Page 54 of Love Is Brewing

Though he doubted it.

“Not like you think,” she said. “I’m talking about through work and my personal life. Even just friends. It’s refreshing to have someone speak their mind. I don’t feel as if there are secrets with you, though I know there are. Not intentional ones if that makes sense.”

He sat back to relax some.

“I don’t believe in secrets. Not of the intentional variety,” he said. “My siblings, they are used to not saying who they are.”

Not sure he wanted to rat his brothers out but didn’t have a problem doing it either since Phoebe knew who his family was.

“I can understand that,” she said. “Especially West. And then people know West is related to you. I already know you want to prove you’re your own man, just like I want to do the same. We have that in common. But I’ve never shied away from who I was or where I came from.”

“No reason you need to,” he said. “There is no shame in your life.”

She frowned. “I hope you don’t think there is shame in yours or how you grew up.”

It was the seriousness on her face. As if she was going to give him as much shit as his mother would.

He might have just opened up his heart a tiny bit there.

“No,” he said. “I’m saying most people do that because there could be a shame they are feeling or that they don’t want to be used. For me, it’s neither. We all worked hard to be where we are. My father was a great man, the memories I have of him. Which were little.”

And it bothered him to know that, but nothing he could do about it.

“I’m sorry about that,” she said. “But you’ve got wonderful memories. I’ve got shitty ones of my grandfather and lots of them too. So you know, good memories are still better than a lot of memories if they aren’t ones you want to carry.”

“I never thought of it that way,” he said. “And just like an attorney, you never really answered my question on why I’m here.”

She smirked at him and he knew she was aware of what she’d done.

So yeah, that and her not saying how long she might be here were things he’d have to consider.

“I’m trying to decide the reason still,” she said.

He lifted an eyebrow. “Going to clue me in on any of it? Or are you just a spontaneous person?”

“You know as well as I do, that I’m most likely not spontaneous.”

“Didn’t think so,” he said. “So there has to be another reason.”

She put her coffee down. “Maybe I liked your mouth on mine and wanted it some more.”

“Well, shit,” he said, letting out a laugh. “You should have led with that.”

He put his coffee down and reached for her. She easily went into his arms.

His mouth slanted across hers and they kissed like two wild teens that knew they were on the clock before an adult returned.

When her icy hands pulled his shirt out of his jeans and slid under the material on his back, he had all he could do not to jump at the shock of it.

“What about if I want more than a kiss?” she asked.

“Then you should have said that too,” he said, standing up and putting his hand out. “I’ll make it easy on you. We don’t have to talk, you just lead the way.”

18

CALL IT FATE

Phoebe was losing her mind in the best way possible.

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