“Colt!” she says with a cheerful grin, and I immediately feel better. He didn’t get this smile, the big one. That’s just for me.
I smile back at her, so fucking happy to see her. “Hi, love.” Turning to Mia, I reach for her, laughing at Evie’s grunt as she lunges into my arms.
“Horsey! I miss you!” She yells, throwing her arms wide.
Hugging her close to me, I breathe in her smell. I swear if I could bottle it, I’d make another million dollars, easy. “I missed you too! So much.”
I open the front door for Evie, helping her in and closing it carefully behind her. She always takes my hand when she gets in and out. I look forward to it with an obsessiveness that is probably not healthy.
The sparks are there every single time. I swear I can feel the impression of her hand in mine for hours after we touch. What would it feel like to touch this woman any time I want, anywhere I want?
I buckle Mia in, blowing into her neck to make her laugh, then shut the door and hop in the driver’s side. Glancing at Evie, I ask her the same question I ask every time I pick her up. “How was work? Tell me everything.”
I love hearing about her shift, and the crazy shit she sees, but more than that, I love the way she talks about it. She waves her hands, widens her eyes, grabs my arm. She gasps and laughs, and it makes me so fucking happy. She’s in her element in that hospital, and it’s sexy as fuck.
We pull into the garage, and I hop out quickly to open Evie’s door. She takes my hand but doesn’t get out of the car, tightening her grip instead. The hug she gave me has been my permanent spank bank fodder for the last month, but her fucking hand, imagining it tightening on something else, is going to fuel me for weeks, I’m sure.
I meet her questioning eyes. “Where’s your Hummer? I haven’t seen it in a while.” I stare at her blankly, barely able to remember my name for a minute.
“Ah. I sold it. Traded it in. For the truck, there.” I point to the dark red truck parked in my spot.
“Why?” she asks, nose scrunched up.
I shrug, not willing to tell her I hated the way she looked at me after she saw the Hummer. Like I was ridiculous. “It didn’t suit me anymore,” I say simply.
Her eyes are searching mine. She eventually smiles, squeezing me one more time before climbing out. I scoop up the sleepy Mia and follow her.
“What about Jonas?” she asks over her shoulder. “What is he driving if we’re always using the van?”
I smirk, stopping to point to the far corner of our secured parking area. There, tucked in the shadows, is another blue minivan, nearly identical to the one we’ve been using.
Her mouth drops open. “He bought a new one? When?”
A chuckle rolls out. “The day after he gave you the keys to this one.” Fucker had it delivered to the office, and he’s been ‘hiding’ it in the parking garage each night.
Staring at the van, she slowly shakes her head. “He had no intention of taking it back, did he?”
“Nope.”
Finally, she sighs, turning back to me and the elevators. “You guys are too generous. I’m going to have to keep an eye on all of you, make sure no one takes advantage of you.”
“What are you going to do? Chase them off?”
Her eyes soften in a way that makes all my muscles tighten. Leaning in, a small tip of her lips, she says, “Damn right I will.”
15
EVIE
He hasn’t taken his eyes off me since the parking garage. He has Mia held tight to his chest. I swear she’s going to forget how to walk with him around, but his focus is completely on me.
It took me a week to work up the nerve to make a move. I have no intention of jumping him right away, especially since there’s a distinct possibility that Holly and Becca are wrong. But on the very off chance they’re right, well, I’ll do what they suggested, and start letting him into my life.
And maybe look for opportunities to touch him. Just a casual brush, here and there. I’ve had to physically hold myself back from touching him this month, so I’m looking forward to that part. He’s such a gentleman, holding my hand to help me in and out of the car. I love the calluses on his palm, and I wonder where they come from if he works in the office all day.
The doors open on my floor, and he walks Mia inside, moving straight to her bedroom.
“These overnights are hard on her.” He says, his voice a low murmur. “She always seems so tired.”
