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Between one blink and the next, Levi sat in her passenger seat.“Oh. I guess I shouldn’t say good morning.”
Sophie pulled down the visor, frowning at the spot on her lip, which had continued to puff up despite the slather of cream she’d applied. “I wish I could call in sick until it’s gone. Then the only one who’d have to see me like this is you.”
“How kind. But you know you should be hanging out with people your own age. Real people.”
“Real people suck, Levi.”
“There’s one exception to that statement. I think you know the guy. Brown eyes, terrible taste in shirts?”
Always the joker. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m perfectly happy.”
“Sure you are,”he mumbled.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she hissed in response.
“It means that I want to see you happy. I won’t always be here to look after you, and I want to know that you’re okay.”
“I—” She snapped her mouth shut and focused on the building in the distance, her hands gripping the steering wheel. She should have known this was coming. Everyone else left. Why not Levi too? “Don’t let me stop you if you need to be somewhere. I’ll be okay. I can handle it.”
Levi reached over, and while she couldn’t feel his hand on her shoulder, she appreciated the sentiment. “I know you can, kid. But looking out for you is my job.”
Sophie swallowed back the lump in her throat, suddenly racked with guilt for keeping him. Was there some kid out there who wasn’t being helped because Sophie was so selfish with Levi’s time?
She didn’twanthim to leave — the mere thought of losing her oldest friend made her heart want to divorce itself from her chest — but more than that, she’d hate it if she was stealing the joy of his company from someone who deserved it.
“At least try to let him in. He’s a good guy.”
“Yeah, yeah, old man,” she choked out. “I’ll think about it. Now get. I need to clock in.”
* * *
All day, Sophie waited for some kind of reaction to her facial dilemma, and… nothing.
Mitch had been annoyingly kind about the festering wound on her lip, which only turned her annoyance up to eleven. Because, despite not being able to take her own mind off it for even a second, Mitch hadn’t given it a single glance. Not once had he looked at her with anything other than sweetness, lust, kindness.
Nine hours of the dude being unflappably endearing.
Ofcourseit would come to a head.
He was sunk casually in his chair, legs spread in that way that always invited her to take a seat. “I found a docuseries on child actors turned pop stars we should watch tonight.”
We.Said like a foregone conclusion. Never mind that it sounded wonderful. A night in, Mitch by her side, decades-old footage feeding her gossip loving core.
Except. Any other night, they’d end up making out. But that was hardly going to happen tonight. They both knew that. So why the hell would he suggest coming over?
The sex was good. Okay, fine, it was great. Spectacular. Best Sophie had ever had, and that was saying something, because she’d once been taken to another plane of existence while blindfolded and cuffed.
But Mitch…
Not the point. The sex wasn’t a problem. If great, life-changing sex was all it was, Sophie would be fine. Instead, it was all the warm, fuzzy feelings he invoked. Feelings she’d really rather not have.
Insidious, sneaky little things that curled around her heart, fluttering inside her chest every time he walked into the Vault with his cap on backward, or when he dealt with John’s emails because he knew how much Sophie hated the condescending asshat.
It was the feeling of being part of a team, of having someone to share a joke with, to laugh with, to talk to when it got quiet. Someone real. Who surprised her.
Soft, vulnerablefeelings.
It was enough to make a girl scream.
