I tilt my head and give him a sympathetic look. “How are you doing?”
He looks up. “I would’ve been better if the theater gods didn’t take everything so literally,” he says, his spirits still bright.
“I’m really sorry that happened,” I say, nodding to his cast.
“It’s okay. The wife’s been taking good care of me, and it only slows my kid down a little bit. I’ve been reading to him more and playing extra games.”
“That’s sweet.”
“But I hear the guy filling in is pretty good,” Noah says with a smile, looking on the bright side. “I’m relieved. Let’s be honest, he had big shoes to fill.”
I laugh, thrilled that word of Sawyer’s singing prowess has made it back to Noah. “He sure did. He does. You have been delighting us with your voice for years.”
“Just glad he’s filling in,” Noah says, shifting his focus to rearranging a pyramid of sage and rosemary soaps on the counter. “Not that jackass who framed you for the balloons.”
My eyes pop. Captain even perks up. “How did you know that?”
“He kept posting on his social about those dumb balloons,” he says, then winces. “Sorry, I shouldn’t be saying bad things about your ex.”
I laugh. “Please feel free. He deserves it.”
Noah wipes his brow in aphewgesture.
“But…my sources tell me my replacement has been good to you,” he says, a little delighted.
Or, really,a lot.
“Who are your sources?” I ask, dying to know.
“I can’t tell, but I don’t think it’s entirely a secret that you two maybe have a thing for each other,” he says.
I guess we were never good at hiding…anything. I think of Esmeralda, how she was on to us. Veronica sensed it too. Then Poorna figured it out. Are we the town’s worst-kept secret?
Maybe, but I admit nothing—just smirk with a Cheshire-cat smile. Even as butterflies erupt in my chest. I kind of like how obvious it is to everyone.
Except, I’m not sure I want the staff at Dog Tails knowing. It’s just still so complicated. If everything blows up, I don’t want Hazel, Levi, Zuri, and Nisha to feel like they have to pick sides. I definitely don’t want it to be weird working withHappily Maybe Aftereither. I suspect Alexandra has a low tolerance for romance in the workplace. Concern swims through me about how it could all fall apart and the ripple effects.
“He’s the one you were asking for advice about back in June, right?” Noah asks, pulling me from my worried thoughts.
Damn, Noah’s good. No wonder he’s the town’s romance guru.
“Yes, he is.”
“I had a feeling,” he says. “So he showed up for you?” He sounds ridiculously pleased, like he knew his advice would come true.
I think back over the last few weeks. Sawyer fixed my car. Appeared at the dog park and put my ex in his place. Often walks my dog. Runs with my dog too. Slices me mangoes. Stepped up to fill in at the fundraiser even though he could have made another choice—blackmail aside.
He shows up in other ways. Like when he says he enjoys watching me work, how he’s helped me build my business, how he talks me up, and most of all, how he believes in me. In this steady, supportive, quiet way.
All at once I know—this spring in my step isn’t from great sex. It’s something dangerous. Dreadful. And pretty unavoidable.
My stomach flips with the terrifying realization, but I’m pretty sure I’m falling for…my co-worker. My sort-of landlord. My dance partner. The man my business is inextricably linked to. The man I’m sharing secrets with. And nights and days too.
I say goodbye and leave, noodling on all these new thoughts as Captain and I walk the rest of the way to Dog Tails.
When I head into the daycare center and dip into my training nook, my heart thunders in my chest. On the bench above the cubbies sits one red rose, along with a box from The Sweet Spot. And inside it is a cinnamon roll.
It’s not just great sex at all. It’s so much more.
