Brainy and the Beast (37 page)

BOOK: Brainy and the Beast

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“Dad. Easy, there. You won this round, remember?” I hid a grin when I turned back to Henry, then slid my seat near his chair. We were now close enough to touch. “I did try to tell you Big Mike is kind of old-school.” I widened my eyes in innocence. Or what I thought was innocence. It didn’t seem to be working, since Henry was now glaring at me. “Besides. You look kind of cute. Doesn’t he, guys?”

A wolf whistle sounded from Grant, making my dad chortle. The fact that the straight males in the house could joke about Henry and his OCD wardrobe habits was a good sign. At least I told myself it was. Both my dad and Grant were a little squeamish when Henry and I were openly affectionate, but I had hopes that might change.

It was early days yet. I had to pace myself.

Giving up, Henry shook his head. “To quote Grant, ‘whatever, dudes.’” He handed the box to me, a reluctant grin showing. “Merry Christmas, love.”

I took a deep breath. Every time he used that word, I had to pause. It did something to me deep inside. “Back atcha,” I whispered, then shook the box that was about the size of a brick. It was solid; not a thing was loose enough to rattle. “What’s in here, Doc?” I lowered one eyebrow, considering him. “You’re practically bouncing in your chair. What’s going on?”

“Uncle Nick! Open it!” Grant scooted closer, actually putting down the iPad I’d gotten him. He’d almost screamed when he opened it, but managed at the last second to save his dignity.

He’d certainly given me enough hints in the last two weeks, and I suffered through the incredible mobs at the Apple Store down in Northbrook. I shuddered now, recalling the crowds. If we’d had even a fraction of that customer base, the garage would have been set for quite some time.

“Yeah, come on, Nicky. Open it.” Even my dad was waving me on.

Okay, it was Christmas morning, and everybody was happy, for the moment at least. But that was how Christmas was supposed to be, right? Peace on earth and all that stuff? My little family certainly had that. Well, for now, anyway.

I looked around me, smiling at each of my guys. My dad, who was trying hard to take care of himself, which made me a hell of a lot less cranky these days. My nephew, who was talking to me on a somewhat regular basis, which kind of made me smile in wonder. And my lover, who just made me smile, period. Oh, and he got me hot and bothered with regularity—and most of those times, it was about sex. I had to admit that we bumped heads about some things, but I was kind of learning that was fun too. At least, the makeup sex sure as hell was.

“Nicholas.” Henry’s deep voice pulled me back into focus. He gently flicked my earlobe. “Come on. Open it.”

“’Kay.” Whatever it was, it had to be special, the way the guys were leaning toward me. “You all know what it is?” Grant surely must have; he was almost wriggling in place.

Even my old man was sitting forward, having kicked Rum off his lap. “Henry asked our opinion on it, yeah.”

“Really? Must be special, then.” My belly tingled, the way it did when Henry said or did something that usually made me want to jump his bones. Now, though, it made me kind of want to hug him. “Paper’s sure nice. Wrapping job too.”

Grant groaned as I deliberately stalled.

Laughing, I tore off the paper, then froze as I spotted the Apple logo. “Henry.” I shifted to face him. “What’s this?”

“It’s an iPhone, Uncle Nick,” Grant said excitedly. “Henry said if you liked yours, maybe I could get one too. He said he’d pay for it.” When Henry cleared his throat, Grant hurried to correct himself. “Um, if you say it’s okay, that is.” He blushed.

I realized my mouth had been hanging open. “You got me a smartphone? Me?” I pried the lid off the box and pulled open the packaging.

“Yes, Nicholas.” Henry slid off his chair and knelt at my side. “For you. The man who is a hell of a lot smarter than he gives himself credit for. Smart enough to know a good thing when he sees it.”

I grunted in genuine humor. “You mean you, Doc?” I started to lift the phone out of the box, but Henry stayed my hand.

“No. Well, yes, but not only that.” Henry ducked his head for a second, then pinned me with those Jaguar-blue peepers. “Look around you. This family that you’ve formed—yes, you, don’t shake your head—is an amazing thing. Take it from me, someone who has a not so great family. You’ve done something wonderful. You have.” He lifted my hand and actually kissed my knuckles. This time, I felt it in my chest. My heart started to beat faster.

“You’re a genuinely nice man, and you’ve made the effort to get to know your nephew.” He nodded at Grant with a smile, then shifted to look at my dad. “And you and your father have a great relationship, from what I can see.”

I glanced at Big Mike, who met me with a smile and a nod. “Yeah. We’re not doing too badly, are we, Nicky?”

“As for me, you’re making me part of this family.”

I started to answer him; then my eyes widened as I spotted Rum moving toward him. “Henry—”
Shit. Too late.

Rum bumped Henry with his snout, straight in the balls from what I could tell.

Henry jolted forward, landing across my lap. “Damn it! You’ve got to do something about that dog!”

I joined the guys as they howled with laughter.

Loose Id Titles by JM Cartwright

Brainy and the Beast

JM Cartwright

“JM Cartwright is a polished professional who works all the time. Well, maybe not all the time... but paying the mortgage and buying dog food keeps JM pretty busy.”

Makes me sound kinda stuffy, doesn't it? :>)

I'm a Midwesterner by birth—lived briefly in the Pacific Northwest—and I dream of the Appalachians and someday sitting on a veranda looking over one hundred acres of paradise.

Writing stories about lovers butting heads, making each other crazy, laughing and loving is what I like to do.

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