Another Man's Treasure (30 page)

“Yeah. They are going to torture us, you know.”

Miranda and Francine high fived each other and laughed.

“Game on!”

“Challenge accepted!”

They went back to preparing dinner and smiled as they listened to the two guys in the living room reminiscing about college days.

         & &nnbsp                                              **********

“You were right about one thing, Delaney. Miranda is one tough woman.”

“She is amazing, Ross.  She’s pretty easy to love.”

“You never stopped loving her. That says a lot about you too, buddy.”

“I fell in love with that girl after our first date.  I knew then and there I had to make her mine.  What about you, Guthrie?  I see how you look at Frannie.”

“She is something else. Not like the girls in Cali.  They try so hard to catch your attention and it all just comes naturally to Francine.”

“Nothing like a good country girl to rock your world, my man.  She’s completely different than what you went for in college.”

“Yep, my choices in college were flawed to say the least.”

“Well, Frannie is interested. She was asking Mandy about you.  Think the lady was fishing for some info.  I told Mandy the basics, nothing specific.”

Ross and Jude laughed.  Some things never changed.

“Yeah, I got the idea she was interested when she rubbed my thigh with her foot at lunch today.  That and a kiss that about knocked me over.”

“No shit?  That’s our Frannie!  For all the years I have known her, she has never been considered shy.  When she sees something she wants, she goes after it.  But I will tell you one thing.  You could do worse. Frannie is loyal to a fault.  She’s a good friend.”

“Yeah, we’ll see.”

Jude looked at Ross and knew that the past still plagued him.

“Ross, you gotta let go of the past.  Francine is not Daphne.  She is the complete opposite.  I think Francine would be good for you.”

“Did you tell Miranda about Daphne?”

“No, dude. I just told her it was an old girlfriend that left you for some Latin guy.  I never told her that she was your fiancée and that she was pregnant with the asshole’s kid.”

“Yeah, let’s leave that alone for now.  See how it goes.  I don’t want to go all in and go through that shit again.  I could fall for Frannie. I gotta be careful.”

“Careful?  I say go for it.  You have been single long enough.”

“What about you, Delaney?  Unless I am mistaken, you’re still single.”

“Not for long, Ross. Not for long.”

Jude pulled a small box out of his pocket and handed it to Ross.  He opened it an opened d inside was a gorgeous diamond ring.  Ross raised his eyebrows and whistled.

“Wow, Delaney, that’s one hell of a ring.  When you gonna ask her?”

“Soon.  Look, Ross...you’re the only family I’ve got.  I want you to be my best man.”

Ross leaned over and put his fist out.  Jude slammed his on top of Ross’s and nodded.

“My honor, dude.  I would love to be your best man.  Don’t you think you should ask the girl and see if she says yes?”

“She will say yes.”

“How do you know?”

“The red hair doesn’t lie.”

“Can you fix it?”

“Nope, gotta live with it.”

“Thank god.”

The two laughed over the old joke between them.  They were the only family each other had and now it was about to expand.

“I never had a sister.  I can’t think of a better choice, Jude.  Miranda is quite a woman.”

“That she is, Ross.  Let’s go see how dinner is coming.  If it isn’t ready, we can torture them some more or at least stare at their asses.”

“Sounds like a deal to me.  Either way, I am hungry for both.”

Jude and Ross walked back to the kitchen and found Miranda setting the table and Francine tossing the salad.  Frannie turned and looked at the guys as they stood there grinning like Cheshire cats.

“Dinner is almost ready, guys.”

“Great, Frannie. We will just sit here and enjoy the show until it is.”

“The show?” Francine looked at Miranda, questioning Jude’s statement.

“He means they are going to sit there and stare at our asses until it’s ready.”

“By all means, stare all you like.  Let me know if you like what you see.”

Jude reached out and swung, trying to slap Miranda’s ass.  She jumped back and laughed.

“Missed! Ha!”

“Later, baby, my aim will be spot on.”

Francine walked over and stood next to Ross.

“What about you?  Want to test your aim?”

Ross grabbed Francine and put her over his lap, gave her a playful smack on her ass and then stood her back up.  He and Jude laughed hard at the look of shock on Francine’s face.

“I warned you. I never miss my target.”

Francine rubbed her ass where Ross smacked her and grinned.

“Yep, you warned me.  Let me warn you about something.” Francine leaned down and whispered in Ross’s ear. “You better have your A-game on, sweets.  I liked it.”

“Challenge accepted.”

Jude and Miranda looked at each other and grinned.  Game on!  The girls finished setting the food on the table and Jude grabbed a bottle of wine and poured for everyone. Miranda looked around the table and smiled. 
I am going to get used to this.  The four of us together…like a real family.

                                                        ************

After dinner, they sat in the living room and kept the conversation light.  There had been enough drama for one day. 

“I know it is still fairly early, but I have a hell of a day at work tomorrow.  Mondays really suck.  I think I am going to call it a night.” Francine stood and stretched a bit. “I think I will walk home. I could use the exercise after that meal.”

“You sure, Frannie? I can drive you home if you want.”

“No, M, I don’t mind the walk.”

“I will walk you home, Frannie.”

“Thanks, Ross. That is an offer I won’t refuse.” 

Francine leaned over and hugged Miranda, then Jude.  “Talk to you tomorrow, M, and see you at the office, Jude. Good night.  Ready, Ross?”

“Ready when you are
, Frannie.  Be back in a bit.”

Jude and Miranda settled back on the couch and turned on the television.  They snuggled up and began to kiss, not paying attention to what was on.

             
                                                        **********

“Thanks for walking me home, Ross.  It’s not far, but the company is appreciated.  Tell me more about you.”

“My pleasure, Frannie.  What do you want to know?”

“Well, why is a handsome man like yourself is still single, or am I just assuming because you don’t wear a wedding ring?”

“No, I’m single.  I guess I haven’t found the right person.”

“Hmmm…does that mean you are looking?”

Ross smiled.

“I am always looking and aware of my surroundings.”

“Do you have any children?”

“Well, none that I have been made aware of.  What about you, Frannie? Why didn’t you and Sam have children?”

“Sam and I concentrated on our careers after graduation.  College and post grad schools kept us busy. We figured there would be time.  When we decided to try we found out Sam couldn’t have kids.”

“I’m sorry
, Frannie.  It seems like I keep asking the wrong things.”

“No problem. Like I said, I am an open book.  You, on the other hand…it’s like pulling teeth.”

Francine stopped and tapped Ross on his chest with the palm of her hand.
Holy shit!  That feels like bricks! 
“I want to know what is in here…what makes Ross Guthrie tick.”

“I am a highly motivated person.  My friends and family mean everything to me.  Jude is like my brother.  I don’t have any other family but him.  We met at a local gym near the college. Hit it off first thing.  We raised as much hell as we did study.”

“I am all for raising a little hell.” 

Frannie poked at Ross, elbowing him, bumping into him.  She laughed as he fought her off, pushed her back and tickled her.

“Francine Marsh, you don’t know what you are getting yourself into.  I never lose.”

“Oh, really? Well, I never give up!”

The next time Francine took a swipe at Ross, he grabbed her hands. He pulled her against his body and pinned her hands behind her back with one hand.  He held her there and stared.

Desire flashed from Frannie’s eyes.  “Now what are you going to do with me, Ross?  I am at your mercy
, it seems.”

Ross sighed deeply
, cupped her face with his hands and kissed her gently. Francine immediately laced her arms around his neck and kissed him back.  She opened her mouth slightly, an invitation for his tongue.  Ross kissed her harder, accepting the invitation.  He moved his arms around her tiny waist. Their tongues danced together and sparked the desires buried deep in each of them. 

Francine was the first to pull her lips free.

“I am glad you have a tight hold on me.  That was a knee weakener.”

“Weak kneed, huh?  I can fix that.”  Ross wrapped his arms around Francine and lifted her feet off the ground.
Damn, she feels good against me…fuck.

<
“Is this better?    I can carry you the rest of the way home if you like.”

Francine kissed Ross and he set her back on the ground.
Oh dear god almighty…

She chucked the whole time they kissed and then pointed to the house across the street from where they stood.

“I live in that house right over there Ross, the little white one.”

“Do you always leave all the lights on, Frannie?”

“No, my parents do. I live in the apartment over the garage.  My parents built it after Sam died.  It has been a godsend to have them close by and I keep an eye out for them.  Mom gets so tired lately.  Would you like to meet them?”