by Kaylee Ryan
“I doubt he finishes it,” I comment as his little eyes flutter shut. He’s still drinking, but who knows for how long.
“It was a big day.”
“It was. It’s hard to believe he’s a year old already.”
“Yeah,” he agrees. “It seems like yesterday that you called to tell me Ridge was at the hospital.”
“Kendall said they’re going to the cemetery later. I can’t imagine how hard that has to be for all of them.”
“It’s not your normal situation, but they’ve worked through it,” Tyler says. “Life has a way of working out.”
“You’re right.” It’s something I notice more and more as I get older. You often wish for one thing, and when it doesn’t come true, you’re disappointed until another unexpected turn takes you on a new path, one you never knew you wanted, but realize it’s the best thing that ever happened to you.
“How are things at the salon?” Tyler asks, pulling the bottle from a now snoozing Knox, and placing it on the table beside him.
“Things are going well. I have two other full-time stylists now and could probably take on another. It’s something I’ve been considering.” My hair salon, Reagan’s—I know, original—is doing well. I’ve been in business a few years now, and each year, my income grows.
“How’re things with work? Ridge mentioned something about a possible job out of town again.”
“Yeah, we used to take on more of those as you know, but since the little guy, we’ve stayed close to home.”
“You miss it? New city, new woman?” I ask, teasing him. Internally, I hate the question and don’t want to know the answer, but as his friend, it’s what’s expected. Problem is I want to be more than just his friend.
“Nah, not really. There’s something to be said for being home in your own bed at night.” He glances down at Knox, and his face softens. “As far as the women? There aren’t any. It’s been a long time.”
“Dry spell, Justice?” I tease. I want to wrap my arms around him and beg him to let me be the woman that breaks the spell.
“I guess you could say that. One of my choosing that is.” He turns to look at me. “Randoms no longer interest me.” My heart flips over in my chest at his confession.
“I can take him,” I say, changing the subject. I don’t want to talk about this. It can only go one of two ways. One, he tells me he’s got a thing for someone else, or two, he tells me it’s me. There have been times over the last year where I felt like he was feeling it too, but neither one of us have acted on it. No matter how much I want him, there are too many obstacles.
Well, only one.
My brother is his best friend.
Chapter 2
Tyler
* * *
The words are on the tip of my tongue. I feel as though we’ve been dancing around this attraction for months. I want to just toss the words out there and let them fall, but then what if the signs I think she’s been giving me really aren’t what I thought they were at all? What if she just wants to be friends? Would we lose what we have? It’s a risk, and one I’ve been battling with for months. She’s important to me, and losing that connection would tear me up inside.
“You look tired,” I say, instead of telling her how I feel about her.
“Yeah, first birthday parties are exhausting.” She laughs.
“Take a nap. I’ve got him.”
“No, I volunteered to watch him.”
“And now I’m volunteering. Just rest your eyes.” I chuckle softly. “That’s what my mom used to say when I was younger. I’d be bouncing around wanting to go to the park, or for her to go outside and play with me. I’d accuse her of sleeping and she would say she was just resting her eyes. Now that I’m an adult, I get it, but back then, I just wanted her to play with me. Kids have too much damn energy.”
“That they do,” she says, covering a yawn.
“Here.” I motion toward my shoulder. “Catch a catnap.” I hold my breath, wanting her to use me as a pillow. That’s what I’ve become—a man starved for any amount of contact from her. I remember giving Ridge shit when he first met Kendall. I get it now; too bad I can’t tell him that. I mean, I guess I could tell him. If she ever gives me the time of day, I’ll have to. I won’t be that guy. Hell, it wouldn’t surprise me if he already knows. We’ve all been close our entire lives, and I don’t exactly try to hide my attraction to her.
“You’ll wake me up when he wakes up?” she asks.
I do an internal fist bump. “Of course,” I tell her, knowing I’ll do no such thing. Not unless I absolutely have to. She moves a little closer and rests her head on my shoulder. This isn’t the first time she’s used me for a pillow, but this time, while we lie here, and I have baby Knox in my arms, it feels different. It feels like more. For the first time in my life, I want everything that encompasses more. I want to be a father. I want a wife. I want all of it.
And I want it with her.
I need to test the waters, see if this attraction goes deeper. I’ll regret it if I don’t at least try. I’m well aware of what that could mean if it doesn’t work out. I’d lose a good friend, the one I’ve found in her. Days like today will be all kinds of awkward. Then there’s Ridge. He’s been one of my best friends since I was a kid, and if things don’t work out between us, that could jeopardize that friendship. I work for him. Hell, my three other best friends do too. There would be a lot at stake. I understand the risks. I need to decide if the reward is worth it. If pursuing her, is worth it.
Definitely.
I wake to the feel of little hands pulling at my beard. Opening my eyes, I see Knox grinning up at me. He coos, telling me all about it. “You have a good nap?” He just grins some more and yanks harder. “We need to be quiet so we don’t wake Aunt Reagan.” At the mention of his aunt, he looks around until he spots her leaning against me. At some point, I dozed off as well and woke up with my arm around her. Knox sits up in my lap and reaches for her nose. He’s quick and makes contact before I can pull my arm from behind her and stop him. Her hazel eyes flutter open, as a smile tilts her lips.
“You got my nose, you little stinker,” she says, reaching up and tickling his belly. He cackles with laughter, making us both laugh as well. He reaches for her and she takes him.
I take the opportunity to stretch out my arm that he was using as a pillow. “You want this?” I grab the half-empty bottle off the table and offer it to Knox. He grins and reaches for the bottle. “It’s okay to give him that, right?” I ask Reagan.
“How long did we sleep?”
I look at the clock on the wall. “About thirty minutes.”
“Yeah, should be fine.”
Knox doesn’t seem to mind as he lays his head back against Reagan’s chest and begins to suck it down. He sits up and hands it to me when he’s done and climbs off Reagan’s lap.
“At least he didn’t throw it. He was in a stage where he would toss it when he was finished. Took them forever to break him of that habit.”
“I remember Ridge telling me something about that.” Setting the bottle on the table, I move to the floor to play with a few of his new toys with him. Reagan takes the bottle to the kitchen and joins us. That’s how Ridge and Kendall find us about twenty minutes later.
“Mom, mom, mom,” Knox babbles, climbing to his feet and making his way to Kendall. He crashes into her legs and holds his arms up for her to pick him up.
“Thanks,” Ridge says, taking a seat in his recliner.
“Anytime,” I say, standing. “Knox, buddy, bump it.” I hold my fist out for him. He gives me a toothy grin, concentrates on making a fist, and bumps his into mine. “Happy Birthday, little man.” I mess up his hair and he swats my hand away, laughing. “I’ll see you Monday,” I tell Ridge.
“I should go too.” Reagan stands. “I know y’all have another stop today,” she says as she pulls Kendall and Knox into a group hug. “Congratulations.” She turns to look at her brother. “Both of you.”
/>
“Thank you,” they say at the same time.
After waiting for her to grab her purse, I walk her to her car. “So, you have any plans tonight?”
“Nah, I need to do some laundry. You?”
“Not a thing. The guys mentioned meeting up at Bottoms Up.”
“You should go.”
“Maybe,” I say, not committing.
“Well, if you need me, I’ll be doing laundry and hanging a couple of shelves in the salon.”
“You need some help?” I offer.
“Nah, it’s Saturday night. I’m sure you have better things to do with your time.”
“You want me to follow you over?” I ask, ignoring the fact that she declined my offer.
“Sure, I mean, if you really want to. I’ll make you dinner for your services.”
I open my mouth to tell her I’d give her my services, all of them for free anytime she wants them, but think better of it. “Not necessary.”
“You sure? I had planned on making Mom’s chicken and dumplings recipe.”
“Fine. If you insist,” I say, because Heidi Beckett’s chicken and dumplings are not something you pass up. I’ve never had them when Reagan has made them, but I know for a fact she got her mom’s skills in the kitchen. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. “You need me to stop and pick anything up?” I ask her.
“Nope. Just park behind the salon and come on up.”
“I’m right behind you,” I tell her. I jog off to my truck and pull out behind her.
“Can you hand me a nail?” I ask Reagan. We’re in the storage room of her salon hanging her shelves. “Thanks,” I say, taking it from her. I make quick work of hanging the last shelf, double checking all three of them making sure they’re level. “Anything else you need done while I’m here?” I took double the time I really needed to hang these shelves just to extend my time with her.
“Actually, the hinge on Carol’s station is loose and the door is leaning. Can you fix that? I’ve been meaning to get the tools from Dad or Ridge to fix it myself.”
“Lead the way.” The more projects she finds for me, the longer I get to be here with her. Fuck, if the guys could read my thoughts, they’d give me shit. I’m not sure I’d ever hear the end of it. Then again, once Ridge proposed to Kendall, we all laid off. Not that I’m proposing marriage. At least not anytime soon.
“Thank you, Ty, for doing this. I could have done it on my own, but you make it look easy.”
“You do know what I do for a living?” I tease.
“I know. I just hate asking for help for things I can do on my own.”
“I don’t mind, Reagan.” I shut the door, testing to make sure it’s closing properly. “All set. What else?”
“Um… how are you at assembling furniture?” she questions, biting down on her bottom lip.
“Again, I build things for a living.” I laugh, trying not to think about how I want to be the one biting down on that lip. “You have something for me? We might as well do it while I’m here and have my tools.”
“I do. I have a bookshelf that needs to be assembled. It was delivered last week, but I haven’t had the time to put it together yet.”
“Lead the way.” I pick up my bag of tools. She shuts down the lights and leads us to a locked door. Behind the door is a set of stairs that leads to her apartment. I’ve been there many times over the years. “You still like living over the shop?” I ask, watching her ass sway as she climbs the steps in front of me.
“It’s okay. The more time I spend with Ridge and Kendall, the more I think I might like a place of my own. Something that isn’t attached to my business.” She clears the top step and turns to face me. It’s a tight space, so her tits rub against my chest. “What about you?” she asks, looking up at me. “You still like condo living?”
“Not really.” She turns to unlock her apartment and I follow her in. “I’ve been looking for a place. I’m tired of hearing my neighbors beside me. They argue all the damn time.”
“That’s awful for them and for you.”
“Where’s this bookshelf?” I ask her.
“Follow me.” She grins. Her apartment is small, but cozy considering it’s above her salon. “One day, I’d like to turn this into office space. I have a small corner where I do payroll and order supplies. It would be nice to make this a breakroom, and have an office.”
“I’m sure your employees would like that as well.”
“Definitely. Here it is.” She points to a little alcove off the living room. There are already two bookshelves full of books, and it looks as if this one will barely fit in the remaining space.
“Did you measure?” I ask her.
“Yes,” she sasses, sticking her tongue out at me. “I measured twice.”
“Just checking.” I raise my hands in defense.
“And don’t you dare ask me if I knew what I was doing. Dad and Ridge both made sure I knew how to use a measuring tape.”
“I wasn’t going to say a word.” Setting my tool bag on the floor, I take a seat next to the box and start cutting it open. “What are all of these books anyway?”
“Signed copies from the authors I love.”
“I thought you used one of those e-reader things?”
“Oh, I don’t read these.” She must see the confused look on my face. “That would risk messing up the spine or bending the pages.”
“But isn’t that the point of the book?”
“Nope. The point is that I loved every one of these, and I have the authors’ signatures in them. That’s a big deal, Tyler,” she says, placing her hands on her hips.
“Got it. Signed books are a big deal.”
“You need some help?” she asks me.
“Didn’t you promise me dinner?”
“I did. I’ll go get started while you do that. Just yell if you need a hand.”
“I’ve got this,” I assure her, and get to work. It’s a simple five-shelf bookcase, and in theory, I should have it put together in twenty minutes tops. However, Reagan’s apartment is somewhat of an open floorplan. I can see her from where I’m sitting in the corner of the living room. She’s pulled her dark hair up into a knot that’s now resting on the top of her head. She’s not doing anything unusual, just cooking, but she still captures my attention.
“How’s it coming over there?” she calls, not bothering to look up.
“Good. You?” I call back and return to work before she catches me staring.
“About ten more minutes.”
I survey the shelf, and if I can keep my eyes off her, I should be done at the same time. Refusing to look at her, I keep my head in the game. I’m just placing the final shelf when she calls out telling me it’s time to eat.
“Just in time,” I say, joining her in the kitchen.
“You finished?” she asks, those hazel eyes bright with excitement.
“Yep. You have books you need to put on it?”
“Not yet, but there’s a signing in a few weeks. I plan to add to my collection.”
“How did I not know this about you?”
She shrugs. “You know I love to read. I don’t brag about my signed book obsession. At least not to anyone who doesn’t get it.”
“Hey, I’m an equal opportunity listener. You can talk to me about anything.”
She laughs, the sound echoing throughout the small apartment. “Noted.” She smiles. “Thank you for all your help today, Ty. I really appreciate it.”
“Anytime. I’m just a phone call away.”
“Eat up,” she says, handing me a steaming bowl of chicken and dumplings.
I waste no time diving in. “Oh, man, this is so good.”
“Maybe you should learn to cook something that doesn’t require a grill,” she teases.
“Are you volunteering to teach me?”
“Sure.” She shrugs. “Cooking isn’t all that hard.”
“I’m a single guy living in a condo. Alone. Throwing some meat on
the grill with a baked potato or a salad is easy for one.”
“What do you do in the winter?”
“The grill.”
“What?” She shakes her head. “I can see it now. You standing out your back door wearing your coat, gloves, and scarf, the snow flying, and you’re trying to grill a freaking steak.”
“Not exactly. But you’re close. I have one of those indoor grills.” I wink at her.
“Of course you do.”
“Thank you for this,” I say, wiping my mouth. “It was delicious.” I stand and take my plate to the sink, wash it, and place it in the rack. “You clean as you cook,” I comment, noticing there are no other dirty dishes in the sink.
“Habit I picked up from my mom. She says it’s easier, and I agree with her. Who wants all those dishes after you’re full from a good meal?” She takes her last bite and I snag her plate, washing it as well.
“So, what’s on the agenda for the rest of the night?” I ask.
“Nothing much. There’s a new Netflix movie out. I think I might watch it. You?”
“Triple Frontier?”
“Yeah, it looks good. And the actor line up….” She fans her face as if she’s hot.
“Really? Those guys?”
“I wouldn’t kick any of them out of my bed.”
Mentally, I’m comparing myself to the actors in the movie. I guess I’m closest to that Hunnam guy. “Who’s your favorite?” I ask, following her into the living room. She takes a seat on the couch, and I sit right next to her.
“Hmmm.” She pretends to mull it over. “Like I said, I wouldn’t kick any of them out of my bed, but if I have to choose just one, I’m going with Charlie.”
Fuck yes! “We watching this movie or what?”
She turns to look at me, surprise written all over her face. “You want to stay?”
“I’ve been wanting to watch it. Why should we both watch it alone?”
