Dr. Neurotic(41)

To say he'd surprised the hell out of me was the understatement of the century.

There was no doubt about it, my husband was my superhero.

Sure, Nick had completed most of the moving the weekend prior, but I still had the finishing touches to implement.

Yesterday, we'd painted the living room and dining room. And the day before that, the master bedroom and bathrooms.

And today, with Winnie as my assistant extraordinaire, and while Lex was  at school, we were one hundred percent focused on Lexi's bedroom.

"God, I really hope she ends up liking this room," I muttered as I moved  my rolling brush through the fresh cream paint. I'd chosen to go  neutral in terms of wall color for her room. Lex wasn't the type of girl  who went gaga over pink and purple. She'd choose simple and clean over  bright and girly any day of the week.

Winnie laughed beside me and flashed a wry grin.

"What?" I questioned and started rolling the paint across the wall in big, long stripes. "What's so funny?"

"Char, you stalked two of the most prestigious physics and calculus  professors at NYU to get them to help you design wall stencils for your  stepdaughter. Not to mention, you somehow managed to get an obscure  little mom-and-pop printing place in Harlem to print out giant stencils  with equations that, let's face it, neither of us understands." Her  smile grew bigger. "You have nothing to be worried about. Lexi is going  to go crazy over this room."

Okay, so I'd gone a little cuckoo getting Lex's room set up. I wanted  her to have the perfect space, one that made her feel happy, relaxed,  and even challenged that incredible mind of hers.

Once I'd explained my stalking to Professor Reemlin and Professor  Denier, instead of filing a restraining order, they willingly helped me  out and provided me with a few of the most difficult physics and  calculus equations that most college-level students never mastered.  They'd also told me that if Lexi was able to figure them out, I should  feel free to stalk them some more-but bring my stepdaughter along the  next time.

Obviously, if Lex could solve the equations, I wouldn't have a fucking  clue, but I had a feeling that wouldn't be the last time we'd see  Professor Reemlin and Professor Denier.

I sighed. "You really think so?"

She nodded and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. "I know so."

"You know what?"

"What?"

"I'm happy we're friends again," I answered with a smile and nudged Winnie's shoulder with my own.

Ever since Nick and I had gotten back together, Winnie and I had slowly  started building the friendship we'd lost so many years ago. We'd  started off slow, baby steps, so to speak, occasionally meeting for  lunch or having fifteen-minute phone chats, but eventually, we'd found  ourselves right where we'd left off over thirteen years ago. The very  best of friends.

It was weird the way life worked sometimes. I'd never expected to come  face-to-face with Remy again, and yet, not only had we finally reached  that monumental moment of closure in the middle of a produce aisle, but  we still frequently saw each other because his favorite niece was now my  stepdaughter.

And when it came to Winnie, she had been someone I'd thought I had to  lose once I'd ended things with her brother. But lucky for me, it didn't  have to be that way, and now, she was one of my nearest and dearest  friends.

She nudged my shoulder back. "Me too, Char."         

     



 

"Okay, good. Because I'm hoping, later, after we finish putting the  three coats of paint on this room, that you'll also be willing to help  me stencil those equations. Like, I'm beyond excited that I was able to  get them made, but I'm a little intimated by them."

Winnie laughed. "I see how it is. Buttering me up first with the whole  sweet friendship thing before going in for the kill, huh?"

I snorted. "I swear to God, I meant everything I said. Including the  fact that I desperately, desperately need your help with those  stencils."

"Don't even start with the whole puppy dog eyes bullshit. It might work  on Nick, but it doesn't work on me. Anyway, I already said I would help,  you little manipulator." With her free hand to her hip, she rolled her  brush into the paint, before lifting it carefully to the wall and  starting a rhythm of long and smooth paint strokes.

"It doesn't work on him every time," I said, and she lifted a  questioning brow in my direction. "Okay, fine. It works like a charm  every single time."

"I pull the same look on Wes." She winked. "He falls for it, too."

By the time Nick had peeked his head into the door, we were both  cracking up over the various little tricks we used on our husbands to  get what we wanted.

"What's so funny in here?" he questioned with an amused but extremely curious grin.

I shrugged, and I couldn't stop myself from teasing him. "Oh, not too  much. Winnie and I were just sharing our various Nick-related bedroom  experiences."

"What?" he blurted on a near shout.

Winnie feigned confusion, playing along like the best damn actress I'd  ever seen. "It's no big deal, Nick. Just normal girl chat," she lied,  before hopping to her feet and walking past Nick out into the hallway,  most likely to grab a fresh roll of painter's tape for the woodwork  around the windows.

But my husband stayed frozen in his spot, his eyes widening so far that I  momentarily wondered if they'd get stuck in that position. He opened  and closed his mouth like a fish out of water as he tried to regain the  power of speech.

God, men were so damn gullible sometimes.

Eventually, I couldn't hold back my smile, and once that smile cracked my lips, my obnoxious laughter followed suit.

"Jesus Christ," he muttered and ran a hand through his hair. "You're  evil," he added and pointed an accusing index finger toward me.

"What?" I feigned ignorance. "Me? No way. I'm your loving and caring wife."

A man on a mission, he stalked toward me, and before I could stop him,  he lifted me into the air and wrapped my legs around his waist. "You  might be my loving and caring wife," he whispered into my ear, "but  you're also evil."

"I am not! I'm as sweet as pie!" I protested through a bunch of giggles, and he shut my laughter up quickly with a kiss.

"Sweet as pie, my ass," he eventually said and leaned back to meet my gaze with narrowed eyes.

"Okay, fine," I admitted. "I guess the little white lie about sharing bedroom experiences was a bit too much, huh?"

He chuckled. "Ya think?"

"You know," I started with a soft smile, "considering a year ago, we  didn't think we'd be able to stay together, it's a pretty big deal that  Winnie and I can even joke around about something like that with you."

Nick's smile mimicked mine. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

I was one hundred percent right. We'd come a long, long way from where we were over a year ago.

Not only were Nick and I together, husband and wife, but we'd even  started getting Lex more than just every other weekend. Now, she was  with us every other weekend, but also every Wednesday of the week.

And somehow, someway, the past circumstances that we'd both thought  would prevent us from being together had ended up being two of the most  amazing things in my life.

Winnie and Lexi-my best friend and my stepdaughter.

Between my two favorite girls, and my amazing, superhero husband, life couldn't get any better.

"I love you, Nick," I whispered against his mouth and pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

"I love you too, baby." He grinned and set me to my feet, but before I  could get back to painting, he whispered into my ear, "But if you and  Winnie do get around to discussing the power of Nick's Big Bang, keep in  mind that I saved my best cosmic expansion for you."

"Wow, Trivia Buff. Did you learn that from The Big Bang Theory or your daughter?"

He smiled. "I'll never tell." 



THE END