The Bromance Book Club (Bromance Book Club, #1)(49)

Gavin was sitting on their bed, reclined against the headboard with his legs crossed casually at the ankles. A present rested next to his hip, wrapped way too beautifully for Gavin to have done it himself. His present-wrapping skills usually involved an entire role of tape and a wad of paper five times bigger than was necessary.

“Did you need something?” she asked, crossing her arms over the plush robe that covered her nakedness.

Oh. Right. The good-night kiss. Her heart skidded sideways.

Gavin held out the present. “I got you something today.” When she made no move to accept it, he rose from the bed and brought it to her. “It’s nothing big, but I thought of you when I saw it.”

Reluctantly, Thea took the present from his fingers and slid a fingernail under a strip of tape along the back. The red-and-gold paper fell away in a single sheet and fell to the floor.

And then so did her stomach.

It was a book.

But not just any book. Their book. The one she’d been reading the day when he finally approached her in the coffee shop after weeks of shyly smiling. W-w-what are you reading? he asked.

And it was that book that he offered to read aloud to her when she came down with what she thought was a stomach flu three months into their relationship.

“Where did you get this?” she asked, because it was the only thing she could think to say. It’s not like it was hard to find a copy of a Faulkner novel.

“The bookstore downtown.” He cleared his throat. “I was thinking maybe w-w-we could read it again since we never finished it.”

No, they hadn’t. Because that stomach flu ended up being morning sickness, and the book was quickly forgotten. Thea wasn’t even sure what happened to her old copy. Probably packed away in a box in the attic along with her other neglected college textbooks.

The high from the day began to dissipate like a mist in the air. “I know what you’re doing, Gavin, and I-I appreciate the sentiment. But—”

“Yesterday sucked,” he blurted, cutting her off. “I know that.” He stumbled over his next words. “I w-w-want to try this again. Can we pretend the past twenty-four hours never happened?”

“Pretending everything is fine doesn’t solve anything, Gavin.” Her tone was combative and defensive, but that’s how she felt. Why bother hiding it?

“I just w-want us to read together like we used to,” he said.

“And then what? After you read, then what?”

“And then I’ll kiss you good-night and go back to my room. And tomorrow night, we’ll do it again, and the night after that.”

Thea sank to the mattress. Gavin must have mistaken it as a sign of her softening, because he approached the bed. “I’m trying to put us back together, Thea. Can’t you meet me halfway?”

At her silence, Gavin sidestepped her and sat down on the bed. He reclined into the same pose as when she walked out of the bathroom, only this time he cracked open the book. He looked up and cocked an eyebrow, daring her to join him.

Thea rolled her eyes. “Fine. We’ll read.” She stomped around to her side of the bed and climbed in next to him, holding her robe closed as she did. She fluffed the pillow behind her head and fell back against it. Her head clunked the headboard. She tried again.

His quiet chuckle vibrated the bed. “Comfortable?”

“Fine.”

His smile actually made noise. “Just checking.”

Thea let out another annoyed breath. “Are you going to pick up where we left off?”

Gavin made an mmm noise. “I think maybe we should start over.”





CHAPTER THIRTEEN




Gavin started over by lying to his wife bright and early Monday morning.

“I have a training session,” he told her, pouring cereal into the girls’ bowls. They sat sleepily in matching red T-shirts in their booster seats at the island countertop. “I’ll be back around noon.”

“OK,” Thea said, handing him the milk over the girls’ heads. Their fingers touched in the exchange, and she didn’t react, which was progress. A pleasant truce had settled between them since Friday night. He read to her and kissed her chastely before bed every night. She hadn’t exactly warmed up to him yet, but she’d let him put his arm around her while watching a movie with the girls on the couch last night. It was like working with a skittish stray dog.

“I like a lot of milk, Daddy,” Amelia said.

“I know, baby.” He filled her bowl to the brim and then splashed half as much into Ava’s, who he secretly believed wanted less just to be different from her sister.

“Can you write everything on the whiteboard so I’ll know what your schedule is?” Thea said, putting the milk back in the fridge. She looked at the girls, who were still in the yawning-and-staring phase of waking up. “Eat. We’re gonna be late.” She looked back at him. “I gotta run into the school to pick up my letter of recommendation, and then I’m meeting with the guidance counselor.”

“I know. I saw it on the whiteboard.”

Butter barked at his empty dish and smacked the bowl with his paw. He somehow managed to spill his water instead. Thea did a little hop and pirouetted over the puddle, grabbed a handful of paper towels, and dropped them over the mess. All while answering a question from Amelia about where her pink headband was. “It’s in the drawer in your bathroom, honey. Do you want to wear it today?”