Where I Belong

After I reread it six times, I finally give her the response she wants.

Me: Even a tucked erection is still obvious. Trust me. And you aren’t the only one that’s been unbelievably horny lately.

I press send and get the f*ck out of there before I do something I’ll regret. I’m only a man, God damn it. She wanted me to respond to her, so I did. I can handle dirty text messages with the girl that I’m falling in love…

F*ck me. That’s what’s happening. I’m falling in love with Mia Corelli.





Chapter Twelve


Mia

“Okay, be honest. Tell me if I’ve completely outdone myself here.” I place my hands on my hips and survey the massive amount of babysitting supplies I picked up at the store. “I’ve got chips, cookies, popcorn, ice cream, mini cupcakes that I had to get because they had little shields on them.” I stand on my toes to see the rest of my purchases better. “Organic chocolate milk, organic strawberry milk, carrot sticks, grapes, and pita chips.”

“He’s going to freak out when he sees what you did back there. And did you just say carrot sticks?” Tessa calls out, strolling toward me from the direction of the bedrooms. “Seriously? He’s three. He’s more likely to use those as mini swords.” Her eyes widen at the sight of my purchases. “And he’s one kid. Jesus Christ, Mia. Have you ever babysat before? This is enough to feed a small army.”

I nudge her with my elbow. “Yes, I’ve babysat before. But I didn’t know what Nolan liked, so I kind of got one of everything. Ooohhh check it out.” I reach over the bags of chips and grab the two red box rentals, holding them out for Tessa to grab. “I got Frozen and something called Mike the Knight. I figured that one was right up his alley. The little cartoon knight reminded me of Nolan, minus the dimples.”

“Wow.” Tessa shakes her head and hands me back the movies. “You’re making a serious play, aren’t you?” She sits on the edge of the couch, smiling widely at me. My puzzled expression gets across exactly what I’m feeling, prompting her to elaborate. “You love him,” she states with a satisfactory smile.

“Sure, yeah I love Nolan. How could you not love him?”

Tessa had already started to shake her head as soon as I said Nolan’s name. “No, that’s not who I’m referring to.” She pauses, giving me the chance to connect the pieces on my own. It doesn’t take me long.

I wave her off with my hand. “I do not love Ben if that’s who you’re foolishly referring to.” No. I’d know if I loved Ben. I want to bang his back out, but that’s not love.

“It is, and you do. Or you’re at least open to loving him now. You’re not just trying to impress my nephew with all of this.” She motions toward my snack pile. “And you’re desperately trying to pull him out of the friend zone he so stupidly put you two in. How many slutty text messages have you sent him?” she teases.

Tessa and I never keep secrets from each other. Hell, she was the one who suggested the scandalous text message idea after I told her that I wanted Ben to see me as more than a friend. She predicted he’d drop everything and come at me hard after the first one I sent. But no, I’m either really bad at getting someone hot with my words or he’s completely immune to them. I cover my eyes with my hand and grunt my frustration. “Not enough apparently. I threw my best stuff at him and he barely flinched.” I drop my hand and look at her. “I’m running out of ways to spell this out for him.”

She stands up and walks over toward the sliding glass door. “Get naked. That’ll definitely spell it out.” She waves and smiles at what I assume is Nolan. “Don’t tell my brother about the pregnancy, okay?”

I walk up to her, putting her hand in mine. Nolan is in Ben’s arms, swinging his sword in the air as they walk around the pool. “It’s your news to tell, not mine. And the first person that needs to know about it is Luke.”

After the initial shock of the possible pregnancy sank in the other night, Tessa and I stayed up for hours talking about it. She was scared, but she was also really happy about having a baby with Luke. The only problem was the two of them weren’t supposed to be serious. And throwing a baby into the mix would definitely change that.

She sighs heavily. “I’ll tell him. I’m just waiting for the right time.”

“Like tonight?” I ask, smiling at Nolan’s face as it comes inching closer to the glass. Tessa shrugs her response. “You can do it. You know he cares about you. And if you need me, I’ll be right here.” She leans her head on my shoulder as the boys come up to the door, sliding it open.

“Hey,” Ben greets me with a smile as he steps inside the house, placing Nolan on his feet. I am once again stunned into silence from the sight of him in his uniform, unable to give him anything besides a goofy grin at the moment. But my God, he makes that uniform look downright sinful. I’m tempted to go commit a major felony in hopes that he’ll pat me down or better yet, strip search me. Nolan runs right at me, wrapping his arms around my legs and snapping me out of my lustful thoughts. “He’s a little excited. The maniac wouldn’t even take a nap today because he was too wound up to come over here.”

I laugh and rub Nolan’s head, seeing him lift his face to me. “I couldn’t take a nap either.” I bend down and put us face to face, dropping my smile and trying to stay serious. “I tried to take a nap, but there were all these dragons in my bedroom.” His eyes immediately twinkle with interest, doubling in size. “They might still be back there. Can you go check it out for me?”

“Yeah!” he yells with pure excitement, his little legs quickly taking him down the hallway.

Tessa nudges Ben’s shoulder, barely moving him an inch. He smirks at her and she smirks right back before looking over at me. “I’ll see you tomorrow sometime.” She gives me a knowing look and motions with her head toward Ben without him noticing. Get naked, she mouths, earning herself a stern look from me before she walks out the door. I will definitely not be getting naked unless Ben undresses me, and at the rate we’re going, I don’t see that happening any time soon.

“Here’s all his stuff.” Ben drops the duffle bag that is on his shoulder onto the couch, opening the zipper. “Pajamas, toothbrush, a few books that he likes me to read to him before he falls asleep, and this.” He pulls out a stuffed dragon that looks well loved. It’s worn and frayed at the edges. “He can’t go to bed without this, but don’t give it to him before bedtime because he’ll take it everywhere and I’m afraid he’ll spill something on it and I won’t be able to wash it. If something happens to this thing, I’m completely screwed.”

I laugh and watch him stuff it back into the bag. “What time is bedtime?”

“Between 8:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. He might pass out before then though since he’s running on no nap.” Ben turns his head and glances over at the kitchen counter. “Wow. You are definitely prepared.” He smiles at me with a teasing look. “Expecting more children?”

I shove his massive shoulder and move past him. “Oh ha-ha. This isn’t all just for Nolan. I’ve been known to put away a massive amount of snacks when I’m entertaining.”