Golden Days: Gay Romance E-Book

Trina Solet

• Herausgeber: Trina Solet
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

How can a nerdy, young dad hope to attract his hunky new neighbor? And if he can get his attention, does he have any hope of making it last?
Kyle only recently became an adoptive father to a vulnerable little girl. He's a devoted dad, and Viv is a spirited and loving five-year-old. With the help of his little dog, Kyle worked hard to gain Viv's love and trust in record time. Now they are a family. That doesn't mean he has no room for a man in his life.
Luke has been working in a string of nightclubs for most of his adult life. It was an exciting life, but Luke had enough of it. A recent loss sends Luke into suburbia in search of a more peaceful life. The loss of his brother is still fresh, but spending time with Kyle and Viv brings him so much joy.
In the past, Kyle hasn't been lucky in love. He always goes for the wrong kind of guy. But with Viv in his life, he can't afford those kinds of mistakes.
When Luke moves into the neighborhood, Kyle ends up with two wounded souls on his hands. Good thing he has room in his heart for both of them. If Kyle can get past his fears, he might just get everything he has always dreamed of.

Leseprobe

Golden Days: Gay Romance

By Trina Solet

Copyright © 2015 by Trina Solet

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locales or actual events is entirely coincidental.

All sexual activity takes place between persons eighteen years of age or older.

This novel contains material intended for mature readers.

Cover image is only for illustrative purposes. Any person depicted is a model.

Golden Days

Gay Romance

Trina Solet

Chapter 1

Luke meant to drive all the way through to his new home in Lansdale. Then he nearly drove off the road and decided it was time to get some sleep. Next time he might not veer off the road. He might head into oncoming traffic.

He wasn't picky about where he stayed so he ended up at The Sandman Motel. Too close to the highway, it was barely a step up from pulling over and sleeping on the side of the road. The threadbare curtain let in light from the streetlight outside. The yelling coming through the wall never stopped.

Luke watched passing headlights come flooding through the motel room window. They swept over the ceiling and the wall then moved on. The sounds of night traffic competed with the drunken noises next door. But if he could fall asleep at the wheel, this should be no problem.

Really, what kept him awake was a sense of loneliness. The drunk couple fighting next door reminded him that he didn't even have anyone to fight with. He felt rootless and friendless. He did have friends, but they were scattered all over the West Coast. His parents were still grieving Simon's death and looked at Luke with questions in their eyes that he couldn't answer.

Luke missed his brother so much. He could hear his laugh and the way he yelled out orders over the noise of the club. Simon schmoozed with the customers while Luke stood back and let him do his thing. Luke was the quiet one, the younger brother always in his shadow, or as Simon used to say, "Not in my shadow, you're under my wing, little brother."

That's when Luke would straighten to his full height of 6'2" and look down at the top of Simon's head. His height didn't matter. At twenty-five and forever, Luke was always going to be his little brother. It was hard to think of Simon now. Even his smile made Luke want to cry.

Closing his eyes, Luke pictured that little house he would be moving into. He was going to make it his home, finally live a life he never had. The house was so ordinary, so free of flash, thinking about it put him right to sleep.

In the afternoon the next day, Luke arrived in front of his new home. He parked his classic Eldorado in the driveway and just sat and stared at the unassuming, little house that was now all his.

Luke got out of the car. Feeling how the hours of driving had stiffened his whole body, he stretched and looked around. The neighborhood was full of nondescript houses like his as well as some nicer ones. The street was quiet with only the noise of kids playing and hammering in the distance.

Across the street, an old lady was trying to persuade her poodle to do its business on a mowed lawn very much unlike his own. Luke's new yard was an unholy mess. Overgrown with weeds gone wild, it scared him a little. He wondered if there were snakes in there. Maybe snakes didn't come to suburbia.

Luke turned his eyes back to the house. It was sky blue with nothing going for it except it was his. Boxy and featureless, it beckoned to him just like it had in the pictures.

It was those pictures that made him buy it without ever setting his eyes on the real thing. That's why Luke took a few deep breaths before he went up to the narrow porch and unlocked the front door.

The door stuck then it creaked when he shoved it with his shoulder. That wasn't a promising start, but what he found inside wasn't exactly a horror show. The carpet was a disaster and would be going into the dumpster as soon as he could get his hands on it. The beige walls were in need of a fresh coat of paint. There was a smell of cigarette smoke but some airing out would fix that.

A set of white, saloon doors led into the kitchen. The whole kitchen was from the seventies – yellow wallpaper, beige fridge, Formica countertops, linoleum on the floor. He'd need to rip out all of it. But until then, he could make a perfectly decent sandwich or a pot of spaghetti in there.

He didn't find any kind of disaster in the peach tiled bathroom either. It would be usable until he took a sledgehammer to it. After not finding anything that made the place unlivable, Luke let out a sigh of relief. The house was a little bit of a project, but as Luke stood in the middle of the living room, he decided he would much rather call it home.

Considering how little sleep he got in the past few days, Luke was glad to see a mattress sitting in the corner of the bedroom. It wasn't in bad shape either. As someone who had last slept in a roadside motel, he wasn't too picky. He had time to get the place sorted out starting tomorrow. For now, he just wanted to catch up on some sleep.

There was a hell of a lot of work ahead of him. The weird thing was that Luke found himself smiling at the thought. And why not? He was going to work and make this place really his.

Luke awoke from the complete darkness of dreamless sleep into bright morning sunlight. He looked around at the unfamiliar blank walls. Sun was streaming through the uncovered windows.

He sat up on the bare mattress and took stock of what little there was to see. There was his duffel bag in the corner, the mattress under him, the old carpet he was going to pull up as soon as he could. This was his first time waking up in his new house. Like this whole new life he was trying to live, it was underwhelming but not without potential.

Checking his phone, he saw it was past nine o'clock. Funny that he slept so well on a bare mattress on the floor in a house he only set foot in the day before. It was quieter here, and the noises that did reach him were kind of soothing.

Luke could hear the sounds of suburban life being lived out there – some kids yelling, car doors slamming, a car driving away then a little later a lawnmower starting not close by, maybe on the next block. Luke decided it was past time to join in. After all he lived here now. He could try and clear out that yard, see if he could get himself bitten by a snake.

In the glare of morning sunlight, Luke could see all the work that needed to be done outside. Circling the house, he looked up at the roof and the gutters. The roof seemed OK, but the gutters were clogged. The good and the bad, it was all his. The overgrown lawn was his too. Luke frowned at it.

"You won't get the better of me," he told it then he drove to get some breakfast and to the store for some supplies. He was energized by the thought of getting to work. As he got in his car, he thought, if Simon could see him now, he would laugh. Luke could hear his laughter cutting right through the noise of the club. The familiar sound came to him so clearly. It was hard to believe that sound only lived in his memory now, that Simon wasn't out there somewhere giving a welcoming smile and raising his glass to someone.

*

For the last few months, Kyle had the same experience at unexpected times – a realization would hit him that he was a dad. That's when Kyle stopped whatever he was doing. He was stunned as if he received the happy news only that moment. "Congratulations, Mr. Burton, the adoption was approved."

The thought of being a dad made him smile foolishly to himself, and if Viv was there she would ask him, "What? What?" like he was keeping a joke to himself. Viv, his Viv, his little girl.

He was having one of those moments now. Kyle had stopped working and just sat there, grinning at his computer screen. Deciding it was time for a break, he saved his work and pushed back from his desk to stretch his spine and listen. In a short time he had been a father to a five-year-old, Kyle learned that a quiet house could mean big trouble. He got up to see what Viv and the dog were up to. He could use a second cup of coffee while he was at it.

Kyle swung by Viv's room first. She was changing out the battery in her flashlight, just like he showed her. Carefully lining up the pluses and minuses, she had on a frown of deep concentration.

"Did it go out?" Kyle asked a little worriedly.

"No. It was blinking," Viv said as she got the batteries in and tested out the flashlight.

Its beam looked weak in the midmorning light, but it was working. It was a small Pink Power Ranger flashlight that they found at a yard sale down the street. It might have looked like a silly little thing, but it was very important to Viv. Without it, she was too afraid to close her eyes and go to sleep. Her fears weren't as bad as they used to be. In many ways, she was doing so much better than the closed off little girl he brought home months ago.

Having gotten the flashlight to work, Viv smiled at the job well done. To give her more confidence, Kyle wanted her to know how to change the battery herself. He tousled her blond hair and went to see if the leftover coffee was drinkable.

After heating up the coffee in the microwave, Kyle walked into the living room with his cup in hand. That's where he found Gidget trying to dig through the carpet. She was such a cutie, a little brown mutt, but she did love to dig.

"Hey, Viv, Gidget is digging again. Distract her before she ruins the carpet."

"Gidget! No digging in the house!" Viv screamed at her, making Kyle grumble.

"I meant play with her, not yell at her."

"Let's go in the back yard," Viv now called out to Gidget. She turned to Kyle. "Can we?"

Kyle nodded. "Don't let her dig up the whole lawn," he told her as he heard the kitchen door open.

Going back to his desk, he turned his chair and the computer screen so he could see out into the back yard through the big office windows. After a few minutes, Viv poked her head inside.

"There's a man in the back yard," she yelled from the kitchen door.

Kyle jumped and rushed right over. He was ready to reach for the baseball bat he kept in the corner when Viv explained herself a little better.

"Not in our back yard. That one over there." She pointed over the fence into the yard next to theirs.

That made more sense. If anyone was in their back yard, Kyle would have seen them. Calmer now, he went over to see. No doubt about it, there was a man on the other side of the back fence and a damn good-looking one.

There was a chain link fence separating Kyle's yard from the one that backed up to it. The house was on another street, a small, one story house painted sky blue. For almost two years now, the blue house had been sitting empty. Seeing that the guy was clearing the yard, Kyle wondered if the place had finally been sold.

Kyle didn't envy him working in the summer heat. Curious about the guy, he went over to find out who he was. Viv joined him, holding his hand tightly like she did whenever they met anyone new.

The guy on the other side of the fence looked better with every step Kyle took. He had dark, close cropped hair and beautiful brown eyes. His body was a sculpture come to life. Brawny strength combined with just the right kind of definition. Tall and sweating, he was shirtless and only wearing jeans. They were dirty from the earth that he kicked up when he pulled a plant loose from the soil. He had on working gloves and there was a pickaxe leaning nearby for the more stubborn plants. The guy saw them coming, stopped his work, and quickly put on a gray t-shirt.

"Hi. I'm Luke Corelli. Are we neighbors?" he asked with a smile. He wiped the sweat off his face with his forearm.

"If you live here, we are. Hi, I'm Kyle Burton. This is my daughter, Viv." Kyle extended his hand.

Luke took off one work glove and shook his hand with a big, warm grip. The whole time he kept smiling at Kyle in a way that made him feel like a hug and a kiss might follow. It's a known fact that gorgeous guys at close range cause hallucinations.

Viv pulled on the hem of Kyle's shirt to get his attention. "You didn't tell him the whole thing," she complained. "Tell him you're my dad."

"I'm Viv's dad," Kyle said to Luke, but that didn't satisfy her.

She put up her arms and demanded, "Pick me up and show him."

Kyle picked her up and held her in his arms, then they both turned to Luke.

"See?" Viv said as she hugged Kyle tightly. "It's me and Dad forever." She gave Luke a challenging stare in case he was thinking of disagreeing.

"I can definitely see that you're Viv and her dad," Luke assured her.

"Right," she said and smiled. Then she jumped down from Kyle's arms and looked around for Gidget. Seeing her, Viv had another complaint. "You didn't introduce Gidget."

"Gidget is busy licking herself," Kyle pointed out. Viv frowned at him until he capitulated. "Fine. And that's Gidget, our dog."

After Viv ran off to chase Gidget around the yard, Luke asked him about the weird introduction.

"Why did she make you hold her up like that?"

Kyle knew it must seem strange. "I only adopted Viv a few months ago. It's all still pretty new. When I was still trying to convince her that I was really her dad, I used to hold her up like that and take a picture of us to show her or just hold her in front of a mirror. I told her, 'That's us. That's a father and daughter. And we're going to be father and daughter forever.'"

"She seems pretty convinced," Luke said, looking over at her as Gidget ran circles around her.

Kyle smiled with pride, but he didn't want to keep talking about himself. He wanted to know more about his new neighbor.

"So you bought this place?" he asked, pointing over at the blue house.

"It's all mine. I just got here yesterday. I'm trying to get it into shape starting with this jungle." Luke looked around at all the work that still needed to be done in the overgrown yard.

"Good luck to you," Kyle said. The mass of weeds had become thick and tangled. There were all sorts of wild looking plants growing there entwined with others that had been planted. "This has gone beyond weeds. You're up against a whole ecosystem here."

"You could offer to come over and help me out," Luke said with a smile. It was almost like he was flirting with him.

"I'm working right now. I'm just taking a short break," Kyle told him and nodded back at the windows of his office.

"You work from home?"

"Yeah. That works out great. I can spend time with Viv, and she enjoys having me around." Kyle looked behind him at Viv and Gidget. "You like having me around, right?" he asked a little louder so Viv could hear.

"It's OK," she said in the most lukewarm way possible.

"She loves it," Kyle insisted. Since both he and Luke needed to get back to work, he asked him, "You are probably busy, but do you want to come over for dinner?" It was an impulsive move. Shocked that he could be so bold, Kyle felt like his heart might stop.

"I better or I'll starve. I have no food in there. I got in late yesterday. Haven't had a chance to do any real shopping," Luke said.

Kyle was thrilled, but now he had another idea. "Then you better come over for lunch."

"You don't mind?"

"Let's see," Kyle said and then he called out to Viv. "Hey Viv, can Luke come over for lunch?"

"I'm not cooking," Viv said.

"You don't know how to cook."

"Yes, I do."

Kyle turned back to Luke. "We are going to eat at 12:30. That gives me time to get a little work done."

"That works for me. I can't come over like this. I'll have to shower and change," Luke said, looking down at himself. Both his jeans and t-shirt were dirty. His sneakers were hopeless.

Kyle looked at him too and shivered at the sight of that rock hard body under dirty clothes. "You don't need to go to all that trouble. We'll keep it outdoorsy, have lunch on the patio. Viv and I are just going to throw something together. We won't go to a lot of trouble so you shouldn't either," Kyle told him.

"Good plan," Luke said.

He went back to work, and Kyle and Viv went inside. Almost as soon as they went in, Viv was running back out. She ran over to the fence with a bottle of water. Kyle watched through the kitchen window as she handed it up to Luke, and he reached down over the fence to get it.

"This is from Dad. He said you shouldn't work outside without water," she said, passing on his lecture to Luke.

"Thanks," Luke told her. He smiled at her, but she frowned at him.

She marched away like she didn't want him to know that she was actually a nice kid. Such a little faker. Seeing Luke raise the bottle of water in his direction as a way of thanking him, Kyle waved. It was going to be weird having a hot guy like that as a neighbor.

Chapter 2

A little later, lunch was on the table on the back patio and Luke came over. Kyle could tell that his hands and face were freshly washed while the rest of him was still dirty. He looked at the plastic lawn chair like he was afraid to sit in it.

"I don't want to get it dirty," Luke said.

"Don't worry about it. I just hose them off," Kyle told him.

Once Luke sat down, Kyle called Viv to come and eat. Three plates, salad bowls and glasses of peach iced tea crowded the outdoor table.

"It's just some grilled ham and cheese sandwiches and salad," Kyle said. Luke seemed pleased, but Kyle still added, "We worked with what we had. I hope it's OK."

"You have to say you like it even if it's bad," Viv told Luke as she came to join them, her hands washed.

"It all looks very good. Thank you, guys," Luke said.

"I helped with the salad, and I opened the bread bag, but I didn't lose the twisty tie like Dad does all the time," Viv bragged.

Luke laughed. He seemed OK being around a kid. Realizing he was evaluating his potential as a boyfriend, Kyle tried to stop. Luke was probably straight and way out of his league anyway.

"He eats a lot," Viv said, noticing how Luke wolfed down the food.

Kyle found the sight gratifying. He took the opportunity to teach Viv some good manners. "Viv, you don't judge guests on how much they eat. And didn't you see how hard he was working? I told you how people get energy from food so their muscles can do work," Kyle reminded her.

"OK," Viv said. Then she said to Luke, "You can eat as much as you want. Dad said it's OK."

"Thank you," Luke said, smiling at Kyle.

Taking a sip of his iced tea, Kyle tried to hide how hard he blushed under his teasing gaze. There was no way Luke was straight. Straight guys didn't throw flirty glances at each other.

That solved only one problem. He was still way too good-looking. Why did Luke have to have those expressive, chocolate brown eyes? Just looking at him from the neck down, Kyle was won over by this guy already. Luke didn't need to be nice or have a pleasant baritone that sent a tremor through Kyle's bones. He didn't need to have a great smile or glance at Kyle every few minutes like he was asking, "You want to?"

"Yes, I want to very much, but I have a kid and responsibilities," he wanted to say. But the truth was no one was asking him anything. Those were just random looks that Kyle's feverish brain was misinterpreting.

Soon Viv finished her smaller sandwich and some of her salad. Bored with adult company, she ran off to make sure Gidget had her lunch too. Left alone with their guest, Kyle took the opportunity to find out more about him.

"So what brought you here into this very humble neighborhood?" Kyle asked. It wasn't unheard of for hot guys to move into the area. Kyle had another buff neighbor a few blocks over, but that guy was definitely straight. The jury was still out on Luke.

"Just looking for a change of scenery, the quiet life," Luke said.

Kyle saw the light in Luke's eyes dim as he spoke. He could tell there was something upsetting behind his decision to move here. Kyle wasn't going to press him, but after a long pause, Luke continued on his own. His voice was tight and low as he spoke.

"I lost my brother recently. It was... hard. We used to be in the nightclub business together. It lost its appeal." Luke eyed the little, blue house over the fence. "So I bought that house. Got a job bartending."

"Where do you work?" Kyle said to move on to a subject Luke would find easier to talk about.

"A bar called Bricker. I start tomorrow. An old friend of my brother's owns it," Luke told him. "I go in at happy hour and work till they close. I figure that will give me plenty of time to work on the house and the yard during the day. Speaking of..." Luke started to get up and thanked him for lunch.

"You're still invited for dinner," Kyle said though he knew it was too much to expect him to come by for two meals in a row.

"Lunch was great, but I've imposed on you enough for one day," Luke said. "Actually I'm thinking of stopping by the bar to get the lay of the land. That way I can jump right in tomorrow."

"OK. Another time maybe," Kyle said, trying not to sound too eager.

"Looking forward to it," Luke said with a smile that raised Kyle's hopes.

He watched as his new neighbor went through the yard toward the back fence. He jumped over with ease and some flexing of muscles. As they waved to each other, Kyle sighed and not just because he had lost sight of Luke's ass. It was going to be hell to have a gorgeous guy like that so close.

After Luke was gone, Kyle called Viv over to help clear the table. As he stacked the plates and bowls, he tried not to replay every second he spent with Luke. But he couldn't help seeing those beautiful eyes light up as Luke smiled. Despite himself, he wanted to hang on to every second, every sight and sound of Luke.

Kyle had the weirdest feeling. This was how he might feel after a great date, when he knew without a doubt that something was starting. It was a feeling he had only imagined until now. And he was probably still imagining it. None of his relationships started with that feeling. They started with miserable uncertainty and ended in disaster. He couldn't afford to repeat his usual mistakes with someone who lived right across the fence.

He looked at Viv as she came over to help. He had her carry her glass into the kitchen. That was his way of teaching her to pitch in. She was the reason he couldn't be reckless with his heart any more. By adopting her, Kyle made a thousand promises. He was going to keep them even if it killed him.

His number one priority was to give her a stable home and a happy life. He had time for relationships. He was only twenty-seven. Maybe he could hook up with someone after she was more settled, maybe once she went off to college. Until then, he would try to stay in shape and age gracefully.

*

His first twenty-four hours spent in his new house, and what a day it turned out to be. Getting the house into shape was going to be a challenge. That should have been what preoccupied him, but Luke was thinking about Kyle and how he came by to introduce himself. Luke had raised his eyes to see the most attractive, broad shouldered, lanky, dark eyed nerd he had ever seen in his life. Not his type one bit, but no one informed his dick about that.

Luke tingled all over at the sight of him. For a minute he worried he might have gotten into some poison oak or something. But no, that was all Kyle. And the more time he spent with him and the more he looked at him, the stronger that feeling got.

Meeting him was a sign that Luke had done something right when he moved here. To see him coming over with his kid and his dog was like some postcard from the life Luke was yearning for. You have arrived at your perfect life and it includes this very young, hot dad. But what about that kid of his – brown eyes, blond hair and that look that said don't mess with me? That little sweetie just needed a pair of boxing gloves. It must be something to have a kid like that. Looking at her, Luke knew Kyle must be quite a dad.

By the time Luke arrived for his first unofficial day at the bar, Bricker had been packed with the after work crowd. They were elbowing each other at the bar, yelling over each other, calling out orders. He got a running start pitching in behind the bar. After a little while, he could see the vibe change from stressed to smiling.

Bricker was cheerful and low key. It wouldn't be so bad to work there. And Roy, the owner, was an OK guy. He knew Simon well, but he didn't try and get Luke to talk about him. Not that he had much of a chance with the crowd that filled the place.

Luke didn't put in a full day, only a few hours to get the feel of things. After he was done, he stopped by a convenience store a few blocks away. He needed to stick a few things in his ugly fridge so he'd have something to eat in the morning.

Arriving back at his house, Luke stood in front and just stared for a minute. It was late evening, but there was just enough light to see the house outlined against the vivid reds of the sunset.

The house was different from the first time he saw it. The gnarly yard had been cleared and the porch light was on. He got that feeling again, like the house welcomed him home. Luke cast his gaze over the back fence and smiled. A guy, his kid, and his dog lived over there. They had the life Luke strived for but wasn't sure he could achieve. Maybe they could show him how it was done.

Early next morning, Luke was grabbing some toast and black coffee as he made plans for the day. The long list of supplies he needed made him realize that he really didn't have the right car to haul things back and forth. With all his remodeling plans, he needed a truck.

"Am I a truck guy?" he asked himself.

Two hours later, that question was answered. There was a red Ford Silverado sitting in his driveway. That settled it. He was a truck guy now.

Even so, red wouldn't have been his first choice. He didn't want to spend all day hopping from car dealership to car dealership. Talking to one car salesman was plenty. Luke just wanted the deal over and done with, so a red truck is what he got. It wasn't so bad. Kind of cool.

Seeing Kyle and Viv walking Gidget, he wondered if they would agree. Viv and Gidget ran ahead of Kyle.

Viv stared at his truck. "You have a red car. It's pretty," she said.

"Just how I would describe it," Kyle said with a grin.

"I didn't pick it for the color. It had the right horsepower for the right price," Luke said defensively.

While Gidget and Viv poked around the truck, Kyle stayed to talk with Luke.

"How did it go at you job?"

"I got to know my way around. The real work will be today. Between the bar and this place, I'm barely going to have time to sleep."

"Are you up for that?" Kyle asked with concern.

Luke patted his own arm. "I'm not in bad shape. I'll power through it."

If Luke had any doubt, the way Kyle looked at him at that moment convinced him he was gay. Kyle's eyes roamed his body for a minute and he grinned. There was something so sweet about his smile even if he had just stripped him naked with his eyes. Luke never thought a guy with glasses would attract his interest like this.

"Do you ever go to Bricker?" Luke asked to stop his train of thought before he said something to scare him away.

"Not much of a bar guy these days." Kyle glanced over at Viv who was holding the leash while Gidget sniffed under the truck.

"Drop by some time. It would be nice to see a familiar face." Once Luke said that, he realized how much he wanted to see Kyle there, or anywhere where they could get some time alone.

"I don't really go to bars these days. I'm a stay at home dad in every sense of the word," Kyle said.

"That's good. I'll know where to find you," Luke said with too much honesty.

"With all the action at the bar, you won't be lonely," Kyle said, raising an eyebrow at Luke.

"It's a straight bar. I don't know if I'll get any action," Luke told him. He wanted to make it clear he was gay in case Kyle was wondering.

He saw the information register then Kyle scoffed. "Who are you kidding? You could score anywhere."

"I told you, I'm living the quiet life these days," Luke reminded him.

"We'll see," Kyle said with a teasing grin.

"Is it time?" Viv asked, popping up next to the two of them.

"Almost," Kyle told her after checking the time on his phone. "I'm taking her to daycare. She goes a few days a week. That way she can spend time with other kids, and I can get more work done," he said to Luke.

"Do you like it there," Luke asked Viv.

"It's good, but I'd like it better if I could bring Gidget," she said.

"I'm sure the other kids would like it too," Luke said.

"And that's exactly why you can't take Gidget with you. It would be chaos," Kyle added, but Viv only gave him a confused look while Gidget sniffed Luke's shoelaces.

Luke still couldn't get over what a perfect picture the three of them made. He wanted to scoop them up, carry them inside his house and tell them, "You're mine now." Actually, he was dying to look into Kyle's dark eyes and say those words.

All he said to him was "See you later." Viv waved to him as they went around the corner toward their house. Watching them go, Luke wondered if he might be able to come up with an excuse to drop in on Kyle while he was alone. What the hell was he thinking? He had a house to demolish and then put back together. First thing he had to do was rip out that gross carpet.