“Want to skip the dog park? We can grill some steaks here and take Wilma down to the pond for a swim.”
“Sounds perfect to me.” It did. It was a great way to spend a lazy Saturday. “So can you send me the information on the car you’re donating? I’ll have the PR person get the word out on that right away.”
“Sure. Just remember I’m not driving it.”
Point taken. Geez. Tuesday lightly kicked his shin. “I know. I heard you loud and clear.”
“Ow, you just nailed my knee.” Diesel reached down and grabbed it.
Tuesday sat up in alarm, instant guilt flooding her. “Oh, my God, I’m sorry! Are you—”
The jerk grinned. “Just kidding.”
She smacked his arm, way harder than the paltry kick had been. “That is not funny. I was feeling sorry for you, jackass.”
He just continued to laugh like it was the funniest thing he’d ever seen. Tuesday wanted to fight it, but she couldn’t. She ended up laughing with him.
“Are you going to cook me a steak or what?” she asked him.
Diesel leaned over and kissed her temple, still grinning. “Yes. I am.”
“Then get to it.”
“Bossy.”
“I learned it from you.”
He reached out and pinched her nipple. “I imagine so.”
“Hey!” She jumped, both from shock and from the unexpected pleasure. “You can’t just do that whenever you feel like it.”
“Who’s going to stop me?”
“Me.”
“And what army?” Diesel stood up, throwing the ball again for Wilma. “I’ll go get the meat since you’re dying for it.”
As he walked past her, Tuesday smacked his ass. Hard.
Twisting her hair up into a makeshift bun, she stretched her legs out as he went into the kitchen. Her shoulders relaxed, but her smile didn’t.
If this was what content felt like, she could get used to it.
“AT what point do you know that what you’re doing is more than dating?” Diesel asked his uncle the question that had been on his mind for days.
It was a rhetorical question, since he was fairly certain that what he and Tuesday were doing had moved beyond an occasional dinner and a movie, but they hadn’t talked about it. Was he supposed to talk about it with her? Hell, he didn’t know.
They were sitting on his aunt and uncle’s deck, watching Tammy and Pete’s kids run around the yard, chasing Wilma. He had brought her over to give her some exercise, and as a good excuse to see his deceased cousin’s kids. His aunt and uncle were babysitting for the weekend while Tammy accompanied Elec to Richmond for the Sunday race. His aunt Beth was putting together ice cream sundaes in the house so he figured this was his only chance to talk to his uncle without her hearing and sending the wedding announcement into the papers.
“You seeing her more than twice a week?”
“Yes.” He’d seen her three nights this week alone since their lazy Saturday afternoon and they were going to the drive-in movie in an hour.
“You talk to her every day?”
“Not always in person, but texts, yes.”
“Are you feeling like you want to buy her gifts or do some kind of a grand gesture?”
Funny he should ask that. “Well, I donated my car to her cancer benefit auction.”
His uncle’s jaw dropped, his beer bottle halfway to his mouth. “You did what? The ’63? Are you serious?”
He nodded.
“Boy, you aren’t just doing more than dating. You’re in love.”
That made him bristle. “It’s for charity, it was the right thing to do!”
“Uh-huh.” His uncle’s voice was dripping skepticism. “I take it we’re talking about Tuesday Jones?”
“Yep.” All he thought about was Tuesday. Morning and night, she was crowding his thoughts. He wanted to be with her constantly, wanted to make her laugh, and craved her sharp tongue putting him in his place. He wanted her in bed, sliding her mouth over his, spreading her legs for him, letting him control her the way he never could anywhere else. He enjoyed every minute with her, and when he wasn’t with her, he just wished he were.
Oh, my God, he was in love.
The realization shocked him to the core. He wasn’t sure he’d ever been in love before and that it would show up now, in this form, was more than a little unnerving. He felt like he couldn’t breathe all of a sudden. “So what the hell do I do, Johnny?”
“Well, you could turn tail and run. That I don’t recommend. You could put a ring on her finger. Which I think is rushing it. Or you could just enjoy spending time with her, stop worrying and thinking about it.”
That made sense. “That’s true. So I should just enjoy it? Not try to define it or whatever?”
“Did you change genders when I wasn’t looking? What man sits around trying to define his relationship.” His uncle shook his head. “Christ.”
Between his uncle and his friends, he was pretty much being told he was a girl. That was comforting. “What’s wrong with wanting to know where you stand?”
“You’re making me uncomfortable.” His uncle was actually shifting in his chair. “For crying out loud, what is it that you want?”
“I just want to know that she’s not going to date anyone else.” Forced to cut through his confusion, Diesel was instantly relieved to know that was exactly what he wanted. He didn’t need a declaration of love just yet because he wasn’t sure he was ready to share his feelings. Nor did he want to skip five steps ahead and contemplate marriage.
But he did want to know she wasn’t going to be getting boned by anyone else, because that just might make his head explode.
“Then tell her not to.”
“Tell her? What decade are you dating in?”
“Well, okay, discuss it with her.” His uncle rolled his eyes and waved his hand. “Just figure it out soon because you’re starting to get on my nerves.”
He could probably do that. He could casually broach the subject with Tuesday, feel her out about being exclusive. “First you want me to date, then you tell me I’m getting on your nerves?”
Johnny grinned. “Guess there’s no pleasing me.”
His aunt came out onto the deck just then, four ice cream bowls precariously balanced in her hands. “Tell me about it.”
But despite all his grumbling at him about being a real man, Diesel noticed how his uncle stood up immediately to help his wife, taking two bowls from her and giving her a soft kiss.