Page 289 of The Maxwell Brothers
I watched him put peanut butter on his toast, taking in the way his body moved. He was so muscular and strong. His dark hair was sticking out in every direction. I liked seeing Declan early in the morning. Usually he was so put together, no matter if he wore a suit or jeans, but now he had sleepy eyes and messy hair. I loved it.
"How did you even become a lawyer? I mean, your parents own a huge chain of bookstores, right?"
"They sold it when I was in college. And anyway, I always knew I wanted to be a lawyer."
"How come?"
"No idea, though if you ask my brothers, they’ll insist it was because I was the level-headed one always getting them out of trouble."
I burst out laughing. "Were you?"
"Yes. I also tried to keep them from gettingintotrouble, but that was impossible. I was unsuccessful more times than not, but it was on me to get them out of it."
"Was it? Or could you just not help yourself?"
He narrowed his eyes. "A combination of the two, probably."
"You're a great brother. My sister never got me out of trouble, but that was because I never felt like she was the older sister. Sometimes we told people we were twins."
“Do you have any news from her?”
“No, I checked this morning. But I’m taking it as a good sign. She’ll text me when she can. I’m so happy my niece is okay. I was so worried.”
Without warning, he lifted me up by my ass, putting me on the counter, and captured my mouth.
I sighed against his lips. I didn't think I could ever tire of him kissing me. He was breathing life into me, making me acutely aware of my body and how lucky I was to be here with him. I pressed my heels at the back of his thighs and curled my arms around his neck. He lifted me and walked with me throughout the living room, then lowered me onto something soft. The couch. He deepened the kiss, and I felt every stroke of his tongue intimately. I grasped his T-shirt, curling my fingers into it. I was getting wet already.
"When does your next shift start?" he asked, pausing and pressing his forehead against mine.
"It’s at six o’clock at the bar."
"Spend the day with me," he said. The way his voice dripped with authority set me on edge.
"Your chances are good." I tried to sound teasing, but my voice was pretty breathy.
"What am I competing against?”
“Dancing.”
A sly grin appeared on his handsome face. “I like my chances.”
CHAPTER 16
LIZ
I firmly believedin the law of balance. It was something my mom had ingrained in us since we were kids.
“Don’t ask too much of life all at once. The universe will think you’re greedy.”
My niece was healthy, and they let her go home after five days in the hospital. She’d had an RSV, which was common in children and not life-threatening, though the symptoms looked ugly.
Declan was thoroughly charming me. He cooked breakfast almost every morning. Sometimes he even worked from home in the afternoon, and we could sneak some time together in between my shifts.
I couldn’t possibly expect to find my bakery right now too, could I? That would send the message to the universe that I was greedy.
So when I received a phone call from my realtor on a sunny day two weeks later, I assumed he’d only give me bad news, as usual: that he was still looking, that the market was tough.
I put down my knife and snuck into the pantry at Richard’s so no one could overhear me. I was completely stunned when Andreas said, "Liz, I found the perfect place for you."
