciation.
If I’d known it was possible to be in such a good mood, I’d have stopped following Collin on his tours sooner. Stopped living my life as an extension of his and started living for me. Although, I couldn’t have separated from him any earlier than I did because he needed me…right up until he didn’t anymore.
The thought felt cumbersome in comparison to everything else. I pushed it away and focused on the stairs, pleased not to find any surprises waiting for me underneath. As I got to work on the last step, the front door burst open in an explosion of sunlight and Kennedy.
“Honey! I’m home!” She closed the door and I smiled at the lack of shoulder ramming and cursing it required. “Wow! Look at this! Are you telling me I can sneak out of my bedroom without Nan knowing?”
“That’s right, Penny,” I said in my best gameshow announcer voice. “You’re free to have all the impromptu midnight snacks you want. And the best part? No one will know!”
She hit me with a dirty look. “I wasn’t talking about food.”
I returned her smoldering gaze. “Neither was I.”
Wiping my hands on my jeans, I met her at the bottom of the stairs, then slid my arms around her waist, flexed my fingers against her lower back, and drew her in for a kiss. That feminine gasp in the back of her throat was all the reward I needed.
Hot.
Tortured.
Needy.
My dick saluted his agreement with my assessment, then sagged in disappointment when she stepped out of my arms.
“You won’t believe what happened today.” She leaned against the banister, absently running her hands along the untreated wood in a way that sent my imagination off to the filthiest of places.
I wrenched my focus away from her hypnotic movement and squinted, tilting my head as if I could read the answer right off her face. “You won the lotto.”
“No.” She rewarded my joke with a giggle.
“Aliens landed outside the clinic.”
“Here I am, eager to share some great news.” She twisted those fuck-me lips into a pout. “And you’re being ridiculous. I have to admit, I didn’t see this coming, Wiki.”
“You told me I wouldn’t believe what happened. Seeing as I’m a firm believer that nothing is impossible, what choice did I have but to go big?”
Kennedy gave me the sweetest smile, her eyes lighting up with something I hadn’t seen aimed my way before. A jolt of shock asked if what I was seeing was love. Panic twisted my stomach into heart-shaped knots at the thought, but then she turned away, breaking the spell.
The fact that I was imagining stuff like that meant I was getting attached. With a capital A. I’d need to be more careful on that front. Zero expectations. Stay detached. Prepare for the worst. Those measures had kept me from being disappointed after Perfect Mom crushed my soul and they hadn’t let me down yet.
“That kid?” Kennedy paused, hitting me with a question mark of a glance. “The one I was considering calling the state about?” When I nodded, she continued, “I met his mom today. I was so completely wrong about her. Like, one hundred percent off the mark. I’m so glad you told me to wait until I had more info before I did anything. I could have devastated them if I’d made the call.”
“Assuming his mom is telling the truth.”
She folded her arms over her chest and sucked in her lips. “She seemed very honest.”
“People can seem like anything they