Conceited Concierge: A Hero Club Novel by Renea Porter (little readers txt) 📕

“It was nice of Bud to let us use his truck,” I told Levi as he unlatched the tailgate so we could sit and watch the fireworks. Levi put a blanket over the tailgate so we wouldn’t get dirty.

“Yeah. And we get to spend it with Chance and fam.”

“It’s nice catching up with them.”

Levi nodded, and an older gentleman approached us. “So, you’re the one fixing up that hotel, huh?”

“I am.”

“Well, I’m Taylor. I run the home improvement store down the road.”

“Oh okay. I know the place. And it’s nice to meet you.”

“You aren’t shacking up with this guy, are you?” He pointed to Levi, and I could tell he was joking around.

“I’m sitting right here, old man.”

Then I responded, “We are shacking up, I’m afraid.”

“She’s carrying my baby.”

It was all I could do to keep a straight face. So, I played along. “Or should we say, babies,” I corrected Levi, running a hand over my tummy.

“Best of luck. I hope they look like you, young lady,” Taylor said with a smile.

“Thank you.”

“Have a good one.” He waved as he headed off.

“Well, that will get the rumor mill spreading that your pregnant.”

Levi and I both busted up laughing. “I can’t believe you told him that. I played along, but you better knock me up soon,” I joked.

“Don’t even joke about that. Because I wouldn’t love anything more than to see you pregnant with my baby.”

“Really?”

“Hell yes.”

“Huh.”

The fireworks started and we held hands while watching the show. It was cute watching Aubrey’s kids oohing and ahhing at the fireworks. And it got me thinking about what Levi said. I hoped it wasn’t too late when it came time to have a baby. I wondered if I should throw away my pills. Maybe I was being crazy thinking such a thing this early in our relationship. I did like the ideas of having kids because watching Aubrey and Chance’s little ones, it made me have baby fever.

“I definitely do not want four kids. Maybe two,” I whispered to Levi.

“Two would be perfect. But I wouldn’t be upset if we had more.” Levi smiled and bumped my shoulder with his.

I was thirty-eight now. I was officially thirteen years older than Levi. I still struggled with the age thing, but I didn’t feel thirty-eight. He made me feel young. But if I had a kid now, I would be fifty-eight when it turned twenty. That frightened me. Levi would be forty-five if he had kids now, which sounded more reasonable.

The fireworks finished up by blasting a bunch into the sky at once.

Once the fireworks finished, Aubrey and Chance came over to us. Scooting off the tailgate, I gave them both a hug. “We definitely need to get together more often,” Chance told us.

“Yes, we do.”

Aubrey looked to Chance for confirmation then to us. “Maybe we can have you over for a beach day and Chance can man the grill.”

“Yes, definitely.”

“I’ll supervise the man of the grill,” Levi chimed in.

“We gotta get these kiddos to bed soon. We’ll talk soon,” Aubrey told me as she rounded her kids up.

Levi and I watched as they left. “Do you want to grab some ice cream?”

“Sure.”

The night air was thick and sticky, so an ice cream sounded really good. We headed inside the ice cream and candy shop. “I might want some candy to go as well,” I told Levi.

“My favorite are Swedish fish and sour gummies.”

“I like those, too. But first, ice cream.”

I scanned each flavor and settled on strawberry cheesecake. Levi went with berry cotton candy flavor.

“Good choices,” a clerk told us with a smile.

“I’ll also take some Swedish fish, sour gummies and those flavored tootsie rolls to go.”

“Perfect.”

Levi went for his wallet, but I stopped him. “I’m gonna get this.”

Surprisingly, he didn’t argue. “Thanks.” He licked his ice cream and it got me thinking dirty thoughts about that tongue.

Making our purchases, we headed back outside and found a bench to sit on while we watched the passersby. “I had fun today. I was really happy to see Aubrey, Chance, and the kids.”

Levi nodded in response. “It was nice seeing them. And seeing all of them today made me realize I want what they have. I know for sure, I want that with you.” He looked at me to see my reaction.

“Wow. I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I mean, I know you have said you want a family in the future and everything. But I can definitely tell you are serious right now. And it made me realize I want the same things. Those kids were so cute, and Aubrey and Chance still seem so much in love.” I waved a hand over my face. “Why is that making me teary eyed?”

“Aww, babe.” Levi leaned over and kissed my head.

“I do have a serious question to ask you.”

“Shoot.”

“You’re not a drug lord or a drug dealer, are you?”

Levi nearly chocked on his ice cream cone. “What? God, no. Why would you ask that?”

“Because you’re always getting phone calls or making calls when I’m not around.”

Levi chuckled. “Well, I do talk to my friends, and I talk to my mom once a week to check on her.”

I felt like a complete moron. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been so nosey.”

He placed his hand on mine. “It’s fine. Everything is fine. Okay?”

I nodded. “Okay.”

“You ready to go?”

“Yep.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

RYLEE

Two weeks later, we were having that cookout that Aubrey and Chance were talking about over the July fourth holiday.  Us ladies were about to lay out in the sun with our bikini’s on. I dropped my sarong and sat down on