Page 19 of Thor
“How about the senator’s son?You two have been friends since grade school.Is he upset you’re not giving him a chance?”
I sighed.“Can you keep a secret?”
“Of course.What is it?”
I hesitated.If this got out, a lot of people could get hurt, the senator’s son being at the top of the list.“Maxwell has a vested interest in me not wanting to marry him.He’s in a relationship with his driver, and as long as everyone thinks he’s waiting for me to come to my senses and fall in line, he doesn’t have to pretend to be interested in another woman.”
“Holy shit!”Her jaw practically dropped.“He’s gay?You’re kidding me, right?”
I shook my head.“I am not.You know how badly his family are going to react when they find out.”
“So, the longer you play like it’s you resisting, the better it is for him.”
I nodded.“And me.If my family changes their mind out about Thor, I’m afraid of what they’ll do.They didn’t get rich by playing nice.”
Sophia let out a deep breath.“You are in one hell of a lousy position.What are you going to do?”
I took a sip of the coffee.“I’m not sure.I’d love to agree to be Thor’s old lady, but that would be selfish.It could put him in the crosshairs.”I frowned.“Any advice?”
“Not really.Maxwell is going to have to come out at some point, and you can’t live your whole life avoiding your family.Maybe they’ll see how happy Thor makes you and be okay with it.”
I snorted.“And maybe unicorns really roam the earth looking for virgins.”
“Does Thor know why you’re holding him at arm’s length?”
“Not a chance.I just tell him I’m not into commitment, and that I want to keep things the way they are.”
“He’s only going to buy that for so long.Has he ever asked about your family?”
I shrugged.“Yeah, but I just say we’re not close.He gets it.Most of these guys aren’t close to their families.It’s one of the reasons they’re here.This is their family.”
Sophia looked unconvinced, but she let the subject drop.“What about your other plans?Are you still thinking of opening a flower shop?”
“Absolutely.It’s just taking a little longer than I thought it would.I have some money saved, but commercial rents are high and that’s if I can even find a place with the right kind of setup.It needs to have a storefront, decent parking, and a cooler for the flowers.Not exactly the kind of place that comes on the market every day.”
“True.You’ll probably have to renovate, especially for the cooler.Most retail spots won’t have one.”
“I know.I have the inheritance my great granny left me, but I’d want a decent lease in place if I’m going to spend that kind of money.”
Sophia took another sip of her coffee.“I’ll keep my eyes open for you, but real estate isn’t really my thing.I can mention it to Deuce.He’s got the club looking at real estate investments.I know he was leaning toward apartments or houses they can rent out, but if they come across anything that would work for you, they could let you know.Hopefully the right place will just pop up when you least expect it.”
I reached out and covered her hand with mine.“Thanks.I know it will.I just have to be patient and put up with Dr.Murphy a little bit longer.”
Sophia cocked her head.“Isn’t he the one who stitched up Thor?”
“Yeah.He’s a great doctor, one of the top ER surgeons in the state.As a surgeon he’s awesome, but as a person he sucks.And he seems to have it in for me.”I trailed off as Joker sauntered into the room.
“Someone giving you a hard time?”He reached for a coffee mug and helped himself to the last of the pot.
“Just one of the doctors at work.”I stood up and carried my cup to the sink.“Not a big deal.”
“As long as it’s not one of us.Wouldn’t want to upset Thor.”He took a gulp of the dark liquid.
“You checked him out yet?”
He shook his head.“Just heading in there.You want to come along, or are you squeamish?”
“I work front desk in a hospital emergency room,” I pointed out.
