Watch Over Me (Danvers #7)(19)
“Caleb is eight, and Jacob is six. Derrick’s holding down the fort while I’m gone, but hopefully he hasn’t set them out on the side of the road by now.”
Dominic smirked at his sister, saying, “I can’t believe you haven’t figured out how Derrick keeps the kids under control when you’re away. I mean, have you never noticed those muzzles in the hall closet?”
Meredith laughed, pointing her finger at her brother. “Hey, I’m smart enough not to question what happens when Mom’s away. As long as they are in one piece when I get home and Derrick’s not handing me divorce papers, I let it go.” Turning to Gwen, she added, “In case you’re wondering, my hubby’s a veterinarian.” Fanning herself she said, “The damn sexiest one you’ll ever meet. He has nerves of steel and a body for sin. I’m a very lucky girl!”
Dominic made a choking gesture at his sister’s words. “Can we please not turn this into an hour of talking about your husband’s . . . attributes. I feel like I know the man’s body much better than I should. Let’s leave it at ‘he’s a hell of a guy’ and deserves some kind of gold medal for all that he does.”
Meredith raised her glass of wine, smiling fondly as she said, “Here, here. No complaints there. So, Gwen, what type of work do you do?”
“I work at Danvers International as a senior accountant.” With a rueful grin, she admitted, “I’m a numbers nerd; I always have been.”
Giving her a look hot enough to melt the clothing from her body, Dominic growled, “You’re the sexiest nerd I’ve ever met.”
Meredith grabbed her wineglass, taking a gulp. “You do remember I’m here, right?”
Dominic looked at her as if surprised. He actually seemed to have forgotten that there was anyone else in the room other than the two of them. “It’s not like I haven’t heard worse from you,” he tossed back. Gwen could see a telltale blush on his face that was totally adorable. She loved that he could get so caught up in her that he blanked out the rest of the world. Again, that was something that had never happened to her with another man and it felt far too good.
As if just remembering Gwen’s earlier words, Meredith snapped her fingers, saying, “Hey, your office is at Danvers as well, right, Dom? Is that how you two met?”
Before thinking better of it, Gwen answered first. “Nope, we live in the same apartment.” Then realizing how that sounded, she was quick to clarify. “I mean we live in the same complex, but a few doors away. I noticed him there a long time before we actually crossed paths at Danvers.”
“A long time, huh?” Dominic eyed her across the table. “Exactly how long had you been watching me before we officially met, babe?”
Oh great, now she was the one turning red and stumbling over her words. She knew the guilt was written all over her face. Dammit, she had watched him for months. Even when she’d been going out with Mac, she hadn’t been able to resist ogling her hot neighbor. It made her feel as if she was a cheater when she realized that he and Mac were not only coworkers, but best friends. She’d like to say that she’d never looked at him again from that point on, but it would be a lie. “Well, um . . . I mean, of course I saw you coming and going sometimes. And, when you returned from your runs in the evening or in the summer when you were using the pool.” With both Meredith and Dominic now openly staring at her, she became even more flustered. God, she had admitted way more than she’d intended. Now she sounded like some kind of crazy stalker lady. She made matters even worse when she hastily added, “It was hardly ever, though. Not every day or anything.”
Meredith took advantage of her pause to wink at her. “Ah, girl, it’s okay. I don’t want to stroke his already overinflated ego, but my brother’s smoking. Even I can admit that. If I had a neighbor, not blood-related, of course, who looked like him, I’d be glued to my window every chance I got. Derrick thanks his lucky stars that we have only senior citizens living near us because he knows what would happen otherwise. I’m afraid being a book blogger has given me a new appreciation for the male body.”
“Thanks for that, sis. You managed to kill the thrill of Gwen’s words by sharing your inner pervert with us once again.” He looked around the table before shaking his head in shock. “We’re on our second bottle of wine, and we haven’t even ordered yet. How did that happen?”
Looking sheepish, Meredith admitted, “I kept waving the waiter away. The conversation was way too good for us to be interrupted. I guess we should eat now, though, because I’m buzzing just a little bit.”
Dominic picked up one of the wine bottles, then looked at Gwen. Before she could stop what she knew was coming, he grabbed her glass and said far too loudly, “Baby, are you drinking wine?”
“I . . . didn’t even think anything of it.” And that was the truth; nothing had entered her mind other than having a glass to relax. She figured by this point, though, she was a few past that. Putting her hand over his, she tried to reassure him covertly since they had an audience, “It’s fine.”
He lowered his voice to match hers, sounding concerned. “I still think you should be on the safe side until we know for sure.”
Gwen felt like a cross between a scolded child and an unfit mother or mother-to-be, which only served to piss her off. She didn’t like being questioned; she wasn’t used to having to defend herself against something like this. Before she could make the snarky comment that was hovering on her lips, Meredith dropped her hand loudly onto the table and said in a whisper-shout that was mainly the shout part, “ARE YOU PREGNANT?”