Page 121 of Champagne Nights

“Are Mom and Dad inside?” Finn asked.

“Yep. They’re going to be thrilled.”

I opened the door and let them walk in first. My parents had no idea that Finn was going to propose to Olivia tonight. I could hear my mom scream from the kitchen, and when I walked in, they were all hugging.

“Ben, did you hear? Your brother is getting married.”

“I did, Mom. I already congratulated both of them.” I smiled.

We sat around the living room for the next couple of hours and talked. My mom and Olivia started talking about wedding stuff while we men discussed sports.

My shiftat the fire station went by pretty fast. I’m sure it was because of all the fires that broke out over the last three days. It was time to go home, but I had to stop by the lumber yard to pick up some more wood. The table I’d been working on was finished, and I had only to build two more chairs.

When I finally got home, I loaded the wood into the garage and then took a hot shower. Tomorrow was Juan’s birthday, and the gang asked me to go to the bar with them to celebrate. Sincetomorrow was Friday, I had my usual dinner plans, and then maybe I would go back to that support group. I’d been thinking about Paisley all week, and I had hoped that she’d be there. I turned off the shower and climbed into bed. A wave of loneliness crept up inside me as I stared at the empty side of the bed and then closed my eyes and drifted to sleep.

Chapter Eleven

Paisley

“Paisley, in my office,” Kenny yelled from his doorway across the open office.

I got up from my chair and walked across the floor as my colleagues stared at me with worried looks on their faces. As soon as I reached the doorway, Kenny instructed me to shut the door.

“Something wrong?” I asked.

“Did you tell someone that they shouldn’t marry their fiancé because of his mother?”

“Oh.” I narrowed my eyes. “She said that her future mother-in-law does everything for her son, including packing his lunch and doing his laundry. She does everything except have sex with him.”

Kenny put his hand up. “Don’t go there.”

“He’s a thirty-five-year-old man who can’t function on his own. I simply told her that she needs to sit down and have a talk with her fiancé and that he needs to be responsible and contribute to the daily marriage and household needs, and if he doesn’t agree, then she shouldn’t marry him.”

He rubbed his face in his hands. “The mother called in and complained because, apparently, her son’s fiancée told him to take a hike.”

“Good for her.” I smiled. “Is there really a problem here, Kenny? Because you’re wasting my time.”

“She’s threatening to sue us because she said you were the one who broke up her son’s relationship.”

I rolled my eyes. “Of course, she is because she’s a control freak. She can’t sue us.”

“She wants you to convince the girl to go back.”

“She can go to hell. I’m not convincing anyone of anything. I did my job, and I stand by my answer. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go home.” I walked out of Kenny’s office, grabbed my purse, and walked out of the building.

As soon as I walked through the door, Romeo strutted across the floor after completing a long stretch. I threw my keys in the basket and stared at the treadmill in the living room's corner. After changing into my workout clothes and running on the treadmill, my phone rang.

“Hey, Piper. What’s up?”

“What’s all that noise?”

“I’m on the treadmill.”

“Oh. Well, Charlotte and I are on our way over.”

“For?”

“To have some sister-bonding time. It’s been a while, and I’m bringing the wine for us, and Charlotte’s bringing her juice.”

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