Stripped Bare (Stripped #1)(76)

“O-ho!” His grandfather laughed.

I was sure I’d never met a happier person in my life.

“At the bachelorette party, eh?” More eyebrow waggles.

Oh my god. I couldn’t hold it in any longer, and my giggles burst out of me.

“There it is,” he exclaimed proudly. “She’s succumbing to my charm! West, move over, boy. I’m keeping her.”

“Oh, here we go,” Virginia added as she came in. She glanced at me as I finally got my laughter back under control. “You’d think the man was sixty years younger, wouldn’t you?” She handed West his coffee and turned.

“Speak for yourself, woman!” Jeff tapped her backside with his cane. “I’m as young as the women I pretend to feel—and let me tell you, those lingerie adverts are keeping me twenty-one!”

“Those new pills are making you too excitable. I’ll call Dr. Regis in the morning.”

“Don’t you like me excitable, Ginny?” Eyebrow waggles again.

Honestly, I’d never met an elderly man like him.

You could give this man a Facebook page—The Randy Granddad—and he’d probably go viral.

“I think we should fly him to Vegas then sit him outside Rock Solid,” I whispered to West as Virginia told Jeff not to be so crude. “He’d get everybody’s attention.”

He laughed quietly, resting his hand on my knee. “I told you he was crazy. He keeps life interesting, that’s for sure.”

I met his gaze. And so do you, West Rykman. So do you.





“What are you doing?”

“I'm making grilled cheese.”

West raised an eyebrow. “Do you always make grilled cheese on a George Foreman grill?”

I closed the top of the grill down and turned to him. “Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because it grills both sides of the bread evenly so I don't have to flip it over. Plus it does both sides at the same time which means it's done quicker.”

He blinked at me for a long moment, and I swore I saw a light bulb ping over his head. “That's both lazy and genius.”

“I'm going to ignore the part where you called me lazy.” I sniffed and peeked inside. Almost done. “It's genius. Do you know how many times I've burned one side of the sandwich?” I lifted the grill again and using the spatula, carefully guided the sandwich out onto the chopping board.

West boxed me against the kitchen counter and gripped the edge of the counter. He watched over my shoulder as I sliced the sandwich in half and cheese oozed out of the middle. “I have to admit, that looks better than doing it the normal way.”

“Mhmm.” I smiled, put the slices on a plate, and turned. I only just avoided his hard body forcing the plate up and against my chest. “Here. I know you said you didn't want one, but now I think you do.”

He grinned down at me and took the plate from me. “You think right, angel. Thank you.” He leaned down to kiss me, then sat at the kitchen island.

I rolled my eyes as I turned back to the grill. He was a typical man. It was exactly why I'd sliced twice as much cheddar as I'd needed.

And so what? Yes, I was maybe a little strange in how I made my grilled cheese. Allie had said the same thing until she tried it, and now she won't eat it any other way.

There was method to my madness, and both the method and the madness were brilliant.

I put the second sandwich under the grill. “Well?”

“It might just be the best one I've ever eaten.”

I smiled over my shoulder. “I told you. It gets it perfect.”

“And it really does get done quick, doesn't it?” He put the empty plate next to me.

I peered down at it. “They disappear quick, too.”

“No comment.” He kissed the side of my head and sat back down. “What time is the rehearsal dinner?”

“Six-thirty. Eating at seven. So, naturally, I have to be there at six.” I removed my sandwich, cut it, and joined West at the island. “Allie is going to be losing her shit right about now, so the first thing I'll do is hand her a shot of vodka to deal with her constantly feuding relatives, and then I will have one myself to cope with the horror of sitting by my mother all night.”

“If Allie's freaking out, shouldn't you be with her right now?”

I snapped my gaze up to him, chewing slowly, and shook my head.

He frowned. “Call her at least?”

“You don't call Allie when she's in a freak out. You wait for her to call you, or she'll say two works: Fuck off.”

“Really? But she is getting married.”

“Okay, no offense, but you're starting to sound like my mother and I don't know if I like you anymore.”

He laughed, leaning forward. “I'm sorry. I've only been to two weddings, and they were the cousins who took after my grandfather, so you can imagine just how eventful they were.”

I didn't want to think about that. Quite frankly, the thought of thinking about it was giving me a headache. Instead, I shook my head and finished my sandwich. “Honestly, Allie is just about the calmest person I know until the day before a big, life-changing thing happens. The fact most of her family has flown in today, coupled with the fact her dad's sister hates her mom, her grandmas have never gotten along, and her first cousin once screwed Joe’s brother at an orgy... Hell, I should probably call the restaurant and ask them to pack more vodka.”