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“Maisie.”
My eyes fly to Harlan and he’s wearing a small amused smirk.
“You’re only going to be gone for a few hours. It’s okay to be nervous, but I don’t think that I’m going to need all that?”
Heat explodes across my face. “I, uh, know. But just in case.”
“I promise if she even hiccups funny, I will call you immediately.”
“Thank you. It’s just weird. I’m weird. I’ve never...”
“I know.” Harlan’s solemn tone makes me think that maybe he does get it. The nerves, the fear of the unknown, the panic at leaving her for the first time.
“Sorry,” I say lamely.
“You don’t have to be sorry. But I promise that I will take care of Audra.”
Audra lets out a cross between a shriek and a scream and Harlan laughs. “We’re going to have so much fun, aren’t we lil bit?” He snags his plate and after a quick detour for a fork sits down at the table and pulls the foil off the top.
“Sit down. You don’t have to leave for a few, right?” he asks while forking up some noodles and stabbing a piece of the chicken.
“Oh, uh, no. I don’t.” The clock on the wall tells me I have about twenty minutes before I have to leave. I honestly thought that it would take longer for me to instruct Harlan on caring for Audra.
But I should have known better. There doesn’t seem to be a thing in the world that Harlan isn’t prepared to handle — including infants.
“So join me.” He takes the bite of food, and I watch his reaction closely as I sit down. A satisfied rumble sounds from him as he chews slowly before swallowing. “Jesus Maisie. This is good. Is this homemade Alfredo sauce?” he asks before forking up a bigger bite.
“Yeah. My dad taught me how to make it.”
He licks his lower lip, swiping up some wayward sauce, and my core tightens.
Jesus god in heaven above. It’s his tongue for cripes sakes. Not like he’s licking me…
Nope. No. Not going there.
“How’s Jem’s website coming along?” he asks after another bite.
“I haven’t had a lot of time to start it, I’ve been finishing up some work for a different client and preparing for tonight, but the bones are there. I’ll be able to fine tune it between next week and the end of the month.”
“That’s fast.”
I shrug. “I like to stay busy, and Jem’s website is more technical work than anything — that’s easier for me. It’s the coding for designs that takes more time for me anyway.”
“Nice.”
“How’s work going for you?” I ask.
“Good. The music festival starts tomorrow, so we’re getting our ducks in a row for that. If I’m not around as much over the next week, it’s a sure bet that’s why.”
I file the information away and offer, “If it’s okay with you, I could make you a plate for dinner so you don’t have to worry about cooking after you get home.”
His hazel eyes shine. “You don’t have to do that, but I won’t turn it down — not after this.” He nods down at the quickly disappearing food on his plate.
“Okay,” I say before blurting, “Why do you have such a big table? I mean, not that you shouldn’t have a large table, with how many brothers you have, but I haven’t seen them come by very often.” I slam my mouth shut.
He chuckles. “Fair question. My brother Duke? He does custom furniture pieces. When I finished the renovation on the kitchen, he built it up for me. Every once in a while, I host the poker night and it’s easier if we have room to spread out while playing.”
“You renovated the kitchen?”
