“I don’t. I just want what’s best for him because God knows he hasn’t had the best luck in the past.” Duncan met my gaze again, and there was a pain in his eyes that hadn’t been there before that made me need to swallow hard.
“I’m gonna do my damnedest to be the best thing for him,” I promised gruffly. For all I loved hugging Danny, that wasn’t how Duncan and I rolled, so I settled for pushing his shoulder again, laughing to break up the heavy blanket of emotion. “And he’s an adult. We don’t need your approval, but it sure would be nice, especially for him.”
“Don’t fuck it up.” He pushed me right back on my uninjured side, giving me a hard stare. “That’s all I’m gonna say.”
“I’m not going to fuck up.” Towel around his neck and water clinging to his forehead, Danny came into the kitchen. He’d clearly missed the part where Duncan had praised him because Danny looked to be spoiling for a fight. Predictably, Duncan’s hackles went up too.
“I didn’t say you were,” he snapped, then took a breath, seeming to think the better of that approach. He softened his voice. “Maybe Money’s the one I’m warning. What good am I if I can’t occasionally pull big brother rank to look out for you?”
“I don’t need a keeper.” Danny kept the stubborn jut to his chin, even if he did dial back the anger.
“I’m your brother. It’s my job.”
“Mm-hmm.” Danny made a frustrated noise and opened his mouth like he was about to qualify the whole half-brother thing, but then snapped it shut again and silently nodded.
Duncan held up the hand that wasn’t holding his coffee. “Look, I know I haven’t always been there. And I can’t change the past. And I sure as hell can’t fix our father. But I can be here now.”
“Thanks.” Danny exhaled hard, sounding way more sincere now. He crossed the room to put an arm around me, giving Duncan a fierce look. “But you still don’t get to be mad at Cash. It’s my fault.”
“It is not,” I protested.
“Aw. I’m not sure whether to be charmed or horrified you guys already fight like an old married couple.” Duncan’s laugh was a bit forced, but Danny simply smirked.
“Maybe I’m that irresistible.”
“Have a croissant.” Duncan handed Danny the remaining coffee drink and one of the pastries. “This is gonna take some getting used to.”
“Join the club.” I wasn’t entirely used to all these new parts of my life yet either, but I sure wanted to try, didn’t want to walk away from a good thing. We all stood there looking awkwardly at each other until Duncan’s phone buzzed, and he didn’t even try to hide his relief.
“I have a meeting soon with a potential client. Sorry.” He scooped up his drink and another croissant. “Maybe I’ll be less weirded out by your birthday.”
“You promised me dinner.” Danny’s smile was a little tentative. Duncan wasn’t entirely wrong about him being vulnerable, and yet again, I was impressed at how he kept going, even in the face of a world that had let him down over and over.
“I did.” Duncan clapped him on the back. “I’ll be back. Promise.”
He left shortly after, reminding me to re-arm the security system, and Danny didn’t wait for me to finish checking the monitor before he was on me, wrapping me up from behind, lips on my neck.
“Oh, thank fuck. Alone last.”
“Oh? You need something?” I spun to face him, cupping his face in my hands.
“You.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
Danny
Apparently, Cash and Duncan’s friendship was going to be okay. Which, as far as I was concerned, was cause for celebration. Well, that and it had been over twenty-four hours and what felt like a lifetime since I’d had more than a quick kiss from Cash. We were finally alone in the house, and that was the real celebration.
Cash, however, looked skeptical about the prospect of getting it on in my kitchen. After giving me a way-too-quick kiss, he glanced behind us at the bank of windows and patio doors.
“My next house will have more privacy,” I grumbled. “Fewer windows and less drone risk.”
“Outdoor tub?” he teased, letting me grab his hand.
“That too,” I said airily as I dragged him to the relative privacy of the couch. “This will have to do. No way can I wait for upstairs.”
“I love it when you get dramatic.” Standing in front of the couch, he drew me in for another feather-soft kiss.
I was pretty sure I loved him, but it was ridiculously soon for telling him that aloud, so I settled for chasing a deeper kiss, letting my lips do the talking. I loved the brush of his scruffy beard on my fingertips, the fullness of his lips, the boldness of his tongue, the quietness of his sighs. All of him.