Page 47 of Brighter Together

“No?”

“I did nickname you Lord Grumpiness,” I say with a teasing smile.

“That bad?” he asks, frowning.

“Worse.” I wink.

He shakes his head.

The mood inside the car changes.

My laughter fades too.

“Ella, I’m sorry.” There’s something in the way he says it that makes my heart beat faster.

“Why?” I ask cautiously.

His gaze stays on mine. “Why have I been so grumpy with you?” he asks.

I nod and for a second he doesn’t answer.

One hand rests on the steering wheel.

His fingers tap once against the leather.

Then stop.

“I wasn’t grumpy because I don’t like you.”

My pulse stutters.

“Okay.”

Tommy looks through the windscreen.

Then back at me.

“I like you.”

Heat rushes through me.

He gives a short laugh that holds no humour at all.

“Actually, that’s understating it quite badly.”

“Tommy…”

“I like you a lot, Ella.”

No guessing now.

No Charlotte interpreting his behaviour for me.

Him.

Saying it.

“I’ve liked you pretty much since you started.”