Bulletproof Princess Read Free

matching grate over the peep window and knob opened with only the barest squeak to reveal Eli in a faded FLETC t-shirt. Mack was glad he’d opted for the casual button up shirt and jeans, instead of his normal suit and tie. He handed off the bottle and sixer as he walked through the door. “Hey old man, married life seems to suit you fine. Your house is beautiful.”
    Eli chuckled as he shut the door behind him. “Thanks. Good to see you, too, Mack.” He looked the wine over with a smile and cast a look over his shoulder at the sound of pans banging and a woman swearing so vilely Mack was concerned about the food. His host took the wine and beer and disappeared briefly into the kitchen only to return with a restrained expression. “Sounds like dinner’s gonna be a minute. You want the fifty cent tour?”
    Mack looked around the foyer with its wood bench and terracotta tile floor that matched the roof and shrugged. “Sounds good.”
    Eli led him around the ground floor, a lovely sitting room with a rich coffee brown leather couch and matching chairs, dark wood furniture and liberal but tasteful sprinklings of Talavera ceramics. It was cozy and warm, yet a bit like a museum. Mack could relate instantly. The upstairs was beautiful with light walls, arched doorways, and expansive rooms, the master bedroom being a piece of art with a massive bed and a balcony overlooking the back yard.
    Further perusal was thwarted by Bex’s voice echoing from the bottom of the stairs. “Martha Stewart, you done with the tour yet?”
    “Love you, too, warden,” Eli hollered back as he laughed. He shrugged to Mack. “She’s an acquired taste, one that you have to have, once you know what it is.”
    Mack snorted as they started back downstairs following the mouthwatering smells of dinner. “I believe that’s called addiction.”
    Eli winked and shuffled past him into the kitchen to wrap his arms around the waist of his redheaded wife as she set a batch of fresh flour tortillas in the holder and wrapped them with a towel to keep them warm and soft. He whispered in her ear and kissed her neck, earning him a light slap on the wrist and a peck on the cheek before they all moved to the table on the patio.
    The balcony off the master bedroom provided the roof to the patio, held up by massive timbers stained the same color of the interior wood, and stucco columns. The timbers were wrapped with white Christmas lights and gave the area a magical glow. The table was gorgeously set with wineglasses for them, a bottle for him, and fanciful plates that matched the decorative pottery in the house.
    Mack actually felt a little overwhelmed that they’d gone all out for him. “You guys didn’t have to do all this.”
    Bex snorted and walked over to pour herself some wine. “Eh, this is just Thursday, you happened to show up on a good night.”
    Eli pulled out her chair before taking a seat himself and gesturing to the open chair. He stage whispered, “Normally, we just eat over the sink with our hands.”
    His wife growled and slugged him in the arm before laughing and raising her glass, and they followed suit with their own drinks. “To old friends.”
    They clinked their glassware over the salad before digging into their dinner. The conversation started off light, keeping mostly to the salad and the really excellent quality of the wine.
    “You didn’t strike me as a wine guy,” Bex noted as she spooned up her fajitas and passed Mack the tortillas.
    “I’m not, but I learn things here and there. My older sister recommended this one a couple weeks ago, and I figured ‘what the hell’.” He could have kicked himself for bringing up his family. That was not something he discussed normally, and that list was quite lengthy. He loaded up his plate with a few tortillas and some amazingly aromatic chicken.
    “Let her know she has good taste.” Thankfully the conversation dropped in favor of their dinner, which was absolutely spectacular in