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“Iz!” Emmett yelled from the ring. He’d stuck his body between the ropes and had his knees balancing on the lower one.
“Yeah?”
“Is that the guy Molly was teasing you about because you had his picture on your wall when you were little?”
My eyelids slammed shut, my heart actually stopped beating in my chest, and at that moment, I imagined just how possible it was to travel back in time and not turn on that fucking microwave.
When I opened my eyes, I glared at him so mightily that his mouth popped open. “Ohhh, is that the kind of embarrassing thing you didn’t want me to say? Sorry, Iz.” He hopped off the ropes and went back to running.
Like he hadn’t just embarrassed the ever-loving shit out of me.
I covered my mouth with one hand when I heard a sound of choked amusement behind me.
I wanted to die.
When I turned, Aiden was still leaning up against the door, but oh, I couldn’t believe it.
He was smiling at me.
This was no wide smile that showed all his teeth or made a surprise dimple appear on either side of his mouth. But it was so, so much worse. Because this smile absolutely devastated me.
I dropped my hand, pointing a finger at him. “It’s not funny.”
“It’s a little funny,” he teased.
Instead of answering him, I strode to my office, head held as high as I could manage when I wanted to crawl under my desk and hide.
With his eyes on me, I unlocked my office and started searching in the corner cabinet where I shoved all the shit I never felt like organizing. My mental peptalk while I ripped through boxes was something like, it’s fine. It’ll be fine. A poster is not a big deal, and he won’t care because he was a world-class athlete, so he probably won’t even really remember.
“Which poster?” he asked.
I straightened slowly, clutching a small box in my hands. He was behind me, perched on the edge of my desk.
“I don’t even really remember,” I answered, very easy breezy, I don’t have sex fantasies about you every day of the week. I swept a lock of hair behind my ear before I turned to face him. “I had a lot of athletes on my wall when I was younger.”
“Okay.” He didn’t believe me, but I couldn’t have cared less as long as he didn’t push it. My heart rate slowed a bit when he lifted his chin, eyes on the box in my hands. “What are you looking for?”
“Umm, a box of fuses.”
His eyebrows lifted.
“I … sort of blew one out at the house. Didn’t really feel like waiting for an electrician.”
Emmett ran into the office. “She exploded it trying to make us breakfast.”
Remember how much you love him, I chanted in my head.
“Did she?” Aiden asked.
“Yeah,” Emmett said. “Isabel sucks at cooking.”
Aiden smothered another smile.
“Okay,” I interjected. “That’s enough out of you, or you don’t get your screen time later.”
He sighed heavily. “Can Anya come over and play? I told her about the treehouse in the backyard, and she wants to see it.”
“Oh, umm”—I glanced at Aiden—“I don’t know if today is a good day. I have to get this fixed, and Mr. Hennessy is working.”
