Grinder

“Right. And then you man up, or you let Bailey go.”

Love was a bitch.

“Turkey is done,” I called out as I brought the bird in from the porch. There was nothing in the world quite like a deep-fried turkey. Juicy, flavorful, and toasty warm, which was pretty much the opposite of the ice Bailey had been throwing at me all day.

“Oh good,” Mom said as she finished mashing the potatoes. “It needs to rest, yes?”

“Absolutely,” I said, putting the turkey onto the massive cutting board before I glanced around. Bailey’s mom, Sarah, was in the living room keeping Lettie occupied, but I didn’t see Bailey. “Where’s Bailey?”

“I think she’s in her room freshening up,” Mom answered. “She’s been on her feet all day.”

“Right. Those smell great, Mom,” I said, kissing her on her cheek before I took off for Bailey’s room.

I knocked three times on her door.

“Come in,” she said.

I pushed the door open and found her sitting on her bed, staring out the bay window.

“Hey, what’s going on?”

“Nothing,” she forced a smile, slipping something into her nightstand and shutting the drawer. “Just doing some thinking. Is there something you need, boss?”

“Fuck, Bailey, can’t we just drop that today? It’s Thanksgiving.” I sat next to her on the bed, but she didn’t look at me.

She wore a gorgeous black dress that wrapped around her, and her hair was loose down her back. Everything about her was quintessentially Bailey, except her eyes were distant, and the dark circles under them told me she hadn’t been sleeping any better than I had lately.

“Bailey?” I took her cold hand in mine.

“What do you think is the point of falling in love?” she asked.

“What?” Okay, that one came out of left field. “Love...is so we have someone to spend our life with, I guess.”

“Right,” she said quietly like she’d been defeated. “And when you both love each other, but there’s just no way to make it work?”

Ice cold fear slid down my spine. “There’s a way for this to work. We love each other. We’ll find a way to compromise. It’s what couples do.”

She laughed, but it wasn’t funny. “What’s a compromise for this, Gage? Half a baby? There’s no winning this for me. You get hockey. You get Lettie. You get me. You get everything, and I’m told to let my dream go.”

“What do you want me to give up? I’ll give up anything you ask,” I said, a slight edge of desperation creeping into my tone. I needed time to think, and it sounded like she’d made up her mind.

“I don’t want you to give up anything,” she replied, finally turning to look at me, her eyes full of unshed tears. “Don’t you see that? I want to give you everything. And now... now I’m not sure it matters anymore.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, my muscles tensing.

“Nothing,” she said with a small shake of her head. “Maybe it’s just better this way.”

“What way? Bailey, you’re kind of scaring me.”

She blinked, and a soft warmth returned to her eyes as she cupped my face. “God, I love you. It’s been hell these last two weeks, trying to be professional, not to think about kissing you, touching you, loving you. The distance is killing me—not just from you, but from Lettie. It feels like my heart is being ripped apart.”

“So don’t be distant.” I leaned my forehead on hers. “Just give me time. We can find a way to work through this.”

She tilted her head and brought her lips to mine. My sigh of relief was deep as I gathered her to me, pulling her close. Our kiss was sweet for a moment, and then I split her lips with my tongue, sliding inside to the warm welcome I knew as home. Fuck, I’d missed this. Not just the physical act of kissing her, but feeling like every ounce of her attention was mine.

Our tongues rubbed, danced, dueled for dominance, and as she whimpered that sexy little sound she made I pushed her further. If she wouldn’t believe by my words that I loved her, that I wanted this to work, then my body would have to show her.

My hands tangled in the silk of her hair, tugging lightly so that her head leaned back, arching that graceful, gorgeous neck. I set my mouth to it, running my teeth lightly up the delicate column, and she gasped.

“Gage,” she moaned, her nails raking my scalp.

Knock. Knock. Knock. “Gage? Bailey? You guys about ready to start?” Sarah asked.

Bailey jumped off the bed like her mother had actually walked in. “We’ll be right there, Mom!”

I held my head in my hands, trying to catch my breath and calm my body. “Bailey…”

“Let’s just go, okay?” she pled. “That...that was a momentary lapse in judgment.”

Well if that wasn’t like ice water to my dick.

“What? Then what the hell would you call our entire relationship?” I stood, holding her gaze.

She swallowed. “A fish’s attempt to love a bird.”

Bailey pushed past me and was out the door before I could come up with a retort. A fish and a bird. Two different worlds. God, we were already a family, didn’t she understand that? Why couldn’t we be enough?

We danced around each other, each on eggshells as we got dinner onto the table. Our mothers each shot looks in our direction, but both of us ignored them and continued on task. At least we were on the same page in that manner.

In the other...we were a whole book apart.

We all sat down at the circular table and held hands as Lettie made her way through the blessing in her sweet little voice. We dished the food, and I took extra mashed potatoes—when it came to those, I would always be about five years old.

“Well, this is lovely,” Mom said.

“It is. Thank you ladies, for cooking all day,” I said.

“Thanks for the turkey, Daddy!” Lettie called out, her mouth more than full.

“You’re welcome, Lettie-lou.” I smiled and held myself back from chiding her for talking with her mouth full. She was too damn cute.

“So, let’s just say what we’re both thinking,” Mom said to Sarah before turning to where Bailey and I sat separated by Lettie. “We’re so glad that you two are together! It just seems like such a long time coming, and we couldn’t be happier.”