No More Waiting, She Chooses Love

Chapter 864
My arm stung from Fanny's pinch-her silent warning to shut me up.
Honestly, I was a bit embarrassed too. This was one of those things best left unspoken, something Fanny and I could joke about
in private but not blurt out like that, especially not when it involved family, even if the ties weren't bound by blood.
Grant finally caught on, "Wait, what did you say?"
Ernest cleared his throat, "He said you better get the grill going. The ladies are hungry."
Grant's social radar was clearly malfunctioning. Surely he was playing dumb on purpose, right?
Sinclair, the one at the center of it all, finally spoke up. "Stay away from my Fanny."
He had that calm, protective parent vibe, his face as unreadable as ever. It was hard not to feel guilty for ever doubting his
intentions with Fanny.
But his attachment to her was anything but simple. This man wore his heart on his sleeve, and even when pointed out, he wasn't
fazed.
You could see how fiercely protective he was, and he wasn't going to back down.

I glanced over at Fanny. She rolled her eyes and tugged me down onto the deck beside her. "Keep talking nonsense, and we're
done."
The sea breeze tousled our hair, warm and soft. I swung my legs and said,
"Fanny, Sinclair really likes you, and he won't let go that easily."
"You're still talking," Fanny, ever the rational one, seemed adamant about denying
any deeper feelings Sinclair might have for her.
Was she resisting the idea, or just unable to accept it?
I leaned back, propping myself up on my elbows, gazing at the azure sky, choosing not to push further.

Some things you have to figure out on your own; others pointing it out won't make it sink in.
"So, Fanny, what's your ideal next boyfriend like?" I couldn't resist diving into the topic of her love life again.
"No plans for a next boyfriend. Why do I need one to be alive?" Fanny quipped, sprawling out on the deck.
I lay back too, soaking in the sun and the sea breeze. "Sure, but isn't life too short not to have a little romance while we're
young?"
Fanny lifted her hand to the sunlight, watching it play through her fingers, her voice nonchalant. "Who says romance is only for
the young?. could be eighty and still fall in love.

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Love doesn't have an age limit, you know?"
"I get that, but a romance at twenty is different from one at eighty," I argued.
"How so? It's just two people liking
each other. Haven't you seen those videos of old folks like Ethel having a ball in their golden years? Way more affectionate than
some young ones," Fanny said, playing with her fingers, childlike in her amusement.
I couldn't help but feel she was tapping into some fountain of youth.
While she amused herself with her hands, I pedated imaginary bike wheels in the air. "The feelings might be the same, but the
experience is different. Like kissing-when you're old, you've got no teeth left. O Gumming each other isn't quite the same, is it?"
Fanny burst out laughing, "That's disgusting."
"I'm just stating facts. It's like if you don't pluck a fresh peach at its prime, why wait until it's shriveled and dry?" I teased, winking
at her. "Right now, your Uncle is fresh and ripe."
"Felicia, you're such a flirt," Fanny shot back.
"Please, you're the expert here. You've probably lost track of how many women you've charmed," I joked, fully embracing my role
as the provocateur.

Fanny covered my mouth with her hand, and I mumbled protests, the two of us dissolving into laughter.
Not far off, Ernest and Sinclair watched our playful banter. Ernest chuckled, "You should rein in your family. Stop bullying my
wife; she's pregnant, you know."
"My family happens to specialize in obstetrics," Sinclair replied, unabashedly owning the situation.