Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 89145 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89145 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
I’d noticed he was eyeing the pool as he ate.
“I better not,” he said. “If the boss wakes up and says we’re leaving, I wanna be ready.”
I didn’t want them to leave. I wasn’t ready to see Alfie off after everything we’d talked about last night. Plus, he’d take the kids with him. It was still his week until tomorrow afternoon.
Just moments later, I heard the door slide open behind me, and I looked over my shoulder to regret it. Mother of Christ, he was only wearing a pair of low-riding sweatpants and a bed head. So much ink and so many abs on full display.
That infuriating little fuckknuckle.
“Morning.” He squinted and rubbed one of his eyes.
I cleared my throat and faced forward again. “Good morning.”
“Morning, boss,” Colby said.
“Kid, it’s Alfie,” I heard him reply. “Finn’s the boss.”
“Daddy! You’re up! You slept here!” Ellie had entered the chat. She threw aside the blanket and darted toward Alfie, who chuckled and met up with her at the edge of the terrace. “Hiii!”
“Hi, baby girl.” He picked her up.
“Dad!” Trip called, looking toward Alfie. “Can you swim with me?”
“Next time, have a sleepover in my room!” Ellie insisted.
Alfie took her rambling like a champ, and he carried her over to the pool to give Trip his attention too.
“Lemme get some coffee first, buddy. I gotta talk to Daddy about the weekend too, ’cause guess who called and woke me up? Nonna.”
Ellie gasped. “Are we going to Nonna and Pop-Pop? Yay!”
“At some point,” Alfie chuckled. “We’ll find a day for youse to have a sleepover.”
I shook my head quickly, realizing I was staring. My chest felt tight too, and I knew why. Seeing Alfie here again wasn’t good for my sanity. We’d always rocked mornings together. They’d been sacred to us, especially in the summer. I’d often get to work late so we could have breakfast together and discuss our next adventure.
Ellie wanted to play with her dolls by the pool, so she skipped inside to get them, and Alfie sat down across from me and reached for the thermos. Only for him to realize he’d have to go inside to grab a mug.
I wordlessly handed over mine.
“Thanks.” He exhaled in relief. “I don’t know that I’ll be good for anything today. Fuck me, I’m beat.” He refilled the mug and sent me a brief glance. “You gotta be dead on your feet too. Did you get any sleep at all?”
“About two hours.”
“Damn.” He took a long swig of the coffee with his eyes closed. “Ah, just shoot it up my vein.”
I felt my mouth twitch.
He was so…goddamn beautiful. Out of this world.
“So Giulia called?” I asked.
“Mm.” He nodded once and yawned. “She asked if she could borrow the kids tomorrow—till Saturday. I said I’d talk to you.”
Right. Because my week began tomorrow.
“That’s fine,” I said. It wasn’t fine, but I could entertain myself. They loved going to Nonna and Pop-Pop’s.
I had paperwork to catch up on. That was also a way to spend a Friday night.
“Okay, I’ll let her know.” Alfie flicked a glance above me, and I could practically read his mind. He was feeling the breeze from the AC unit, and it was too hot for him to give me shit right now. Instead, he zeroed in on Colby. “Do you own any nicer clothes? Kellan texted, and we’ve got a pub thing tomorrow.”
A pub thing?
“I have a pair of black pants and a shirt,” Colby replied. “Does that work? Is it for the thing at Mick’s?”
Alfie inclined his head. “It’ll be my first time. Yours too, I assume.”
“Yessir.”
“What’s Mick’s?” I asked, peering over to make sure Trip was okay.
Still floating around, splashing a little with his feet.
“A pub downtown,” Alfie answered. “Once a month, Kellan arranges a pub night for Sons and some family, and he calls it team building.”
I snorted under my breath. A team-building exercise at a pub. Of course.
He shifted his gaze to Colby again. “We’ll go shopping today. I’mma pick up a whole new style for myself.”
Another one? What would it be this time? He wasn’t a suit-and-tie kind of guy, and it’d frustrated me every time he’d shown up looking all uncomfortable, tugging at his tie, standing rigidly…
The Alfie I’d fallen in love with had worn jeans and tees, short or long sleeves. Always formfitting.
I’d taken him to a photo shoot once, back when he’d been a model, and as sexy as he’d looked in a suit, it hadn’t been him. The second part of the shoot, on the other hand… When he’d dropped the suit, they’d messed up his hair before placing him in front of the camera in only black briefs. The campaign had been plastered all over LA, with models wearing cocktail wear in one photo and underwear in the next.
Alfie refilled the mug again. “Don’t you think I can pull off a modern twist on Peaky Blinders?”