Oh, my heart. I swallowed over the dry lump in my throat. “Nothing to be sorry for. I do have a present for you and your brother, but it’s upstairs.”
His eyes widened. Almost as big as his smile.
“Cool,” Carson said as he started jumping up and down with his arms above his head. “Can we go see?” He looked immediately at his dad.
Beau gazed down at me. “Geneviève, it’s fine, really. I know this was all—unexpected. You don’t need to give them anything.”
“Please, Daddy? Can we see what Jon a beeve gots us?” Cooper asked, making me laugh at his attempt with my name.
“I thought her name was Gigi?” Carson asked in a very confused voice.
“My full name is hard for a lot of people to say. You can just call me, Gigi, if you like,” I said with a giggle as I hugged his brother.
“Jon a beeve is a pretty name, though,” Cooper said, his dark, brown eyes peering up at me.
Beau chuckled and grabbed Carson’s hand. “It is, Coop. Should we go up to Jon a beev’s apartment now?”
I tried really hard to stop the smile that crossed my face. It was impossible not to laugh at Beau’s pronunciation.
“Wow,you get to live here? On the high, high, top floor?” Cooper said, as he and his brother dashed over and sat on the outside furniture.
I unlocked our—my—door and said, “Yep, lucky me.”
I walked inside, and the boys dashed around me. “Jon a beeve, do you gots a dog?” Cooper asked, running over to the puppies’ pen.
“Uh, yeah, but they’re at their uncle’s house right now,” I said, then headed directly for the closet where I’d put their gift. Doing a mental pat on my back for ordering it when I did.
As I reached up to the top shelf, I suddenly felt heat at my back. A tall, familiar heat.
It would be so easy to collapse back into him. Feel his strong arms around me again.
I craved his touch.
“Need some help?” Beau asked, his warm breath on my ear and neck giving me shivers. Then he reached up, curving his body around me. His arm covered the length of mine, making my arm look tiny next to his. He pulled down the wrapped box I’d been struggling to get.
“Beau,” I said, my voice breathless as I shut my eyes. I wanted to forgive him, but something inside of me just couldn’t let go of the fact he’d lied.
Big.
Huge.
A colossal lie.
I ducked under his arm, trying to get away from his manly, spicy scent, and his strong, warm body. I glared up at him and pulled the box out of his hand before rushing off into the living room where the boys were waiting.
Once I got there, they were both jumping on my couch.
“Hey, boys, down,” Beau bellowed from behind me. They stopped dead in their tracks, looking terribly guilty.
“Come open my present.”
They both bounded toward me with enormous smiles on their faces. “Can I have it? Can I have it?” they both whined in tandem, trying to jump for the gift.
I held the box over my head. “Fix the cushions and pillows on the couch, then sit properly, please.”
Instantly, my couch was mashed back into place and two, very innocent looking boys sat on it. You could nearly feel them vibrate out of their skin as they waited.
“Squeeze over, Carson,” I said, jerking my head to the right. He moved over right away, and I sat down. Setting the box between them, I nodded, giving them the go-ahead to begin.