Page 50 of Forever Enough
“Listen, I get it, she’s been yours this entire time and I respect that, dude. But waking up to you on my chest, your two little paws on my throat…little man…that is a hard no.”
My other hand came up to stifle the laugh.
“You’re going to have to share, and when I’m not here, you can go back to being the man of the house. I think we can both agree Pickles isn’t going to protect her. He’ll probably get his hooves caught in those little pajamas.” He paused for a moment while washing a pan. “Maybe I should get her a dog.”
Mr. Whiskers stopped cleaning himself and let out a stern meow.
“Not a fan of dogs, are you? Well, you just haven’t met the right one. No offense, little guy, but are you up to the task of guarding her?”
Mr. Whiskers stood, turned around, then sat with his back to Bradly.
“Sensitive little guy, aren’t you?”
I lost the battle and a laugh escaped. Bradly looked toward the bedroom and smiled when he saw me. There were those dimples I’d been searching for last night. His five o’clock shadow was thicker this morning, and my word, if he didn’t look so handsome.
“Good morning, Kenzie.”
“Morning,” I said as I made my way over to the Keurig. “Coffee?”
“No, thanks, I don’t drink it.”
I slowly turned and looked at him. “I don’t think we can date now. How in the world do you not drink coffee?”
He smiled and dried his hands, then stepped to the stove and flipped the bacon. “I’ll have to bring over my favorite tea, so you have it here.”
Turning, I leaned against the counter. “Already planning on moving your stuff in, huh?”
Shrugging, he said, “If I’m going to be spending the night on the sofa, with your cat trying to kill me, I should at least get space for a toothbrush.”
I giggled. “I think I can make that happen. I do have an extra brand-new toothbrush if you want it.”
“That would be great! By the way, my mom sent me a text this morning and asked if we were available for dinner with the family tomorrow night. She said lunch wasn’t going to work for Lincoln, and she really wanted everyone there. Said you’d know what she was talking about?”
“Yeah…I spoke to her last night to let her know you’d fallen asleep on the sofa, so she wouldn’t worry. She mentioned wanting me to meet the family and planning a meal.”
Bradly’s brow rose. “Really? I hope you don’t feel like she’s pressuring you to meet the entire family. They’re…a rowdy bunch.”
Laughing, I said, “I think I’m up to the challenge. I’ve liked everyone I’ve met so far. And if things don’t work out between us, I think I might have a shot with Josh.”
He threw his head back and let out a roar of laughter. “Wait until you meet Nathan.”
“Really? Must be something in the water here.”
Bradly winked. “Must be.”
“What time did you wake up?” I asked as I turned and grabbed my steaming-hot coffee.
“Maybe around six. I took a shower; hope you don’t mind.”
My gaze ran over his body, and I mentally pictured what that would look like. Bradly. Naked and in the shower. I shook my head and peeked into the pan on the stove. “Not at all.”
Bradly was busy working on cracking eggs into the pan he’d made the bacon in.
“That looks…healthy.”
“It’s far from it, but it’ll be good. You mentioned something about needing to go to the greenhouse this morning. Do you have to be there by a certain time?”
“There really isn’t a set time during the winter, but I try to get to the greenhouse around eight or so on the days I work. I know I have this week off, but I’ve got a little project I’m doing that I just need to check in on. Also, I want to see if Lou needs me to do anything.”