the kitchen as she tipped tequila into two margarita glasses.
I put the ice cream in the freezer. Then I moved in behind her, kissing the curve of her neck, from the base of her hairline to the slope of her shoulder. I loved the loose sweatshirts she wore that were always slipping off one shoulder, providing me the perfect access to one of my favorite parts of her. “Thank you,” I murmured as I tasted her skin.
Gabi turned her head and nuzzled into me. “I love unraveling you as much as I love winding you up.”
“Mmm. Same. I’m looking forward to the drink, but I did bring ice cream.” I nipped her earlobe. “You unraveled me so fast it didn’t even have time to melt.”
She snickered. Then she sidestepped me and turned to hand me the glass.
The drink was perfectly tart, sweet and cold. “Delicious drink, Happy.”
“It’s one of the few things I’ve mastered.”
“I can think of one other thing you fucking rock at too.”
That brought a cocky curl to her lips. She snagged her glass and said, “Let’s sit in the living room.”
We sat side by side on the couch and she snuggled into me.
“How’s your dad?”
“Better. They’re letting him out tomorrow. He’s still being an asshole about the whole thing.”
“I think that’s a default reaction. I remember my dad being the same way. I thought he’d be thankful to be alive, but he was pissy because he wasn’t aware his body had reached the point of failure.”
“That sounds about right.” I took a sip. “How was your day?”
“Follow-up tourney meetings for the state refs at HQ. Then training and teaching. Same old, same old.”
“For now. Any word from Wolf?”
Gabi shook her head. “I’m guessing it’s because they know I’ll be out of reach the next couple of days. This is the last tourney, so I imagine they’ll get with me first thing next week.”
I twined a section of her ponytail around my finger. “If your team makes it to the finals . . . that game is the last one on Saturday night, right?”
“Yes. While I’m hopeful, we’ve got about a twenty percent chance of that happening. Why?”
“There’s this Grant Foundation Gala on Saturday night. Attendance is required for me so it sucks I can’t come and cheer you on when your team makes the finals.”
She snorted.
“That said, since I knew you had a conflict and couldn’t attend the gala as my date, I’m giving you a heads-up that I did have to arrange to take someone else.”
Her entire body stiffened.
“Don’t be mad, this is one of the unavoidable CEO things we talked about.”
“Who?” she demanded.
I don’t know what tempted me to mess with her, other than I liked seeing her jealousy. “I’ve known her for a long time. She’s been to a bunch of these events so she’s familiar with them.”
“That is not easing my mind, Nolan.”
“I’m sorry. I wish I could skip it.”
“Me too,” she retorted. “I hate the idea of some other woman having your undivided attention all night. Seeing you in yet another one of those fuckable suits you own. Touching you. Makes me wanna rip her hair out by the roots.”
I smiled against her ear. “I don’t think my mother would look good bald. Then again, maybe she would.”
She froze.
I laughed. “Yes, I’m taking my mother to the gala. Dad should be going, but since he’s not, and I have need of a date, and she has a dress . . .”
“You jerk.” A hard punch landed near my ribs. “That’s for making me believe I could be so easily replaced in your life.”
Grabbing her chin, I forced her to look at me. “You can’t. Ever. I don’t even want to try.”
She blinked at me.
“I had this whole . . . scenario in my head of how I’d do this. There might’ve been wine. Roses.”
“Weeping violins?” she teased.
“Perhaps. I definitely needed more time to craft romantic words to tell you—”
“Holy shit, Nolan, you’re not kidding.”
“No.”
“But you don’t have to—”
“Yes I do, so please listen to me.” I stroked her cheek. “I wanted it to be special when I talked about how this seems to have happened so fast between us. Yet, maybe that’s why I know it’s real, because I’ve never felt this way about anyone else.”
“How do you feel?”
My heart pounded like thunder when I said, “I love you.”
A pause and then she said, “I know.”
“You do?”
“Well, yeah. You told me like three times when I was blowing you.”