I called her only to ask her for help, to get her opinions and advice on locations, but like on Lizzie’s wedding day, we’d instantly fallen into a conversation as if we’d known each other for years.
She loved the area where she worked and the salon, but as soon as I reached out, she said she’d absolutely want to take on this adventure with me.
So after two weeks, and seeing tons of buildings, Kelsey seeing them in person and me seeing them via FaceTime, we’d signed our lease agreement. Now Kelsey and I talked every day, discussing the construction that needed to be done. My life was now spent checking and double-checking my spreadsheet, careful to stay within my budget, and twirling with excitement.
I was doing this, and all of it was falling into place so much faster than I could have predicted.
I also wanted it to be a surprise, even if I hated not sharing every single detail with Joey.
Which was why I was currently on the phone with Joey, his face on the screen in front of me, and my indecision with keeping this a surprise from him was killing me.
“How was your day?” He was sitting on his couch, shirtless, a protein shake he occasionally sipped from in one hand.
God, I wanted to be there, seeing all those muscles he’d been telling me he was growing in person.
“Busy. How was your workout this morning?”
He’d told me about working out with Dominick Masters, how they’d started talking more because they were the only two showing up so early every day. As far as I knew, Joey hadn’t taken a single day off since he’d returned to Vegas, four days after we separated.
His brows puckered. I didn’t blame him. Every time he asked what I was doing, I changed the subject back to him.
He adjusted, draped his arm over him, settling his palm at the back of his neck. The view gave me a great view of those biceps and if he noticed where my gaze trailed on the screen, his muscles flexed.
“Nice guns.” I laughed.
“They’re waiting for you. Missing you too much.”
“I miss you too. All of you.” Every time we talked, I’d trail my fingertip over his jaw on my screen, like I could actually feel him. “Every day, I swear.”
“This is killing me. Being so far away from you.” He blew out a breath, opened and closed his mouth and then muttered, “Fuck it. Look, Gabby. I gotta know what’s going on. You’re not telling me anything and it’s… it’s driving me crazy.”
“I know. I’m just… working on things. With my mom. And my—our—future.”
“How can it be ours when I’m not a part of it, though?”
It was a damn good question. Shit, maybe I was messing this up. But I knew him. If I told him my plans, he’d swoop in, help me handle it. And yeah, in relationships people worked together, they supported each other. I no longer knew if I was being stubborn, but I needed to prove to myself I could do this.
“I know. I know it’s hard and I know you’re frustrated with me, but it’s all good things, Joey, I swear. I just, need it to be mine for a moment.”
His lips pressed into a line so thin and my heart squeezed. He sat up, and I could tell from the movement, the way the phone jiggled he was resting his elbows on his knees, giving me a delicious look at all those abs my fingers itched to touch and the body that was always the last thing I envisioned before I fell to sleep at night, softly crying out his name while I found self-pleasure in the memory of him alone.
“Don’t look at me like that when I’m hours away from you.” His tone had thickened, sending sparks of desire through me.
“I could… I could show you… what I’m thinking of when I see you like that.”
His dark eyes flashed. “No.”
“No?”
I slumped back in my bed. Maybe I really had gone too far with all of this.
“No. The next time I see you—all of you—it’s going to be when my hands and mouth and body can take care of it. You tease me now and I’m breaking my fucking promise to you, hauling my ass to Seattle and kidnapping you back here.”
Shit. My hand not holding the phone curled into a fist. Was it wrong of me to be turned on by the thought of him throwing me over his shoulder and kidnapping me?
“You can’t say things like that to me.”
His grin turned wicked, that devilish dimple dug into his cheek. “Then get your shit sorted and fast so I don’t have to get arrested.”
I barked out a laugh. “I’m working on it. And things are… moving quickly. Faster than I expected.”
“Yeah?”
He wanted to ask. I could see the questions he had on the tip of his tongue. Instead, he drove a hand through his hair and asked, “How are things with your mom? Any better?”
She was looking over my shoulder constantly, questioning, helping me plan. I didn’t think we’d ever get to the easy Gabby can do no wrong relationship she had with Garrett, but it was better.
“We got in a fight this morning. About Dad.”
His shoulders tensed for a moment, that same look he got every time something didn’t go right for me. I adored his protectiveness. “Wanna talk about it?”
“I yelled at her that I knew the reason she got so mad at me was because when she looked at me, she saw Dad.”
“Damn…”
“I know. It was mean, but it was also true. I look just like him. She told me that once, when I was little and then she went and cried for three days. It keeps hitting me. You’re just like your dad. You look just like your dad, but whenever she says it, it’s never this happy thing. It’s always—how can you remind me of the man I love and can’t have. Like she hates me for it.”
My chin shook as I forced it out.
“She doesn’t hate you, Gabby.”
“No, but it explains a lot. Why she pushes me differently than Garrett. They’re so much alike, and I’m… not them.” I pushed forward before I cried over it. Again. “Anyway, we talked about it. A lot. More today before she left for work. She wants me to be like her and Garrett, I think so I don’t remind her of him, but I told her today she has to love me for me, accept me like I am, because that’s what she did for Dad.”
His brows arched. “That’s… harsh. Wise, though.”
“I think I made my point. At least, she gave me a nod like she got it. So who knows.”
He rubbed his chin and gave me a look that had my toes curling. “If I was there with you, I’d be hugging you while you told me all this. God, I want to touch you.”
“Me too.”
“Mostly, I want to be there for you, in everything you need.”
That uncertainty flared again and it killed me. A spike to the chest. “You are. I promise you are. Who’s coming over tonight?”
He’d texted me earlier, telling me guys were coming over to watch the baseball games, have some drinks. I already knew Alix was coming and he’d said he was surprised Dom hadn’t immediately turned down the offer and said he’d think about it.
“Most of the team, I think. Whoever’s in town. Garrett said he doesn’t want to leave Lizzie for long right now but might stop by. Did you know he’s not drinking?”
“As soon as third trimester hit, he stopped. Said he wanted to make sure he was always ready to take her to the hospital if needed.”