Tucker pinned Flynn with a look. “I can’t believe you have a recipe in your head.”
Flynn shrugged. “I told you. I cook.”
“Flynn’s thinking of opening a restaurant in San Francisco,” Barrett said to Aubry.
“Really?” Aubry asked. “That would be amazing.”
Flynn glared at Barrett. “Do you have to tell everyone we know?”
Barrett grinned. “Pretty much, yeah.”
“Uh-oh,” Aubry said. “Was I not supposed to know? I’m sorry if it’s a secret.”
“It’s not a secret,” Flynn said. “I just haven’t decided yet if I’m going to do it. After our visit here in St. Louis, we’re going to fly out to San Francisco and look at commercial property. I’m still thinking about it, though.”
“Opening a restaurant is serious business,” Tucker said. “I know a lot of athletes who’ve done it, but I’ve heard it’s very difficult. Do you have a chef in mind?”
Flynn shook his head. “Right now I’m just considering the project. First I’ll look into location and property. Then we’ll take it from there and see what happens.”
“I told you, if you need investors, let me know,” Tucker said. “I believe anything you put your head and body into, you can make work.”
Flynn looked at Tucker, then nodded. “Thanks, Bro. That means a lot.”
Aubry loved the look that passed between the brothers. That was a tight bond.
“You’re not getting any money from me,” Barrett said. “I’m just going to go with you and tell you over and over that it’s a dumb idea.”
Flynn laughed. “Yeah, I knew I could count on you, Barrett.”
“I think it’s very exciting,” Aubry said to Flynn. “I do wish you luck. You seem passionate about food. I think you could make it work.”
“Thanks.”
Dinner was a success, and the more time she spent around Tucker’s brothers, the more she liked them. Barrett was funny, Flynn was more serious, but still had a good sense of humor. And it was quite obvious that despite all the teasing, they all loved each other very much.
It was also clear that Tucker enjoyed having his brothers around. With them spread out playing sports in different areas of the country, he probably didn’t get a chance to see them all that often. So she didn’t mind at all that they stayed up very late.
She stifled a yawn and finally stood and said, “I hate to be a terrible partier, but I have an early call tomorrow, so I’m going to bed.”
“We should head to bed, too,” Flynn said, standing.
She put up a hand. “Don’t be ridiculous. Stay up as long as you like. I can guarantee that as a doctor, I fall asleep in seconds and will sleep like the dead. Lessons learned from my internship.”
Tucker put his arm around her. “You sure?”
She nodded. “Absolutely. Have fun catching up with your brothers.” She kissed him good night, hugged Flynn and Barrett, then took herself to Tucker’s bedroom.
She could have gone home to her own condo, but it was late and she’d brought a bag with her scrubs for tomorrow.
Besides, Tucker had asked her to stay, and she wanted to. Something about sleeping next to his body at night had become so natural, so seemingly perfect.
And tonight she was too damn tired to dissect all the reasons why, so she undressed, washed her face and brushed her teeth and crawled into Tucker’s bed, pulling up the covers without thinking about their relationship.
Instead, she smiled and turned off the beside lamp, closed her eyes and was instantly asleep.
“LEO’S GOT A GOOD ARM,” TUCKER SAID. “LEFT FIELD is a good position for him. Plus he’s fast, so he can run down base hits.”
Tucker’s brother Grant nodded. “His on-base percentage is decent, too. He’s enjoying playing baseball.”
Tucker turned to his brother and grinned. “You sound surprised.”
“Grant thinks it should be all about football,” Leo’s older sister Anya said. “Kind of like your other brothers.”
“Hey, kid. I didn’t say a word.”
“It was implied, Barrett.” Anya winked at him.
“Actually, he’s enjoying both sports,” Katrina said. “I’m just happy he’s found something that fulfills him. My little brother is a different kid this year.”
“Yeah,” Anya said. “A lot less surly. And, unfortunately, a lot more outgoing. You can hardly shut him up now. I miss the quiet, hides-in-his-room-all-the-time Leo.”
Katrina nudged her sister. “You do not.”
Anya gave her sister a quirky smile.
Tucker enjoyed Grant’s fiancée Katrina and her siblings. And Grant loved them all, which meant they were family now.