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There’s a long pause where we both just stare at one another. I wish I knew what Emily was thinking. I wish I knew if I stood up and walked to her and took her face in my hands and pressed my lips to hers—that she’d be there with me.
I’m not convinced she wouldn’t knee me in the dick. More likely, she’ll quit and then be out of my life again.
Too soon.
“Your tires wear for shit when the car is loose,” she finally snaps her eyes away from mine and says.
“Good thing you’re on the case, then,” I laugh.
She smiles, cautiously. So cautious.
“Did you get anything helpful from Gaspard?” I ask, treading very lightly over the rocky terrain of Emily’s palpable anger and trepidation.
“Gaspard?”
“Yeah, Olivier from Concordia,” I do my best
French accent of his fancy name and try not to roll my eyes. Guy’s as smooth as glass.
“Oh. No, not really. I think I upset him or something,” Emily crinkles her eyes up and twists her lips.
“Why? What happened?” My hackles are immediately up like I have any business at all feeling protective. But I am. This industry is brutal, sometimes.
“Nothing, really. I asked for some info he said was proprietary, then I went off on a tangent about wanting to learn cheesemaking,” Emily shrugs and purses her lips like she’s embarrassed.
“You want to learn how to make cheese?” I smile.
God, she’s adorable.
Every week, Emily was learning something new when we were together. It was never dull or boring with her in my life. One week she’d want to learn to surf, so I’d take her to the beach, and we’d do a lesson together. The next week it would be pottery, and she giggled all night at my Ghost reenactment attempts.
Candle making, rock climbing, whatever it was, we did it. All that mattered was that she was happy, and I was with her. She drew the line at my suggestion of skydiving, but I’m kind of glad she refused because I was secretly terrified, too. Going a couple hundred miles per hour is excellent, on the ground. Not free-falling through the air.
“It’s stupid,” she drops her head.
“It’s not stupid,” I shut that shit down. No one in their right mind would ever call Emily stupid. “Cheese is goddamn delicious.”
I will take you to learn cheesemaking. Please let me take you like we used to.
Her face lifts, and her slight smile is back. I still feel like a million dollars when I make her smile.
“The metalworking class was still my favorite,” I tell her, and she starts fiddling with her long, brown hair as she makes the connection, remembers all the times that are flashing through my mind, too.
I don’t think I’ve ever been so turned on in my life as watching Em weld shit in that class, her safety mask on, fusing steel together like a total badass. We absolutely sucked at it, which was half the fun for her.
To my right, I hear footsteps coming up the stairs, and we both glance over.
“Hey,” Liam struts up and interrupts us. It’s just as well, I can’t rush her.
“Emily, this is Liam, my physio. Liam, this is my friend Emily,” I wink at Emily when I call her my friend.
Baby steps.
“Nice to meet you,” Emily stands and shakes Liam’s hand. He’s a particularly tall bastard and hovers over her.
“You too, welcome to the team. Let me know if you need anything,” he smiles at her.
