Page 33 of Unwrapped

“You’re lucky you didn’t make me spill my drink, Nicky,” I sass.

“Yeah? What would you have done if I did? And I think maybe you left your Jamaican half upstairs when you went to go change because whatever half is here right now is drunk,” he whispers in my ear. “But don’t worry. I’ll take care of you.”

“Yeah, you will,” I say, bumping my nose to his.

“I so need a boyfriend,” Stephanie says while looking at us.

This causes her father, who looks like an older and chunkier version of Nick, to groan and shake his head. “You’re seventeen. The last thing you need is a boyfriend,” Henry says to his daughter.

Neither one of us responds as we gaze into each other’s eyes. I lift my free hand and run it through his hair, intentionally messing it up. When I finally look away, it’s only to find his mother watching us with a smile on her face.

“Tell me more about Nicky when he was younger, Allison. Did he have a lot of girlfriends?”

She leans back in her chair as if she’s deep in thought.

“He had a few. I’m a little biased. He was always so handsome, but I was relieved I didn’t have the type of son who had a different girlfriend every week. Whoever he was with, he was only with that one person. You’re not a mom yet, but when you are, all you will want is for your child to be happy.” She reaches over and grabs my hand, surprising me. “I like the way you look at my son, Miranda.” She kisses the top of my hand before dropping it. I slide it right back in Nick’s hair. I can feel the change in his body as I start to stroke his scalp. He leans closer to me and I finish my drink before I put my forehead to his.

“He is pretty cute,” I say before I start to laugh. Nick laughs too as he pulls away and takes the empty glass from me. “And I just love—” I stop talking and smirk at Nick. He holds his breath as he looks at me, brows arched as he waits for me to finish. “His eyes. I love his eyes.”

“You’re such a tease, but maybe you’ve had enough, sweets.” He kisses my cheek and then starts to rub the back of my neck. “You’re so going to get it later.”

“No!” My voice is loud even to my own ears. Nick, shocked by my outburst, chuckles at me. “They’re not that strong.” Becker hands me another drink. Nick tries to take it from me, but I move it away. The movement is awkward and part of the drink splashes on my shirt. “Thank you, Becker,” I say, nodding at him.

“You’re welcome, darling.” He winks at me, and I think I try to wink back, but my eye feels heavy, and I leave it closed longer than a wink requires.

“You guys want to know the first thing Nicky asked me the night we met?” Everyone turns to me as they wait for me to speak. “He followed me to the bar and asked me if I’m old enough to drink.” I throw my head back and laugh.

“Smooth, son,” Allison says. “You know, he has his father’s eyes. He looks just like him, but thankfully, his personality is more like mine and Joe’s.”

“He likes younger women just like dear old dad,” Henry says, raising his glass to us. An unexpected laugh escapes my lips and I hiccup. The movement causes my drink to spill again, landing on Nick’s shirt this time. He takes the drink away from me and puts it out of my reach.

“You should have seen her the night of the party. She kept smelling the wine and putting it back,” Nick says as he strokes my hair. “I never stood a chance.”

“Nicky,” I say, putting my forehead to his. “Neither did I.” He plants a kiss to my forehead, and I hear the women in the room swoon.

“Nick, son,” Becker says, slapping him on the back. “You always pick the prettiest girlfriends. I thought Paige was a looker until I saw Miranda. Damn. And unlike Paige, you have a personality, sweetheart.”

The room goes quiet as everyone looks at me, probably waiting for my reaction, but Mr. Bain speaks up before I can say anything.

“Becker, shut up and stop embarrassing the girl. Someone, play some music.”

“Oh, I want to hear more about Paige,” I tell everyone.

“Oh, please, no,” Nick says.

“Well, darling,” Becker says. “She had a real stick up her ass.”

“Stick?” Joe says. “More like a two by four.” Everyone is stunned speechless for a few seconds, then we all burst into laughter at the same time.

“Ice queen bitch,” Stephanie says. “Sorry, Uncle Nick, but she was. Remember when we came to Chicago to visit you? We came by your place and she couldn’t even bother to come out of the bedroom.” Stephanie rolls her eyes at the memory.

“Okay,” I say as I rub the back of Nick’s head. “Thank goodness your taste in women has improved, Nicky.”

“Exponentially,” Allison says, raising her glass.

“Here, here!” Nick says, clinking his glass with his mother’s.

The party continues while Allison serves the dessert she brought.

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