Page 82 of All This Time

He scoffs. “Please, call me George.”

I shake my head. “Sorry, I can’t do that. I’ve called you Mr. Hart since I was fourteen and the habit is ingrained.”

Laughing, he shoves his hands in his khakis. “What are you doing here?”

I toss my thumb over my shoulder. “Yoga. I dragged Henley and Elliot along too. If Rhonan wasn’t on shift, I’d have lied to get him here as well.”

George chuckles. “I would have paid good money to see that. Seems you’re still able to get the boys to go along with practically anything, huh?”

Yeah, except for agreeing to lift a pact that we made when we were fourteen.

Of course, I haven’t exactly brought up the subject and won’t until I know where Laney and I stand.

“I can be pretty persuasive,” I reply, thinking about how giving Laney only one orgasm led to her wanting more. It wasn’t the outcome I was looking for, but I’m taking advantage of the opportunity.

Hence why I’m here tonight—to remind her that there’s more between us than just an intense physical connection. I mean, hell, I’m willing to endure fucking yoga for this woman. That has to count for something.

“Speaking of persuasion,” I say, “there’s something I wanted to speak to you about, sir.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. It’s actually related to the winery,” I begin, knowing that part of my mission tonight involved a conversation with Laney’s dad as well. But I don’t get a chance to finish my thought because the woman I’m here to impress interrupts us.

“Dad? The sound system isn’t working.” Laney has her eyes on the clipboard in her hands as she walks toward us, oblivious that she’s about to run into me.

So I decide to just let it happen.

“Oof!” Bouncing off my chest, she loses her balance and almost falls backward, but I catch her just in time, pulling her back into me.

Smooth, I know.

“Easy there, angel.”

Staring up at me, it takes her a minute to register that I’m the one who caught her. But when she does, her eyes grow comically wide. “Fletcher? Wh—what are you doing here?”

“I’m here for yoga.”

“What? Why?”

“Am I not allowed to do yoga?” I say, releasing her slowly to make sure she’s not going to lose her footing again. Thankfully, she remains upright.

“He brought Henley and Elliot too,” George adds, drawing Laney’s gaze to him and then back to me.

“Really?”

I stick my hands in the pockets of my gym shorts. “I kind of didn’t tell them what we were doing, so they’re pretty pissed at me right now, but they’ll get over it. I’ll just let them beat me in a couple of hands of blackjack and all will be forgotten.”

Her gaze moves between me and her father. “Okay. Well, I, uh…” Whether it’s the yoga crowd or the fact that we discussed our... arrangement yesterday, I can’t tell. But she’s flustered. And gorgeous.

George clears his throat. “I’m gonna go check on the sound system so we can get started, honey.”

“Okay. Thanks, Dad,” Laney says as she looks over at him and then back at me. “I guess I’ll see you out there then?”

“Yup. Go easy on me, will ya?”

But she doesn’t respond. As she walks away, my eyes trail her the entire time, fixated on her purple spandex-covered ass, of course.

George clears his throat again, alerting me to the fact that he hasn’t left yet, which means he just watched our exchange. When our eyes meet, one of his brows lifts. “I see the way you look at my daughter hasn’t changed at all.”