Not Safe for Work (30 page)

Well, there was no point in trying to hide it now. I should’ve expected someone would notice. In fact, I’d planned on waiting until after tonight, but when I’d picked up the rings this morning before heading to the commencement ceremony, I just…couldn’t wait anymore.

So, I held up my left hand. “We just, um, decided we’re ready—”

“Oh my God!” Kelsey squealed and threw her arms around me, nearly knocking me back a step. “Mom, did you
see
this?”

Karen turned around. “What?”

“Rick and Dad are getting married!”

“Oh really?”

The other kids turned.

“Seriously?” Brooke asked. “You guys are
finally
getting married?”

I laughed. “Finally? You and Leah have been together a lot longer than we have.”

“Uh-huh. And we were seventeen. Did you really want us getting married?”

“Hmm. No. Good point.”

The kids and their partners congratulated us, and I had to stare when Karen’s boyfriend shook hands with Rick. He was a great guy, but when Karen and I had divorced, even though it was more or less amicable at the time, I’d never imagined the day would come when her new boyfriend was shaking hands with my new fiancé and congratulating us on getting engaged. Then again, I also hadn’t imagined that new boyfriend would be coming to me for advice on the ring he was planning to give her for Christmas. There were going to be a lot of weddings in this group over the next year or so.

Karen hugged Rick. “Welcome to the family.”

“Thank you,” he said.

“Enough about us, though,” I said as they separated, and I turned to Kelsey. “Today’s about you, kiddo.”

“I know, but… Dad, that’s so great!” She looked at Rick. “So does this mean I get to call you Dad too?”

He shrugged. “Whatever you want to call me.”

I snickered. “Careful what you wish for, or you’ll be Grandpa too.”

Rick’s eyes widened.

Kelsey rolled hers. “Not until after Christmas, Dad. Geez.”

“Christ—” My heart stopped. “Uh, Kels? Is there something you’re not telling me?”

She eyed me sheepishly.

“Kelsey…”

Then she winked. “Just messing with you, Dad. I know the rules. No grandkids until you’re fifty.”

I exhaled. “Jesus…”

“I think she comes by the sense of humor honestly.” Rick clapped my shoulder. “Nobody to blame but yourself, Jon.”

“Uh-huh.” I shot him a look, and from the way he gulped, the message came through loud and clear—he was going to pay for that later. “Anyway.” To Kelsey, I said, “Yes, we’re getting married. No, we don’t know when.” I gestured at the table. “But tonight, we’re celebrating
you
.”

She grinned. “Whatever. It’s a good night for everyone. Just means Mom has to buy you guys drinks too.”

“Hey!” Karen shot her a look but then laughed. “All right, she’s got a point. What’ll it be, boys?”

Rick and I exchanged glances. I shrugged. So did he.

“We’re both drinking Budweiser,” I said.

“Oh, there’s a shock.” She patted my arm and headed up to the bar.

While she attended to drinks for us and Kelsey, the rest of the group took their seats at the table. Rick sat beside me, and I put my arm around his shoulders.

“I think Karen summed it up perfectly,” I said. “Welcome to the family.”

He turned to me, and my heart fluttered. I kissed him gently. Beneath the table, I patted his leg. We exchanged a long look—oh yes, this would be a good night, and a very, very long one.

But that could wait. We had all the time in the world now. For this evening, our focus was on celebrating my daughter’s graduation. All the while, as we toasted her success and talked about plans for her upcoming wedding, I thumbed the ring on my left hand, disbelieving how things had worked out. They’d come together in the most unlikely and, at times, chaotic ways, but they’d worked out. I couldn’t have asked for anything better than the group of people around me right then. My three kids. My ex-wife who’d raised them with me, even when our marriage hadn’t worked out. The kids’ partners, who were everything I’d hoped for. The man who I would spend the rest of my life with.

It just didn’t get any better than this.

About the Author

L.A. Witt is an abnormal M/M romance writer who has finally been released from the purgatorial corn maze of Omaha, Nebraska, and now spends her time on the southwestern coast of Spain. In between wondering how she didn’t lose her mind in Omaha, she explores the country with her husband, several clairvoyant hamsters and an ever-growing herd of rabid plot bunnies. She also has substantially more time on her hands these days, as she has recruited a small army of mercenaries to search South America for her nemesis, romance author Lauren Gallagher, but don’t tell Lauren. And definitely don’t tell Lori A. Witt or Ann Gallagher. Neither of those twits can keep their mouths shut…

Website:
www.gallagherwitt.com

Blog:
gallagherwitt.blogspot.com

Twitter:
@GallagherWitt

E-mail:
[email protected]

Look for these titles by L.A. Witt

Now Available:

Nine-tenths of the Law

Out of Focus

Conduct Unbecoming

General Misconduct

The Walls of Troy

The Distance Between Us/Wilde’s Series

The Distance Between Us

A.J.’s Angel

The Closer You Get

Meet Me in the Middle

No Distance Left to Run (with Aleksandr Voinov)

No Place That Far (with Aleksandr Voinov)

What He Left Behind

Tooth & Claw Series

The Given & the Taken

The Healing & the Dying

The United & The Divided

The Only One

The Only One Who Knows (with Cat Grant)

The Only One Who Matters (with Cat Grant)

Writing as Lauren Gallagher:

Who’s Your Daddy?

All The King’s Horses

The Princess and the Porn Star

I’ll Show You Mine

The Saint’s Wife

The Virgin Cowboy Billionaire’s Secret Baby

Coming Soon:

The Best Laid Plans

Don’t miss these other titles by L.A. Witt

Can you ever have a second first time?

Josh Carver thinks it’s just another lunch with his best friend, Michael—until Michael confesses he just turned down a date with his hot veterinarian crush. It seems Michael’s abusive ex left him more scarred than Josh realized.

Josh and his husband, Ian, have done their best to help Michael leave his horrific past behind, but even Josh is stunned when Ian suggests that Josh help Michael with his fear of physical intimacy. After all, it isn’t like it would be the first time—Josh and Michael were once each other’s firsts.

A hesitant first kiss, and Josh and Michael’s natural attraction eases the way. But with Michael still balking at the prospect of sex with someone new, Ian steps into the breach.

Everything is fine and dandy until emotions become so entangled, their friendship—and a marriage—could be at risk.

Warning: Contains three guys who will do anything for each other, a hot tub that’s always the right temperature, and a cat with an attitude problem.

Sometimes you only get one chance at a second chance.

The Distance Between Us
, Book 5

Still finding his footing after a long-overdue divorce, Marcus is looking forward to some mind-numbing drinking while ogling the grooms at Chris and Julien’s wedding. He never expected his attention to be diverted by the gorgeous best man.

One of Julien’s French Foreign Legion buddies, Timur doesn’t speak much English, but language is no barrier to Marcus understanding exactly what the huge Tartar wants—a one-night stand.

Except that one night turns into two, three, then more, which puts Marcus on edge. After Timur is done house-sitting for the honeymooning couple, he’s headed back to the Legion for another five years. Like it or not, once Timur gets on that plane, the fling is over.

Unfortunately, Marcus forgot to tell his heart not to fall in love. And this time, if history repeats and he makes another wrong decision, he may never see his tattooed Legionnaire lover again.

Warning: Contains a soldier who makes up for his lack of English by using his hands to read his lover’s body; a chef-turned-bartender who no longer believes in love; a length of paracord that probably wasn’t meant to be used this way; and a couple of newlyweds who are game for some four-way play.

eBooks are
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transferable.

They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.

This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Samhain Publishing, Ltd.

11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B

Cincinnati OH 45249

Not Safe for Work

Copyright © 2015 by L. A. Witt

ISBN: 978-1-61922-542-8

Edited by Linda Ingmanson

Cover by Angela Waters

All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

First
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
electronic publication: December 2015

www.samhainpublishing.com