Page 33 of The Deal Maker

Is it possible to have a mid-life crisis in your twenties? Maybe call it a quarter-life crisis?

"You'll get there, Duke. You'll always have The Bridal Barn to fall back on."

That's the last thing I want to do. Maybe it's because that was the thing that kept us from going anywhere and celebrating so many things that I can't even think of spending my life inside those walls.

I stand up, taking my plate over to the sink. I wash off the crumbs and load it into the dishwasher. "Thanks for dinner, Mom. I'm going to head to bed early." I lean over and kiss her on the cheek, giving her a small smile before I walk out the door.

Once I'm outside, my smile falls and my mood changes. As I go over the conversation, my frustration continues to grow.

I hate it when she brings up the fact that they got married young and I was born a year later, as though I should have a seven-year-old right now.

Then the flopping from an old crush on Maggie, and a letter I definitely never wrote, to talking about Lizzy Jackson? Was that supposed to be some sort of mind tactic?

What I think is happening though, is that I'm terrified to bring a woman into my realm, to have her see the uncertainty that it is to live with a man who can't make up his mind on how to earn money. How could I do that to my future children?

What's worse than the same day in and day out like my father had is the anxiety of paying bills when I don't have the money.

I walk into the apartment, knowing I need to get out of this cycle, but not sure how to do it. Instead, I turn on some mind-numbing show and watch it until I fall asleep.

There's only so much I can take before I start to break.

FIFTEEN

MAGGIE

It's been a couple of crazy days so far, but when I see Duke the next morning, he looks like he's been awake for most of the night. His usual teasing is gone too, making it hard to know what to do.

Then again, I've been a grump to him for over a week and he's been nothing but sunshine. Maybe I need to work on that.

"Good morning," I say, giving him a small smile. "How was your night?"

He shakes his head and lifts a paper cup to his mouth, taking a sip. My gaze follows the movements and I'm surprised at how much I want to kiss those lips right now.

Whoa, let's take a step back, Maggie. Don't get ahead of yourself. Or, not ahead because I don't need to go out with Duke Jacobson. And I most certainly won’t be kissing him.

“It was rough.”

I expected him to say something else, but he goes back to sipping from the cup.

“Any particular reason it was rough?” I ask.

Our friendly dog decides that’s the perfect moment to appear, walking through my legs. I try to keep my balance, but end up falling forward, right onto Duke’s lap. I freeze for several moments, trying to register what just happened.

Then my brain restarts and I push off of Duke’s very firm chest. “Sorry about that,” I say, trying to think of anything but the muscles I can see stretching the hems of his sleeves.

He gives me a weird look, like I have something on my face before saying, “It’s all good. Looks like Champ here was excited to see us again.”

“Did you find the owner?” I ask. Not that I should be this invested, but it’s the distraction I need..

He shook his head. “No one claimed him. Maybe I should take him to the vet clinic and see if he’s got a chip of some sort to tell us all that information.”

“W-why would you do that? Are you wanting to keep him?”

The dog sits next to Duke and closes its eyes when Duke rubs between the ears. I don’t think I’ve ever been jealous of a dog, but that’s what’s happening right now. Maybe I need to go to a spa or something to relax. All of this weird energy going through me has my brain spinning scenarios that shouldn’t happen. Ever.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to that.”

Our phones ping and I open the app to see the next assignment.

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