Dammit. I must huff out the frustrated little growl I thought I made in my head, because soon Rhodes has dropped his lips to mine and is laughing as he kisses me again.
Thankfully, another argument/stalling tactic comes to me. I gently push my hands on his chest and quirk a brow, eyeing my new boyfriend suspiciously. “Hang on. You said women don’t stay here.”
Rhodes is not even trying to hide his laughter. “They don’t, but Jake’s friends do, and it’s one rule for all. Sorry.” He shrugs, but he’s not sorry at all. Maybe distraction might be the key to my escape from his crazy running idea. “Alright. But who the hell runs at . . .” I lift my head and glance at his alarm clock beside the bed before my gaze snaps back to glare at him. “. . . eight on a Sunday morning?”
“Jake, Marco, Gio, Luca, sometimes Renee, and me.”
“Well there’s obviously not enough room for all of us in one car, so maybe I’ll stay here and cook you a hearty breakfast for afterwards?”
“Baby. You can do that and come with us. But if it’s too far, we can stop early, and I can make it up later.”
Make it up later? Who is this man? Miss a run and make it up, all day long you’ll have good luck? No. Wrong. All day long you’ll be unable to walk!
I pull out the big guns and pout, which doesn’t succeed in any way other than to make Rhodes laugh as he kisses me happy again. Damn this man. Does anything work on him?
“Okay, I suppose I’ll come. But I’m telling you—I’m only going to slow you down.” I roll over onto my back and cross my arms over my chest.
Rhodes shifts to his side and smooths my hair away from my face. “That’s okay, sweet cheeks. Haven’t you realized by now that you’re the one who sets the pace?”
All I can do is think about that hot-as-hell-carry-me-into-his-house move he pulled as soon as I told him I had an overnight bag. Note to self—sometimes straight to the point has delightful consequences.
“Okay. Well, we’ve got . . .” I glance at the clock again. “. . . probably thirty-five minutes left. Why don’t you cuddle me and tell me why you all run on a schedule that means we can’t stay in bed all day.”
“Firstly, as much as I’d love to do that, my morning-alarm-clock brat is sixteen and impressionable, so he needs to see that you’re not just here to ravage his father.” His gleaming grin says he’d like nothing more than to be ravaged by me, which makes me snicker. “And to answer the other question, we have our PT test coming up and, in three months’ time, we’ve got our annual fundraising run for ovarian cancer research that we participate in every year to honor Lily.
I reach out and stroke my fingers over his face, loving the way his expression softens and he leans into my touch. “I’ll go on the run with you,” I whisper, my throat tight.
“Thank you, baby. It’s important to me—you are too.”
Well, fuck.
Narrowing my eyes, I point my finger at him. “Don’t you make me cry now, Rhodes Anderson. That would not make me happy. It’s far too early for that kind of nonsense.”
“I agree. And we’ve got . . .” He looks to the clock this time. “. . . thirty-one minutes left before we have to leave. Maybe we should use that time to not talk.”
“Yes.” I lean in to smack my lips against his, but when he goes in for another, I roll away and get out of bed, grinning at him as I make my way to his bathroom.
Halfway there, I stop mid-step and slowly turn around, taking in the beautifully presented master. There’s dark blue walls with half-height wainscoted panels lining the room. There’s a built-in wardrobe along the far wall and plush carpet under my feet. This room has a woman’s touch written all over it.
“Hey.” Rhodes stands in front of me, rubbing my arm with one hand and resting the other on my hip, pulling me close. “What’s wrong?”
“This is the master bedroom.”
“Yeah . . .”
“And this is the house you bought with Lily, right?”
Rhodes’s forehead bunches, his mind working overtime behind his eyes before they widen. “Dee, it’s not—”
I shake my head. “Sorry. It’s silly, and I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s not my place—”
He jerks back. “It sure as hell is your place—well, I hope it will be. Dee, this isn’t the original master bedroom. After our year of grieving, Jake and I decided to renovate this place. His room now is what was our old master, and I knocked a wall out and added the ensuite to this one.”
Biting my lip, I’m relieved but also confused. “Wait. Then are you interested in interior decorating or something?”
His eyes widen before he buries his face in my neck and bursts out laughing. “Fuck no. That’s all Mom’s doing. And maybe Skye and Mama Rossi too.”
“It’s nice.” I try to sound upbeat and not the embarrassed mess I truly am. As always, something must give me away, because Rhodes straightens and stares into my eyes.
“We don’t censor ourselves around each other, remember? You don’t think I’ve thought about you living in the same room, maybe sleeping in the same bed as you and Flynn shared? But we talk about these things. Just like I talked to Jake before you came over last night, you no doubt had to tell Flynn you might not be home, right?”
“Yeah. I’m sorry. I just—”
“Stop apologizing, Dee. It’s natural. It’s human. Lily may no longer be with us, but her memory is everywhere in this house. I know that. I also understand your questions.”
“You do?”
“Sweet cheeks, I’m a man who gets protective and territorial when I’m with a woman, and you just happen to live with your ex-husband and father
