Page 115 of Bad Medicine

Taking her by the hand, I led Mia up the sidewalk to the house, standing outside the door as I looked at her, hoping she could see all the things I was trying so damn hard to say. “You worked so damn hard, baby. You carried the load alone for long enough. All I wanna do is share it with you. Stand beside you. Be there for you.” Giving her a dirty smirk, I added. “And maybe have access to those amazing tits whenever I can get at ‘em.”

She scowled, and fuck if I didn’t find it adorable as shit.

“Really, Rocco?”

“What, Doc. Can’t blame a guy for tryin’.” And I was tryin’ so fuckin’ hard right now.

“Listen, Mia.” Attempting to school my face into something resembling a serious expression, I tried again. “For real. I just want to, I don’t know. Make life easier, or whatever.” I finished with a lame shrug, feeling all kinds of stupid as she stared at me like I’d grown a second head.

“At least look around the place before you blow me off completely,” I suggested, and Mia narrowed her eyes at me.

“What, no terrible joke to go with that sentence?” she questioned, and I barked out a laugh.

“I mean, I was thinkin’ it, that’s for sure.”

“I’ll bet you were,” she muttered, but damn if her eyes didn’t drop to my crotch as she spoke.

Yeah, she was thinkin’ about it, too.

Opening the door with the key I’d given her, Mia stared around in awe as she took in the expansive house done up in light gray marble and creamy painted accents. The place was empty, but I didn’t mind as I showed her the main floor, with a huge kitchen and dining room, as well as an entertainment area with a massive built-in projector for movies and shit. We looked at the bedrooms next—all five of them—and I pointed out which I thought would be Jasper’s, not telling her I was already picturing decorating it with airplanes for him.

Back downstairs, I showed her the yard, loving her expression as she took in the awesome pool and hot tub as well as the outdoor kitchen and covered seating area.

“Rocco, this place is incredible,” Mia breathed, standing in the yard as she looked around, hands on her hips. “Truly. I can’t even really believe it, to be honest.”

“Believe it, baby.” I moved in behind her, resting my chin on her shoulder as I wound my arms around her waist. “And you know what else?” Turning us a little, I indicated the guest house at the back of the property, a great little bungalow style place with a private kitchen and living space. “I figured that could be for Linny, if she wanted it.”

“Really?”

“Of course,” I confirmed. “When I picked this place, I knew it would be important for you to have your family close.” Linny and Mia weren’t related by anything more than their shared history, but in my experience, that was the best kind of family.

The kind that had been there for you through the good and the bad, and still stuck around.

The only kind worth having, really.

I gave Mia a few more minutes of wandering around the house, watching as she trailed her fingers over surfaces and peered in rooms, picturing herself in the home I hoped she’d come to love.

Finally, as she inspected the kitchen for what had to be the third time, Mia took a deep breath, her shoulders straightening as she faced me, and I knew she had come to a decision.

“I have conditions.”

“I’d have been surprised if you didn’t,” I teased, and she gave me that little frown again.

“First, I want you to know that I expect to pay to live here.” When I opened my mouth to protest, she held up her hand, effectively silencing me. “I know you’ve paid for it, and I don’t even want to know how much it was. To be honest, the thought of you having enough money to buy this place in cash makes me woozy.”

“I’m flush, baby. Deal with it.”

I could see her fighting a smile, and it sent a thrill through me.

“There will be other expenses, like utilities and taxes, and I will want to be responsible for those.”

I’d let her think that, if it got her to agree, but we would absolutely be revisitingthatconversation down the road.

“Second, I need you to do something for me. I don’t know how you’ll do it, and I probably don’t want to know, but I trust that you can make it happen.”

Trust. I had been asking Mia to trust me for a while, and hearing her say it out loud made my dick hard.

Fuck, I was so gone.