Page 45 of If I Didn’t Have You

“Not even to tell me if he’s still around?”

Finally, she looked at me, those blue eyes so fierce for the first time in a while. “He’s not here, and I hope he never returns.”

I was half tempted to ask Rob to look into whoever it was who had broken Lizzy’s heart. I wanted nothing more than to kill the man who could ever stomp out the light in Lizzy’s eyes, but I wasn’t so sure that was what she wanted.

The doorbell rang, interrupting our conversation, and Lizzy scurried away to get the door, evading the topic of Willa’s father.

I didn’t want to do any of this anymore. Ben had ruined my mood, but I wasn’t about to give up that gym space either. So, I put on a bright smile and played hostess like I had so many times before.

As expected, whenever word spread of our dinner, Maverick showed up with Remi and Wayne fighting, as usual.

“And I’m saying, just because I chose to get a new pair of boots doesn’t mean you had to go out and get the same damn pair!” Remi chastised his younger brother.

“Did you ever think that I just liked them?”

“Of course you do! You like everything that’s mine. Hell, you’ve been copying me since middle school, and even when I made fun of you to your face, you wouldn’t leave me alone!”

Maverick grinned at me sheepishly. “Sorry. I tried to sneak out of the station, but they caught me.”

“The more the merrier,” I laughed, leaning in to kiss his cheek.

“I’ll owe you one.”

“You’ll owe me at least ten. This isn’t the first time you dropped by for dinner, and I’m sure it won’t be the last.”

“Well, you do make the best pie. Tell me you have coconut cream.”

“Not tonight. I have apple.”

“Apple?” Remi piped up. “Did someone say apple pie?”

“Yes, but I only made one, so you’ll have to fight everyone else for a slice.”

I stepped aside, letting the whole crew in, followed by Sam and Blake, who had just pulled in. Deke was the last to stroll through the door, and angry as he looked at the thought of eating with the woman who was stealing his gym space, he couldn’t hide the hunger when he stepped through the door and smelled the roast on the table.

“Is that⁠—”

“There’s a whole table of food laid out,” I said, leading him into the kitchen. “There are plates in the other room. Grab one and dish out whatever you’d like.”

I grabbed Remi and Wayne by the shirt sleeves just as they were about to run off. “No dessert until you’ve eaten all your dinner.”

Like two kids being reprimanded, they trudged into the other room with their heads hung low.

With the men in the other room, I took my chance to talk to Blake. “So? Where do we stand?”

“Well, he wasn’t too happy about coming to dinner. But then he kept asking what we’d be eating. He didn’t seem too thrilled about the pork roast, but when I mentioned pot roast, that seemed to turn the tides. And of course, I raved about your pies. I hope there’s enough to go around.”

I looked at the one meager pie on the table, wishing I had made more. But with so much food, I really didn’t think anyone would have room for dessert, which was silly considering the men always found room for more.

“Well, if anything, I’ll lock Remi and Wayne upstairs until he gets a good slice. They can’t eat it if they aren’t here.”

“What possible reason could you have for making them go upstairs?”

“I’ll tell them I need something brought down, and then I’ll lock them in the room.”

“They’ll climb out the window.”

I sighed, knowing it wasn’t a perfect plan. “It’ll at least slow them down.”