Loving Graham Read online

  “You’re gonna scare him off, Gloria.”

  She leans around Graham who is standing between us. “I’m not scaring you off, am I, honey?”

  “No, Gloria, not at all.”

  “See? Now shoo, get out of here.”

  “I’ll see you Monday. Make sure you lock up and set the alarms.”

  “Duh,” she says snapping her gum.

  Graham shakes his head and keeping hold of one of my hands leads me outside to the parking lot. “You okay with bikes?” he asks as we approach a sleek black and chrome Harley.

  “I don’t have much experience with them, but I don’t have any objections if that’s what you mean.”

  “Cool. Here, put this on.” He hands me a black helmet and puts an identical one on himself. I watch him swing a leg over gracefully, and the bike roars to life. “Hop on,” he yells, and I don’t hesitate for a second. I can hardly wait to swing my leg over and press my body up against his. His body is hard as stone. It takes every bit of my self-control not to run my hands up and down his torso and between his legs. I’m going to have to thank Nicky for choosing jeans for me to wear—anything thinner and Graham would be feeling my rock-hard cock against his back.

  “You good?” he asks turning his head to the side to speak to me.

  “Yeah, great.” Oh yeah, so much more than great.

  “Hang on.” With the flick of his wrist, we are flying out of the parking lot, and I feel like I’ve died and gone to heaven. The man and the power between my legs are intoxicating. Being right here with my arms and legs wrapped around his body, I can’t imagine anything better.

  The ride is about twenty minutes down the coast. Twenty minutes wrapped around the hottest man in California is not enough. I’ve been focusing so much on Graham that I didn’t notice we are in a residential area. He pulls into a long driveway of a large Victorian house, and I wonder if maybe it’s an old home made into a restaurant until the front door flies open, and three kids race down the steps of the porch screaming Graham’s name.

  He cuts the engine and holds out his hands to stop the kids from touching the bike. “Hey now, watch out, the bike is hot,” he explains. Three pairs of eyes are staring at me expectantly when I realize I have to get off the bike first.

  “Oh, sorry, I’ll get off.” I swing my leg off the bike, and as soon as Graham is free, the kids—two boys and one girl—attack him wrapping their arms around his long legs hugging and squealing.

  “Uncle Graham, you gotta come see the tree house Aunt Gwen’s making with Uncle Matt, it’s awesome!” the girl says.

  “Yeah, Uncle Gavin’s gonna put a refrigerator in it!” one of the boys chimes in.

  “Cool, I’ll come see it in a minute. I want to introduce my friend, Levi, to Nana and Papa first, okay?” They nod untangling themselves from him noticing me.

  “This is Levi. Levi this is Kat, Leo, and Marco. They are a few of my many nieces and nephews.”

  “Hiya, nice to meet you all.” I give them all a little wave.

  “You talk funny,” the little girl says.

  “Kat, that’s not nice to say. Levi is from England, and his accent is cool.”

  “It’s okay, I know I sound funny,” I say reeling from the shock of him bringing me to a family function for dinner on our first date.

  “Inside with all of ya!” Graham says clapping his hands together. He reaches for my helmet, and I hand it to him. He hangs them on the handlebars and motions for me to follow him into the house.

  “I know what you’re thinking. Why’s this guy taking me home to meet his family on our first date?”

  I cock my head to the side and shrug my shoulders. “Yeah, it crossed my mind.”

  “I’m not trying to be pushy, but it’s rare that my entire family can get together at the same time, and it was happening this weekend. I figured if nothing else, you’d get great food and good company. I get it if this is too weird for you, but I hope you’ll give it a chance.”

  “I’m okay with it. A little intimidated, though. Didn’t you say you had six siblings?”

  “I did. And you get to meet the whole motley crew.” He threads his fingers with mine and pulls me into the chaotic house. The front room is a large open space with natural light pouring in through the windows. People are everywhere talking, eating, joking around, kids are racing around, younger ones are crying, but the overall vibe is pure love.

  I never had a family. My parents left me at an orphanage when I was a year old, and that’s where I lived until I aged out at eighteen. I yearned for this, prayed for it, begged God to give me a family, but it wasn’t meant to be. Now that I see how much I was missing, the wound in my heart hurts a little more than usual.

  “Hey, everybody, listen up! I brought a friend tonight. This is Levi Yale. He is the detective investigating the robberies at the salon. Be nice, I like him.”

  I feel a blush creep up my neck when a woman enters the room from what I imagine is the kitchen wiping her hands on a dishtowel. She looks like Graham, or I should say he looks like her. She has the same dark hair and striking blue eyes but she isn’t as tall.

  “I’ll go around the room. I know you won’t remember everybody’s names, especially my brothers and sisters, you’ll see why. But as my mother, Seren, would say, it would be rude not to. Right, Ma?” The woman steps forward and offers me her hand. “It’s good to meet you, Levi. I’m Seren, Graham’s mother.”

  I take her soft hand in mine and shake it. “Pleasure’s all mine, Mrs. Blackwell.”

  Her eyes widen, and a smile plays on her lips. “You’re British.”

  “That I am, ma’am.”

  “Yale, that’s Welsh, isn’t it?”

  “It is, you’ve heard of it?”

  “We’re Welsh, dear. Graham’s father and I came to the states when we were twenty years old.” She turns her eyes to Graham. “This one is a keeper. Welsh men are the best men, you should know, you are one.” She stands on her tiptoes to kiss her son and pat his cheek. Then she turns to go back into the kitchen, but three steps away, she yells, “Griff! Graham’s got himself a good Welsh boy! Come meet him.”

  Graham takes a deep breath and blows it out stuffing his hands in his pockets. I know nothing about his family, and his reaction worries me. Is his father unaccepting of his sexual orientation? I knew a lot of kids growing up who couldn’t tell their mom and dad for fear they would end up at the orphanage alongside me. I can’t imagine Graham bringing me here if that were the case.

  “Graham, ma boy!” A handsome, slightly overweight man says entering the room with his arms out ready to hug his son. “You found a Welsh? What a clever boy!” He hugs his son slapping him on the back hard enough that it sounds like it hurts.

  “Dad, this is Levi. Levi, this is my dad, Griff Blackwell.”

  “It’s nice to…” I extend my hand, but Griff pulls me into a giant bear hug giving me the same slap treatment he gave his son, and it does indeed hurt. “Oh. It’s uh, nice to meet you, sir.” I cough and steady myself after the surprise attack.

  “Come on in, son, meet the crew. Dinner’s not ready yet, but it will be soon. Hope ya wore elastic waist pants, my Seren’s been cookin’ up a storm today.”

  I’ve never felt so welcomed. Everyone is smiling at me, waving and saying hello as Graham and his dad lead us through the room. When we get to the door of the kitchen, Graham begins to introduce me to his family all of whom have names that start with “G” like Graham.

  “This is my big brother, Gage, and that’s his wife, Salma, over there. They have three kids, Ariana, Jovi, and Blue. My sister, Gwen, is through the kitchen, that way sitting at the dining room table,” he says pointing in Gwen’s direction. She smiles, but she doesn’t make any moves to join us. “Her husband is Matt, and they have three rambunctious little ones, Raven, Isa, and Sebastian.”

  He can see how overwhelming this is and squeezes my hand before he goes on. “Greg is probably outside with his girlfriend, Flower, a
nd their kids. They were the ones you met in the front yard, Leo, Marco, and Kat.”

  Flower? I’d be willing to bet Greg is unconventional and possibly into herbal remedies dating a woman named Flower, but I’ll try not to judge.

  “Hey, Ma, where are the twins?” he calls to his mother in the kitchen.

  “They ran to the store to get more drinks.”

  “Grier and Gabriel are both in college. They came home for the weekend. You’ll meet them later, I guess.”

  “Wow, twins, that’s great.”

  A beautiful blonde woman squeezes between us on her way to the kitchen. “Hi, I’m Chelle, Gavin’s girlfriend, and you haven’t seen anything yet, wait until you see Graham’s…” she says with a wink.

  I look at Graham confused. “Graham’s what?” I ask. He rubs the back of his neck and looks at the floor. It’s an adorable way of avoiding the subject when he does it, but it also makes me nervous.

  “I uh, well, come on, it’s just easier to show you.” He tugs on my hand and leads me through the kitchen and out into the backyard. “I didn’t mention this to you because, well, I don’t know, it just never came up, I guess, but…”

  “Hey, little brother, who’s this?” a voice says behind me, and when I turn around, I blink several times trying to understand what I’m seeing. Standing in front of me is a carbon copy of Graham minus the tattoos. The resemblance is uncanny. Twins. Graham is a twin.

  “Hey, Gavin, this is my friend, Levi. Levi, this is my twin brother, Gavin.”

  My hand floats up to shake his, but I can’t take my eyes off his face. “Nice to meet you,” I say slowly dragging out the words while I take him in. This is what Graham looks like without tattoos dressed in an expensive suit. He’s handsome, of course, he looks exactly like Graham, but without the edginess, it’s not the same. I prefer Graham’s bad-boy looks to Gavin’s upstanding, respectable looks hands down.

  “Yeah, good to meet you, too. I heard Dad yelling about you being Welsh. You two may as well just get married now, he’s giddy.”

  “Dude, shut up, you’ll scare him off,” Graham says shoving Gavin’s shoulder.

  I’m at a loss for words and frankly, a little gobsmacked. These people sure aren’t shy about welcoming me into the family, permanently.

  “See, you already did, he can’t even speak. Come on, Levi, let’s go for a walk away from all these crazy people.” That last remark he yelled I think was so that everyone would know they were laying it on too thick.

  “Sorry, Levi!” Gavin calls after us. I turn in time to see him shrug his shoulders and give me a sheepish smile.

  “Damn, I’ve never seen them go so crazy over a guy. You’re the real deal, aren’t you?” he asks, but I’m not sure what he means by that.

  “Do you bring many guys home to meet your family?” I ask, and as soon as the words are out, I realize how that sounded. “Sorry, that came out wrong. I’m not hunting for information. It just felt like maybe this is out of the ordinary for you.”

  “It is, out of the ordinary, I mean. I’ve only brought one guy home before, and that was a long time ago. I’ve been concentrating on my salons and modeling so much the past few years, I haven’t left much time for relationships.” He stops walking suddenly. “Not that this is a relationship or anything. I’m not trying to be pushy, unlike my family.”

  “Stop, it’s okay, they’re great. It’s just, I’m not…” I glance away at the field he was leading me into unsure of how much of myself I want to reveal. Growing up in an orphanage is embarrassing and not the first thing I like to talk about on a date.

  “Not what?” he asks stepping closer to me. “You can talk to me, Levi.” I feel the warmth of his body radiating on mine when I look into his hypnotizing blue eyes.

  “I’m not used to being around big families or any family for that matter.”

  “I’m sorry, I should have prepared you. I know they’re a lot to handle, that’s my fault.”

  “No, I mean, yes, they’re a lot, but it’s not that.” He lifts his hand that’s not holding mine and cups my cheek.

  “What is it then?”

  “I grew up in an orphanage. I never had a family much less one like yours. You’re blessed, Graham, you really are.”

  His expression changes, and I find pity in his eyes. It’s the reason I don’t go around telling people about my past. Being abandoned is the root of all my self-esteem problems, and I’d rather not think about any of it.

  “I am blessed, you’re right. And you know what?” he asks.

  “What?”

  “Now, you are, too. My family is now your family. Even if nothing becomes of this,” he says motioning between us. “We will always be friends, and they will be here for you.”

  “Thanks, that’s nice of you, but you and I both know it’s not the same. They’re you’re blood. They’re stuck with you no matter what.”

  “Yep, and now they’re stuck with you, too.” He leans in without warning and gently presses his lips to mine. The kiss is soft and sweet and full of good intentions, but I know his family will never be mine.

  He ends our first kiss and pulls me into an embrace. I wish our first kiss hadn’t been the result of him feeling sorry for me, but hey, it was a kiss and although not toe-curling, it stirred things in me I haven’t felt in a long time.

  “I like you, Levi Yale, Welsh detective from England. I like you a lot.”

  I slide my hands up his well-defined back and breathe in the scent of hair products and leather. “I like you, too, Graham Blackwell, Welsh hairstylist to the stars and model from the United States. You’re pretty great.”

  He pulls away and looks out toward the field and then at the house. “Dinner’s probably almost ready, so we should go back. I’ll show you around later.” I don’t know what he’s going to show me, but I’m starving. At his suggestion, I haven’t eaten all day, and my stomach happens to choose this moment to make itself known by growling and gurgling.

  “I think your stomach agrees with my plan.”

  “You would be right. I’m hungry.”

  “Come on, let’s go see what Ma made for dinner.”

  With our fingers laced together, we make our way back to the porch passing several kids on the way. I don’t remember their names yet, but at least they don’t start with ‘G.’

  “Is there a story behind everyone having a ‘G’ name?”

  “My dad’s name is Griff. It was Mom’s way of honoring him.”

  “I like it.”

  “Yeah, it’s all right, but it can be confusing during the holidays.”

  I catch sight of the girl named Flower on the porch, and I have to ask.

  “So, is her name really Flower?”

  He looks up at the woman who is giving Marco a talking to and chuckles. “Yeah, she’s with my brother, Gregory. Marco and Leo are hers from another relationship, but Greg’s good to them. They’re like modern-day hippies. Greg doesn’t work or not regularly at least. He’s a computer geek who smokes a lot of weed. Oh shit, I almost forgot you’re a cop. You aren’t gonna bust him, are you?” he asks looking genuinely concerned.

  “Not unless he’s under twenty-one and carrying more than an ounce on him.”

  He still looks worried which makes me laugh. “What, is your brother a weed dealer or something? Should I be calling the DEA?”

  “No,” he says, and I look over when I hear something in his voice change. It looks like every ounce of blood has drained out of his face. Shit, maybe his brother is a dealer.

  “I was joking, Graham. It’s okay, I have no interest in turning your brother in.”

  “I know, sorry. I got a little paranoid there for a minute.”

  “Relax, all your secrets are safe with me.” I flash him a warm smile, and some color returns to his cheeks.

  “There you are, I was looking for you. Dinner’s ready, come in and wash up. Grier and Gabriel are home, go introduce them to Levi, honey,” Seren says from the porch. “And yo
u boys get inside and scrub the dirt off your faces and hands. You look like you’ve been rolling in a dust bowl.” The boys race past and clomp up the stairs to the bathroom at top speed.

  Inside the house, Graham introduces me to his youngest siblings who could easily be models like their brother. Unlike a lot of young people these days, they are humble about their looks, and it’s refreshing. The entire Blackwell family, all twenty-two of them, sit down at two long tables that run perpendicular to one another in the dining room. They’re talking about a multitude of topics ranging from politics to Power Rangers.

  It’s clear to see who got their looks from who—Griff is a redhead with green eyes, and Seren has dark hair with blue eyes. Graham’s twin, Gavin, and the other set of younger twins share Graham’s dark hair, dark skin, and blue eyes, but his sister has lighter hair and green eyes, and the other two brothers are redheads with green eyes.

  I wish I knew who I looked like or if I have any siblings. I’ve considered doing a DNA test and searching for my relatives. But there is something about knowing they left me on the doorstep of an orphanage wrapped in a blanket in the dead of winter that keeps me from doing it. For all they know, I’m dead, and maybe it’s best to leave it that way.

  “Now, Levi, honey, since you’re our guest of honor, you sit right here at the head of the table, and Graham, you can sit next to him here. Everyone else you know your spots, butts in seats now before the food gets cold.” When she speaks to me, it’s all gentle and sweet, but when she addresses everyone else, she’s militant.

  Graham smiles and winks at me when we sit down. “She likes you a lot,” he whispers. “She never lets anyone sit at the head of the table, that’s her spot.”

  “Oh, well maybe I should give it…” I start to stand, but he grabs my wrist and pulls me back down. “Don’t you dare get up, she’ll be offended,” he hisses.

  Shit. I didn’t know families had so many rules and codes. Not that I mind, rules and codes are my things. Chaos makes me crazy, but not the Blackwell kind of chaos. It’s organized chaos—everyone knows what they’re supposed to be doing and where they’re going—they just do a lot of talking and yelling while they do it.