With that, he patted me on the cheek and walked away, stopping to slam his hand down on Linc’s shoulder.
At one time, that move might’ve rocked my man.
But now? As big and muscular as he was? He hadn’t even flinched, let alone rocked him.
“Take care of my girl, or I’ll kill you.”
I snorted, but Linc stood up and turned so that he could face Steel fully.
“As long as there’s breath in my body…”
He left the rest hanging, but Linc’s words made my heart jump in reaction.
God, did this man have any idea what he did to me?
“Gag,” Bayou grumbled and stood. “All of y’all fools falling in love around me. Just keep that shit on your side of the fence, for Christ’s sake.”
I rolled my eyes and walked away, heading to the bedroom where I had to get dressed and get my hair dried before it permanently set into its wavy, never going to be tamed ways.
Just as I was heading out, Linc caught me by the wrist and made me stay. Bayou made his way up to Steel just as I turned and regarded Linc.
“Stopped by and saw your grandpa on the way here,” Steel said as he stuck out his massive hand.
Bayou seemed to go preternaturally still.
“How’s my pop doin’?” Bayou asked, offering his hand to Steel.
Steel took it and shook it before letting it go.
“Dixie is staying young.” Steel grinned wide.
Bayou held up the hand that Steel had just shaken. “That’s enough. I really don’t want to know.”
I did.
Eyes gleaming, I said, “What did you walk in on him doing?”
Bayou reached out and pushed my face away, causing me to laugh.
Linc walked up behind me and secured his arm around my waist, pulling me back into him once again.
“Nobody wants to know what their parents or grandparents are doing,” Linc teased. “It’s gross.”
“It’s not gross,” I paused. “When it’s not your family.”
“Well then let me tell you about what I walked in on your parents doing,” Jessie started to laugh.
I made a gagging sound. “Grossssss!”
Everybody had a good chuckle at that, and I noticed that Steel didn’t look the least bit repentant on being caught doing anything to my mother.
Yuck.Chapter 12Dating Conleigh sometimes requires you to answer questions like ‘What’s the name of the guy that played in that movie from before I was born?’
-Linc to his father
Linc
A thousand thoughts were zipping through my head, and not one of them didn’t center at least a little bit around the woman that I loved.
Yes, that’s right. The woman that I loved.
There was no denying that fact.
I’d loved her since she was sixteen and in a perpetually bad mood.
Now, at the age of twenty-four, I only loved her more.
It was a deeper, purer kind of love that I knew could withstand the test of time.
Anything could be thrown at us, and we’d persevere.
What I felt for Conleigh was like a homing beacon in my soul. It told me that I was going in the right direction, as long as Conleigh was in my sights and my destination.
“Yo,” Joe said, interrupting my thoughts. “Are you going to use that machine, or just lay on it?”
I flipped Joe off and started to bench press the set and stopped when Joe leaned over and pushed his crotch into my face.
“God.” I shoved the weights up hard. “You’re such a dick.”
Joe started laughing and jumped back just in time to miss having his dick and balls hit with three hundred and fifty pounds.
Once I racked the weights, I sat up and offered him my best glare.
I was able to hold the glare for all of two point five seconds before I burst out laughing.
That was just another example of why Joe was never going to grow up.
I didn’t think it would ever be possible for him either, to be honest.
He’d forever be a kid at heart, and kids were still fascinated with things like fart jokes and their wieners.
Joe bent over to laugh. “You should’ve seen your face.”
The door to the weight room slammed shut, signaling someone entering, but neither one of us turned around to welcome the newcomer.
“You wouldn’t have been saying it was funny when I took off your dick with the bar.” I tossed my sweaty towel at the little shit.
“Why would anybody be taking a dick off while y’all are lifting weights?” Conleigh asked from behind me.
I looked at the woman—my woman—over my shoulder and grinned. She was all hot and sweaty and I wanted to lick every single drop of it off her body. Slowly.
Today she’d come to the players’ gym with me and alternated between running and power walking around the track while I got some weights in. Since I wasn’t supposed to be more than an hour, she’d agreed to hang around and work out—though she said that she might very well combust, and I might have to peel her remains off the track once I was done.