gotten heavier, so she changed the subject. “You’re going to be an uncle. Are you excited?”
His face brightened. “Yep. I’m so going to spoil him or her. I love kids.”
“You want children of your own?” she found herself asking.
“Of course. Why do you look so surprised?”
Annie shrugged. “I don’t know. You’re a…player.” As it left her mouth, she realized how stupid it sounded, and she blushed.
“I date, sure, but when the right woman comes along, in a decade or so, that will be over. I want kids, a family, a white picket fence. Well, a Victorian blue one,” he corrected with that roguish smile of his. “Do you have any siblings? Or a big family from your dad’s side?”
“No, but I have a string of colorful stepmothers,” Annie admitted. “Foreign. Domestic. You name it, I got it. After my parents divorced, my dad married a woman who convinced him that making her sign a prenup meant he didn’t love her. So of course he relented, and ka-boom , in several years he had to pay through the nose in the divorce. He seemed to learn, because he made his third wife sign the prenup. Then, as things started going south, she managed to get pregnant, and voilà, she had my father by the balls again. Still has, even though she miscarried in the fifth month years ago. Guilt is a powerful thing.” Stupidity too, she thought, but kept it to herself. “His fourth wife was even younger than me. No English skills whatsoever. Obviously, her other skills were plentiful. How they met is anybody’s guess. The current one, Barbara, is somehow better. She’s still twenty years younger than him and bleeding him dry, but she’s pleasant and seems to care for him.”
“Some character, your dad.”
Yeah, that was a polite way to put it. And with her mother several states away, Dad was her immediate family. Boy, were she and her baby screwed.
Max seemed to understand what she was thinking, because he reached for her hand and squeezed it.
“Come on. I’ll give your puzzle a go. But if in half an hour I’m ready to hang myself, we’ll watch a movie.”
“Deal,” she said.
In fifteen minutes, they were microwaving popcorn and turning the flat screen on.
Chapter Six
Max entered Haddican’s, the local gym, and barely recognized the place. “Wow! This is…”
He felt a big presence beside him. “Insane,” Mike finished.
“No shit,” Max mumbled, staring at the flood of people, mainly women in skimpy sports bras and all-but-see-through yoga pants.
“Kyra’s classes were popular before. Now, since they placed second in the hip-hop contest, they’re off the charts. Between the women from town, the strippers from Bottoms Up, Amantis’s dance crew practicing the choreography for their next video, and Alexa’s security staff coming to train here, this place is total chaos. Not to mention since my grandmother and her goons took out that guy with their ninja skills, every senior lady—and I mean literally every senior lady in Alden—has signed up for the self-defense classes.” As Mike turned to look at Max, he whistled. “Man, with that hair, you’re going to fit in perfectly. Why are you back so early?”
“Some bullshit with the studios. Filming got postponed. Listen, I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help you with all that shit with Kyra’s ex.” Max and his brothers had known Mike forever. The thought that when he’d needed them, no one had been in town didn’t sit well with Max.
“Don’t worry. Cole and James already apologized. About what, it’s not clear, seeing as Cole was in Texas on a consultation, James was in Florida, you were in LA, and none of you are clairvoyant. Besides, do you see that mountain of a guy with his face tattooed?”
Max followed Mike’s gaze. “The one destroying the punching bag?”
Mike nodded. “Wata, Alexa’s husband and head of security. He and Alexa’s brother helped me take the fucker down.”
“Good.” It was a relief to know someone had
His face brightened. “Yep. I’m so going to spoil him or her. I love kids.”
“You want children of your own?” she found herself asking.
“Of course. Why do you look so surprised?”
Annie shrugged. “I don’t know. You’re a…player.” As it left her mouth, she realized how stupid it sounded, and she blushed.
“I date, sure, but when the right woman comes along, in a decade or so, that will be over. I want kids, a family, a white picket fence. Well, a Victorian blue one,” he corrected with that roguish smile of his. “Do you have any siblings? Or a big family from your dad’s side?”
“No, but I have a string of colorful stepmothers,” Annie admitted. “Foreign. Domestic. You name it, I got it. After my parents divorced, my dad married a woman who convinced him that making her sign a prenup meant he didn’t love her. So of course he relented, and ka-boom , in several years he had to pay through the nose in the divorce. He seemed to learn, because he made his third wife sign the prenup. Then, as things started going south, she managed to get pregnant, and voilà, she had my father by the balls again. Still has, even though she miscarried in the fifth month years ago. Guilt is a powerful thing.” Stupidity too, she thought, but kept it to herself. “His fourth wife was even younger than me. No English skills whatsoever. Obviously, her other skills were plentiful. How they met is anybody’s guess. The current one, Barbara, is somehow better. She’s still twenty years younger than him and bleeding him dry, but she’s pleasant and seems to care for him.”
“Some character, your dad.”
Yeah, that was a polite way to put it. And with her mother several states away, Dad was her immediate family. Boy, were she and her baby screwed.
Max seemed to understand what she was thinking, because he reached for her hand and squeezed it.
“Come on. I’ll give your puzzle a go. But if in half an hour I’m ready to hang myself, we’ll watch a movie.”
“Deal,” she said.
In fifteen minutes, they were microwaving popcorn and turning the flat screen on.
Chapter Six
Max entered Haddican’s, the local gym, and barely recognized the place. “Wow! This is…”
He felt a big presence beside him. “Insane,” Mike finished.
“No shit,” Max mumbled, staring at the flood of people, mainly women in skimpy sports bras and all-but-see-through yoga pants.
“Kyra’s classes were popular before. Now, since they placed second in the hip-hop contest, they’re off the charts. Between the women from town, the strippers from Bottoms Up, Amantis’s dance crew practicing the choreography for their next video, and Alexa’s security staff coming to train here, this place is total chaos. Not to mention since my grandmother and her goons took out that guy with their ninja skills, every senior lady—and I mean literally every senior lady in Alden—has signed up for the self-defense classes.” As Mike turned to look at Max, he whistled. “Man, with that hair, you’re going to fit in perfectly. Why are you back so early?”
“Some bullshit with the studios. Filming got postponed. Listen, I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help you with all that shit with Kyra’s ex.” Max and his brothers had known Mike forever. The thought that when he’d needed them, no one had been in town didn’t sit well with Max.
“Don’t worry. Cole and James already apologized. About what, it’s not clear, seeing as Cole was in Texas on a consultation, James was in Florida, you were in LA, and none of you are clairvoyant. Besides, do you see that mountain of a guy with his face tattooed?”
Max followed Mike’s gaze. “The one destroying the punching bag?”
Mike nodded. “Wata, Alexa’s husband and head of security. He and Alexa’s brother helped me take the fucker down.”
“Good.” It was a relief to know someone had
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