She wouldn’t tell Vincent that in order to cope, she often pictured the latter like the little helpers in Cinderella, complete with brooms and aprons, although the cartoon mice most assuredly didn’t leave tiny poops behind, likehervisitors did.
Vince, not privy to her musings, nodded for her to go on.
“Umm, it wouldalsobe nice if you could maintain quiet time after eight on nights when I have to work the next day. And as for food, we’ve already discussed me being in charge, except when it comes to take-out. And if this spread is any indication,” she went on, “you’re going to do a fine job, there.”
“Geeze, Lace,” he scoffed. “You’re making this too easy on me. You took my first offer on what I’d pay for rent, and now you’re not even mentioning chores.Orthe biggest challenge we’ll face later on, which is Inez, if that ends up happening.”
Lace looked him right in the face with as much seriousness as she could conjure. “I alreadyknowthat you’ll do all the routine maintenance around here that I’ve…let go.”
Yeah.With her summer hours, and her lack of after-work oomph since her treatments began, she’d kind of dropped the ball.
“For sure.” Vince didn’t balk. “I’ll mow the lawn in the summer, shovel in the winter, and take care of all the little carpentry things I’ve been noticing that need attention, which are luckily not beyond my skill level.”
Lace wasn’t sureanythingwas beyond Vincent’s skill level. So far, the man seemed to be good at everything he did.
She couldn’t help but sneak a peek at his lips.
Yup.Perfect, and sensual as all hell.
Lace sucked in a breath and addressed his second concern. “As far as Inez goes, I knew exactly what I was getting into when I offered this place.” As a matter of fact, right after Vince had left that night, Lace had gone online and submittedherapplication and the information it would take for them to do a background check, hopefully approving her.
“If you manage to get her as a foster child,” Lace continued, “or any other little one, for that matter, I’ll do whatever I can to help. Which as you know,” she demurred, “in the summer, will be limited. But in the late fall, winter, and early spring, I’ll co-parent with you wholeheartedly.”
It was funny thing to say,co-parent, when she and Vince weren’t even a couple.
Which left only one thing lying on the table.
“That leads me to the final item on my list,” she said, unable to stop her anticipatory trembling inside. “Where do our, uh, romantic interactions go from here?”
Vince tipped his head, clearly weighing his words.
Fuck it.
Lace went for broke.
“In other words, which side of the bed do you prefer?”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Vincent barely kept his mouth from dropping open.
He needed clarification.
If Lace was joking, he didn’t want to put his foot in it.
“You, uh, want to know which side of the bed I sleep on?” he asked, his voice coming out tight and strained.
Damn.Was that him? He’d faced downinsurgentswhere fewer nerves had bubbled to the surface.
Lace blinked, suddenly fidgeting with her napkin on the table and looking unsure. But she eventually refocused her energies and answered. “Yes, Vince. I do.”
“Umm, for what purpose?” he asked tentatively.
How could he possibly assume that her brain and his were construing this question in the same way?
“For the purposes of being in bed,” she responded non-specifically, still giving nothing away.
Crap.Landminesgave better odds on dodging things without making an earth-shattering mistake.