Coming Undone (25 page)

He was looking at her, worried. “I’ll call him tomorrow. Thank you for the card and for the checking on him.” One thing she knew: if she was going to love him, she had to just love him without fear of the end. It would happen, and she’d deal with the fact that she’d still have to see him every day. But it wasn’t anywhere near over, so why not just be happy with him? She could be all adult and stuff, right? Stay friends with an ex when the time came?
Sure
she could.

“What are you thinking about?” He began to ladle chili into the bowls.

About how she was such a liar. She feared the end. But she’d love him anyway. You don’t always choose who you love, sometimes it just happens. Brody, despite his general reluctance to be permanent with anyone, was a good choice. He was a good man. Honest. Hard-C O M I N G

working. He cared about people and he’d been there for her every single time she’d needed him.

She managed a smile even though she was torn between weeping and laughing. “
You
. Thank you for being so good to us.”

He smiled and kissed her quickly. “It’s my pleasure. It makes me happy.” He paused. “I care about you both. I want you to be happy and safe.”

“Enough mushy stuff. I’m hungry.” And she felt raw, exposed and vulnerable in a way she never had before.

He cocked his head, looking at her carefully. “You okay?”

Before she could answer him, someone knocked on the front door and she sighed, putting a bowl down in front of Rennie before starting toward her hallway.

Brody put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. “Why don’t I get it?” Brody
sort
of asked, but his body was already heading toward the front door. Lucky for him she was just fine with him dealing with the Sorensons on her doorstep or anything of that nature.

The soft murmur, replaced by her father’s booming voice, filled the house as they came in. Her mother had her arm linked with Brody’s, and Elise realized once again that she and Rennie weren’t the only women in the family who loved the man.

Her father kissed her cheeks and looked over her shoulder toward the slow cooker. “Smells good. You know how much I love chili.” Her parents came in and made themselves at home, filling bowls and sitting at the table, chatting happily with Rennie.

Her family. Crazy-making but wonderful. And they were there for her. That’s what counted the most.

After Rennie went to bed, Elise filled her parents in on the new-est developments. They agreed to hang out for the guys coming over with Todd the following day to install the new security system. Brody looked tired, and she knew her parents weren’t leaving anytime soon.

“You look tired. Why don’t you go home and rest?” she suggested softly, following him into the kitchen.

“Because I want to be here with you.”

She smiled, butterflies fluttering in her belly. “I want you here too, but you have dark circles under your eyes.” She traced the curve of his cheeks and he closed his eyes, leaning into her touch.

“And my parents aren’t going anywhere. My father just got another glass of wine, which means he and my mother will break out the chessboard. I’ll end up going to sleep before they leave. They’re night owls.”

His slumped shoulders admitted defeat. “You’ll fill me in on whatever you hear when you talk to Bill? The attorney?” he clarified when she looked confused.

“Yes. Thanks again for that. I . . . Thank you for being here for me. For me and Rennie. We need our friends and you’ve been such a good one to us both.”

He was the one blushing for a change. “There’s nothing else I’d do. I’m here for you because that’s what friends do. Tomorrow night, my house. I’ll order pizza and we’ll watch movies.”

She nodded, swallowing past her urge to give him an out. He invited them, he wanted them there. She needed to stop question-ing it.

“Sweet dreams. If you need me, I’m just a call away. Like if they go home soon and you need a cuddle. Or something.” His eyes darkened and he sidled closer.

She laughed. “I will. I’ll think of you when I’m using my special showerhead.”

“I’ll get you for that.” He kissed her quickly. “See you tomorrow. Don’t forget to set your system when I leave.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I know you’re being sarcastic, but I like the sound of that anyway. We’ll need to look into that a bit more when your mom and dad aren’t in the other room. No whips, but definitely chains.”

“You’re a menace.”

“I don’t want to suffer alone in my cold bed.”

“Your bed isn’t cold. You have heated floors. Believe me, I’d much rather snuggle up to you than sleep alone.”

He paused and kissed her. “Me too. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He said good-bye to her parents and she walked him to the front door. “Night, Shorty. Dream of me.”

She would.

21

Brody looked up to catch the sight of her walking through the shop’s front door. He smiled, because how could he not? She caught his eye and motioned that she’d leave, but he shook his head and motioned her over. Puhleeze, as if he’d give up any opportunity to be with her.

Anyway, he’d been working on a half sleeve for the last three hours and he was near the end of it. More than that, the woman he was working on needed a break too. His client nodded enthusiasti-cally when he suggested finishing for the day and having her return one last time.

Elise walked to him, straight to him, her gaze locked with his.

He felt such a deep sense of belonging when he saw her. Instead of freaking or feeling suffocated, it rested him, soothed that spot inside that he hadn’t known he needed to fill until she came into his life.

“I can come by another time. I figured you’d be busy but I was over at the café and wanted to stop in and say hello.” She looked smart and confident with her hair up and wearing a pair of trousers and a wine-colored blouse. “I don’t want to interrupt.”

“Why don’t you take a look at where we are?” he said to his client. She got up and stretched before heading to the mirror to check out the work he’d done. “You’re not interrupting at all.” Damn, she was fine to look at.

“I want you to give me a tattoo,” she said without preamble.

“Hang on a sec. Sit right here and don’t go anywhere.” He gently helped her into his chair. “Be right back.” He went to his client to speak to her about when to come in again so he could finish the last detail work. He knew he wore a smile, but he couldn’t help it.

Elise asking for him to mark her touched him, made him happy.

He returned, kissing her for good measure. “Stay in the chair.

I’ll sit here.” He hopped up onto the table. “Of course I’ll ink you.

I’d be pissed if you went to anyone else.” He wanted to mark that pretty skin himself. “But before we go there, what brings you here?

Just the tat request?”

“I met with the lawyer. But I don’t want to talk about that here and now. I wanted to stop by and thank Erin for some brownies she made for a bake sale at Rennie’s school, and since I was next door, I thought I’d stop in and see you.”

Man, he was a lovesick fool. She came to him to tell him about the meeting, to share with him. He liked that a lot. “You better have. I’d be really jealous if you played with my sister but not me.”

He grinned. “That sounds dirty.” One of her eyebrows rose, and he only barely resisted the urge to lean toward her and kiss it. Christ, she wrecked him sometimes. “We can talk details about the meeting later on when we’re alone. For now, back to the tattoo. Do you know what you want? Where you want it?”

“I want to start small. To see if it’s something I can commit to first. I’d like to get a larger one, but not on my back because I want to look at it. This one would be a test.”

“Nothing wrong with that. So you want a starter tattoo?” He laughed. “Okay, that’s actually not a bad idea.”

“I want something small here.” She turned her wrist over. “It’s going to sound really silly, but I want a bee, a bumblebee.”

He kissed her wrist where she wanted the tattoo. “Rennie.” He smiled up at her and he saw her face change, her eyes soften and well up with unshed tears. Guilt hit him; he’d wanted to comfort her, not upset her.

“I . . . It leaves me speechless when you get me the way you do.

When you get Rennie. It’s . . . Well, it means a lot. She’s my most special thing, that you see it . . .” She shook her head, blinking away tears. “Thank you.”

The knot of concern he’d had at her upset loosened, turned into more feeling for her. More love. “It leaves me speechless to get you that way too. But I’m glad I do and I think a bumblebee is perfect.

You want it now?”

“I don’t want to interrupt. I know you’re like the big in-demand tattoo dude, so I don’t assume I can just flounce in and demand you do it right now. You must be tired. I saw that tattoo you were doing on the lady here when I arrived. How long were you working on it?”

“You didn’t flounce, although if you wanted to, that would be aces, since your boobs would jiggle and you know I like that.” He said it low so only the two of them could hear, and she blushed, wearing a sweet smile with a hint of naughty. “You can be at the top of my client list, so be quiet about that. I can always squeeze you in at my house or after hours too. But that’s not an issue right now. Lastly, the half sleeve I was working on earlier? That was three hours. It’s going to be spectacular when it’s finished.”

“It’s spectacular now and you know it. But spending three hours hunched over has to be tiring. I can do it another time when you’re not tired.”

He couldn’t help the flush of pride that she’d liked his work.

That she’d come to him for her first tattoo, trusted him to do it right. “Shorty, just looking at you energizes me. It really won’t take me very long. Why don’t you go and have something to eat at the café and I’ll come over with a few designs. It shouldn’t take but a few minutes. Do you need to run to get to Rennie? Or to get back to your students?”

“My students have a week off and Rennie is going to a playdate with my parents and Nina. They’re going to paint pottery after school.”

“It’s good she has them here. I’m glad you have them here too.

I’m also glad I have you to myself for a while. Now, head next door and I’ll be over in a few.”

He watched her leave; the graceful way she moved shot to all his best parts.

Next door at the café Erin owned and ran, Elise slid into a seat at the short coffee bar and ordered a decaf mocha. Erin slid a plate with a gorgeous blond brownie her way.

“Bless you. And curse you too. I’ve eaten so many of these I had to give Rennie a twenty to cover it for the bake sale.” Elise took a bite and watched Erin make the drink. “I’m getting Brody to tattoo me,” she blurted.

Erin’s brows rose and her mouth curved into a sly grin. “Really now? Like today?”

“Yes. I just had this idea for a tattoo. But it was too big to be my first one. I’m a total wuss. I needed a training-level tattoo. So I thought about Rennie and what she’s like and I decided I’d like a little bee. Right here on my wrist.” She held it out for Erin to see.

“That’s a fabulous idea! Oh, it’s perfect for her, she’s such a little bee. Brody’s work is like beyond wow. What do you want the other tat to be? The non-training-wheels tattoo?”

“A swan. From
Swan Lake
? On my hip or just above it. Then again, if I get pregnant again or stretch too much, will it look yucky?”

Erin hitched up her shirt. “I’ve been pregnant once before and you can see here, on my sides there, the tattoo from my back trails up my sides and over my hips, and it still looks good. I just made sure to keep it hydrated with lotion and out of direct sunlight.

Anyway, you’re an athlete, Elise, you’ll be fine if, or when, you and Brody have a baby together. I’m sure I’ll stretch now, although I’m not in my early twenties like I was with Adele. And just in case you haven’t noticed, Ben and Todd are huge. This baby is probably going to be gargantuan.”

Sharp longing sliced through Elise. “Me and Brody having babies?” She knew her voice sounded funny. “I know he’s not interested in a wife and kids and stuff. I mean in the future. Or if I just break down and do it myself. Maybe I’ll borrow one of your dudes since you have so many.”

Erin tipped her head back, laughing. Despite the grape-Kool-Aid-colored hair and the piercings and tats, Erin’s beauty still remained very feminine.

“Elise, shut up. Brody loves you. Haven’t you noticed it yet?

Duh. And, just a clue here, you love him too. After this mess with the custody is over with, you both can stop pretending and get moving with the rest of your life, which includes marriage and babies.”

She blinked at Erin several times, afraid to speak, afraid to believe her.

“Hey dude.” Erin waved, and Brody came in, sitting next to Elise and spreading out a few pieces of paper with designs of bees on them.

“Coffee me up, sister,” he said to Erin and then turned to Elise.

She saw the one she wanted right off and pointed. “This one. It’s perfect.” The bee was fat and fuzzy and Elise could imagine the throaty little buzz it would make. He’d done little broken lines behind it to indicate movement. Just a bit, a little loop-de-loop. It was Rennie.

He grinned and kissed her, hard and fast, leaving her struggling to breathe.

“That’s the first one I did. My favorite too. Mmm, chocolate and brownie.”

“Here. I added a bit of orange zest to yours.” Erin slid a cup to him and he took a sip, sighing happily.

At first glance, she’d thought he was the dark and broody bad boy type. But underneath it, he was actually a man who was able to find joy in most things, be it riding his motorcycle on a sunny day or a little orange zest in his mocha. He wasn’t a Pollyanna, but his basic personality setting seemed to be intense yet pretty happy.

“You ready?” He took her hand and kissed her wrist, sending shivers through her.

“As I’ll ever be.” She hopped off the chair and tossed some money on the counter and raised a brow right back at Erin, who pushed the money back toward her. “No. We’ve had this discussion before.”

She’d been taken into the heart of the Brown family, and heavens-to-Betsy did it feel good. Safe. Protected. Still, she was totally going to pay for the coffee.