“Why not?” Brooker asked.
“If we all recommend you, it won’t look suspicious.”
“Though there might be a hiring freeze with them looking to sell,” Brooker pointed out.
“Ugh, don’t say that.” I groaned and looked over at Olli. I know I said we needed to do all this hiding stuff and go slow and I know it’s the wise option. But god did I just wanna snuggle that big grump. It was unfair sitting next to him on the plane and not being able to sleep on his shoulder. I mean, it wasn’t a long flight, but still.
Across the aisle, Olli’s eyes blinked open and he turned to look at my empty seat. Not seeing me there, he shot up, looking around the plane, only relaxing when he caught sight of me. It was such a little thing, a common reaction to waking up and people not being where you expected them. But damn did he do it cutely.
“Psst, you’re gonna blow your cover like that,” Brooker laughed quietly. I elbowed him and got up to rejoin Olli.
“What were you doing over there?” he grumbled, giving Brooker the stink eye as I settled back in my seat.
“Don’t be mean to your friends. They just wanted to know how things worked out.”
Olli turned to Brooker and held up his middle finger. Brooker just cackled in response.
“Don’t let them bother you,” Olli grumbled.
“They weren’t.” I looked around to make sure nobody was close to us, then whispered, “I told Brooker we’re tentatively dating.”
Olli’s eyes went cartoonishly wide. “Really? You’re okay trusting him?”
“Yes. He’s a good guy and not knowing was killing him.”
“Good or nosy?” Olli scoffed, crossing his arms.
“Shush.” I rested my head on his shoulder, figuring it was an innocent enough action should someone walk by. “Did you get a chance to talk with Christenson?”
“Yeah.” He sighed. “He recommended moving you to Brooker.”
“It sounds like a popular recommendation.” I chuckled and nuzzled closer to him. “It wouldn’t be the worst, right? I’d still have an opportunity to prove my skills to Hansen and we wouldn’t have to be so concerned about being discovered.”
“Really? I thought you wanted to be … low-key.”
“Well … fighting my poor impulse control is exhausting. And we … I don’t know, maybe it’s just that impulsiveness, or maybe all the recent … endorphins, but we feel right. Right?”
When I looked over to Olli, I saw my childhood friend, the soft boy who listened to me ramble and would return the favor, specifically about soccer. I saw the boy who had staged a sit-in with me in my tree house in protest of his move.
And I saw a man who was absolutely smitten with me. A man who didn’t like talking all that much, unless it was with the people he cared for. A man who was so dedicated to the sport, he’d work so much he didn’t have time to buy shorts for nearly two years.
“Yeah, it feels right.” He took my hand and gave me a little squeeze that made my heart flutter. I really couldn’t remember the last time I had a relationship that feltthisfulfilling. Sexually, emotionally, and with future potential. Like take him to —
“Oh my god,” I murmured, suddenly realizing something crucial and putting a hand on his arm a bit harshly.
“What?” he asked, looking around with wide eyes.
“My parents are gonna gonutswhen I tell them all this.”
“Kodi,” he groaned. “I thought something was wrong.”
“It kinda is. They’re gonna freak out when I tell them.”
“In a bad way?” he asked hesitantly.
“No, no, no,” I said quickly. “Honestly, the whole situation of meeting each other is wild, they might even be rendered speechless.”
“If I remember correctly, that’d be a hard feat with your mom. Didn’t she talk the whole way from Panama City to Destin when we came in for the game?”
