I smiled then. “Says my boyfriend.”
He smirked. “Says the man who has loved you since he was a kid.”
“Which means you’re a little biased,” I replied.
“No, baby. I don’t love easy. You know that.”
I nodded. He was definitely a hard one to crack. His life had made him difficult to get close to. He protected himself at all costs. Somehow I was the exception.
“Come on, they’re waiting on us, and I know you want to eat whatever Tallulah’s mother has sent and some of this pie,” I told him.
He studied me a moment. “You sure you’re up to talking to anyone? And Tallulah is wanting you to go shoe shopping with her.”
I thought about it for a moment. My head wasn’t in the place to shop right now. I needed to be near Gunner. He made things easier to handle and accept.
“As long as I’m with you, I’ll be fine.”
“Are you saying I gotta shop for shoes?”
I laughed at the horror on his face. “No. I mean I can go inside and visit. I just don’t want to go shopping. I want to be near you today.”
A smile slowly spread across his face. It was territorial in a way. Gunner liked that I wanted him. He had very little to none of that from his family growing up. I filled a large gaping hole inside of him, and I knew it. That’s why when he went all possessive of me, I handled it fine. I understood its source.
We walked back inside, and Tallulah stepped out of Nash’s arms, breaking their kiss as if she had been caught doing something naughty. It was good to see them back together. When they had been broken up, it had felt like something was missing. Nash had been lost without her too.
“Please continue to suck face. Don’t mind us,” Gunner drawled.
“Hush,” I told him, still grinning.
Tallulah laughed and pressed her fingers to her lips as she looked at Nash. He was a different man with her in his life. The twinkle in his eyes was back.
Gunner put Nonna’s pies and brownies on the table, then sat down, pulling me into his lap. I looked at him, confused. He shrugged. “You said you wanted to stay close to me today. I’m keeping you close.”
“I didn’t mean this,” I told him.
He winked at me, making my stomach feel fluttery. “I did.”
Shaking my head, I glanced over at Tallulah, who was watching me. “Are you okay?” she asked me.
I nodded. “Yeah, just family drama. More than I was ready to deal with.”
She seemed to understand and walked over to take the cover off one of the pies. “This smells delicious,” she said with a sigh.
“It is,” I assured her.
“If I eat this I’ll have to run three miles,” she groaned, and Nash walked up behind her, taking her waist in his hands.
“If you think you need to burn calories, I have a better idea,” he whispered, loud enough for us to hear.
“Nash!” she squealed as her cheeks turned bright pink and he leaned down to nibble her ear.
I looked away and reached for one of the chocolate cookies on the table, then took a bite. Gunner leaned over and sank his teeth into the cookie, then pulled it from my grasp.
“Nash! No,” I heard Tallulah say and looked back over at them. Nash had her arm and was pulling her away from the table.
“Come on,” he urged her, and I could see her body slowly caving in as she let him draw her to him and toward the door.
“Y’all keep that shit down in there. I’m eating,” Gunner told them just as they reached the door to the kitchen.