The Best Thing

by Mariana Zapata

He grinned at me as he planted his mouth on my forehead and gave me a kiss there like it was the most natural thing in the damn world. And I wanted it to be.

The hand on my lower back moved slowly over to my hip, and I let it, eating it up.

“There’s no place I wouldn’t want you to go with me.”

“You’re a bad influence, love.”

Luna: And he’s better looking in person, Lenny. WOO.

“There’s nothing wrong with being mad, love.

tobias rhodes😏

One of the most amazing women I’ve ever met.”

Words weren’t what replied to me. It was a forearm around the middle of my back. It was a hand cradling the back of my head, holding it gently like it was precious or something instead of hard as hell. It was the great big breath that made his chest puff closer to my own.

Most special of all was the way he turned me—or I guess, I let him turn me—to the side and then inward, my arms not going anywhere. They stayed exactly where they were around his neck, my forehead staying in the same exact place because it liked it there and didn’t want to go someplace else. And before I really thought about anything other than how warm he was, how much I liked the scent of a man who was a mix of salty, clean sweat and a deep-scented deodorant, I was on his lap. I was sitting on his thigh. Again.

Jonah must have thought the same thing, because he leaned forward, the heavy arm around my back keeping me in place, and grabbed it off the counter, handing it over.

with a sigh, I slid off the thigh under me, stood up, and turned to smile down at Jonah. But he was already beating me to it.

Lord, I loved this man. My insides froze as I processed that thought.

“I’m always here when you need a cuddle,” he said, totally serious, watching me as his right hand went to wrap around the back of my thigh. “Or more.”

The hand on the back of my thigh slid an inch higher, the fingers curling around it even more than they had before, and it was that, that snapped me out of it.

But it was Jonah’s hand on my leg that grounded me then. And the fact that it didn’t go anywhere.

There he went calling me his partner again. How was a man this big so adorable?

beside me, Jonah said in that deadly, crazy voice, “Meet me outside, bro.”

BEAT HIS ASS JONAH

Jonah? My shy Jonah who could barely speak to strangers? Whaaaaa?

And I wanted to kiss the shit out of him for being one of the best things ever.

I had to keep my face neutral. I wasn’t about to ruin this shit. I was going to soak it up, eat it up, and gorge on it. Then do it all over again. “You know what he’s planning on saying,” he accused in a voice that was almost that deadly one but not. He was mad. Hehe. “I don’t understand why you need to listen to that fucking arsehole.” Seriously, my heart soared, just flew right out of my chest and straight into the sky, and I had to keep my face straight so I wouldn’t give myself away, and it was a lot harder than I ever would have imagined. This beautiful, handsome, amazing man was jealous. Was that what joy felt like? It had to be. It fucking had to be.

It was because of that joy, and the borderline anger on his face and the fact that he had no idea that he was making my whole year by being mad,

I didn’t say shit as he walked out, and I waited to smile until he was way out of the office. That little jealous asshole. I loved it.

“We outgrow clothes the same way we outgrow people, Len. We change inside the same way we do outside.”

And when I did that, I immediately spotted the three people sitting at one of the tables across the walkway from the juice bar. There was one green and one beet red drink in between them. And a bottle there too. A baby bottle. The two biggest—the two adults—were both staring over at where I was sitting. And if my eyes weren’t deceiving me, Grandpa Gus and Jonah were sitting there muttering to each other, with Mo standing on top of Jonah’s thighs; she was the only innocent party in this entire thing.

I had wanted these two to bond, and what the hell did they have to bond over? Hating Noah.

But I love Mo and wouldn’t trade her for fucking anything, and I love her dad too, and they’re what I want.

But, yeah, I do love him, and it isn’t choosing one person over the other.

“It means that it isn’t that I love him because I don’t want to love you. It’s that I know him, and I can’t help it.”

When he moved his face to Mo’s and kissed her too, I tried not to let my heart do anything.

Did he call me Jonah? I nodded. The adorable little jealous shit grinned.

“He came to the house to ask if he could have Mo for a couple hours.” “And then?” It was his turn to sigh. “And then,” the smart-ass went on, “I asked him why.” Obviously. “He told me that Noah showed up at Maio House. He said he was pretty positive there was no way you were going to forgive him, but that he wasn’t going to take the chance, so could he have Mo so they could go together, and he could remind you of what you had together. To be sure.”

I was already smiling when I answered. “Hey, Dimples.” His laugh made me smile even more into the receiver. “Hello, love,” the calm, controlled voice came over the line.

“I can call you every night if you’d like.”

“How would you feel about saving hotel money and coming to stay with us the rest of the time you’re here?” Honestly, it sounded like he dropped the phone, or himself, but he was back on the line so fast, I wasn’t sure. “Stay? At your house? With you?” “There are three more people here than just me….” I trailed off, still stunned by my grandfather’s offer. “Are you sure?” he asked with so much hope it hurt. “Your granddad—” “Is the one who brought it up,” I cut him off. It sounded like he dropped his phone again, and that time I couldn’t help but laugh. “Granddad Gus told you to invite me?” “Yeah.” But he still had no idea just how much trust and respect went into the invitation. But he would know soon enough. Because he needed to know so that it wasn’t a shock. “You don’t have to say yes if you’d rather stay at a hotel.” Jonah laughed. “Give me a chance to answer, Lenny. Yes. Yes. I would love to. Wow.”

“Well, I told him I was in love with your dumb ass.” I heard him exhale. And I definitely heard him when he said in a clear, clear voice, “Did you tell him that I love you back?” There was a pause. “Or that his time had passed, and that I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again?” I pressed my lips together as my eyes started to sting out of nowhere. “No. I didn’t tell him that.” His voice was a husky grumble. “You should have. Because it’s the truth. Because I love you and Mo so much, I’m going to make up the last seventeen months to you both, Len.” He paused. “If you’ll let me.”

Jonah was already smiling when his hands went to the doorframe, the sigh that came out of him so deep I raised my eyebrows at him. “What?” His dimples popped, and his voice was quiet as he said, “I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to see you in bed like this again.”

I loved brushing my teeth with him beside me in the mornings. I loved seeing him greet Mo first thing, with cuddles and kisses and his lovely voice singing Māori lullabies into her ear. I loved his sleepy face and the way he smelled and how unafraid and open he was to touching me all the damn time. A hand on my hip. An arm over my shoulders. A chin against my head. Fingers threading through my own every chance they had. If I hadn’t already been in love with him, it would have been over for me in those following weeks. Regardless of what he was training, he would come and get on a bike with me any time I got on and we’d race. If I was weight training, he’d come and spot me. If I was working in the MMA building, he would sit and watch me like he had nothing better to do. When I’d do something he thought was impressive, he would clap, and later on tell me how amazing he thought it was. Then he’d ask me to do it to him to know. My heart grew and grew with every day with him. And grew even more every night that we were together with Mo. Like a big family.

“My body is leaving, but the rest of me will be wherever you and Mo are, Lenny. I’d hoped I’d made that clear.”

“I’m coming back,” that soft voice stated with so much conviction I felt it. “And you’re coming to see me. This is just the beginning, Lenny. It’s nowhere near the end. I love you. I love you both, and we’ll be together again.” His voice dropped even lower as his fingers rubbed over my ring finger. “Marry me. Before I go. If you change your mind, I can get you a visa, easy. If you don’t change your mind, you know I’ll always come back to you, yeh?”

But there was Jonah. And Mo. Mo who lit up every time she was around her dad. She’d cried the whole way home after we’d left him at the airport. I doubted it had been my imagination that she’d been fussier than normal, especially at night, since he’d left.

the only things you lose are the things you give up on.”

That didn’t mean that I didn’t miss Jonah down to my fucking bones.

We’re talking about you being a sad little panda because your boy is gone.”

“He’s the nicest person I’ve ever met. The kindest. He’s so calm, it soothes me, and when he isn’t calm and he’s pissed off and grumpy, I still want to be around him.” I had to think about that. “He just makes me happy, Grandpa. More than anyone else I’ve ever met, not counting you guys.”

Grandpa Gus squeezed my cheeks together, kissed me on the forehead as I stiffened because what the fuck was happening, and then said it. He said it. He said, “Lenny, you’re fired.” His hands were still on my cheeks and his lips were still on my forehead as I fucking froze again. “What?” He pulled back and smiled at me. “You’re fired.” I blinked. “What?” He squeezed my cheeks together with every word. “You. Are. Fired.”

“I would fight to the death for you, Len. You were—” He smiled at me before correcting himself. “You are my everything. My soul mate. My best friend. My enemy.”

“Maio House is our family business, Len. You, Mo, you two are our family legacy.”

“And who the hell says you’re leaving us behind? Jonah invited us to come along too. My bag has been packed for weeks.”

Jonah Collins was there for us, like he always would be.