AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She follows her kids, and my gaze stays locked on the door. As soon as Avery steps over the threshold, my entire body relaxes. It’s as if a piece of my puzzle just locked into place.
Weird.
“Jon!” She sets her overnight bag down on the floor and smiles at me. “I’m so happy you are here to greet me.”
I roll my eyes, even as my heart is pounding so loud. I can’t believe she doesn’t hear it. What is this reaction? Seeing her return to my house shouldn’t leave me with a sense of relief. I should still be irritated. Right?
“Find a dress?”
“Yes.”
“You’re home earlier than I expected.”
“Oh. Were you hoping I never returned?”
No. “Yes.”
She frowns at me, and, Jesus, my dick twitches. What the fuck is happening?
“We stayed an extra night because we were lured in by cupcakes, Tex-Mex, and the promise of Savannah’s ricotta pancakes.”
“Of course, food.”
“Yes.”
Then we stand there with the distant sounds of children laughing and nothing else but silence. It’s weird to see Avery so still. She is always going, so…loud.
“Hey,” Liv says, walking back into the kitchen. She comes to an abrupt stop. I don’t break eye contact with Avery, but Liv studies us as if we are specimens.
“What’s going on?”
Avery’s lips twitch. Even that has my hormones dancing. It’s like she’s some kind of damned Svengali. She breaks the stare down first.
“Jon and I were having a staring contest.”
Were we? My heart is still beating out of control, and I feel breathless. Beyond that, I’m half-hard dealing with the nearness of her. It’s been almost forty hours since she left. When did I start counting the amount of time she had been gone. Oh, fuck, have I become an Avery addict?
“I lost, but there will be another duel soon.”
“I take it you found a dress?”
“I thought I just told you.”
“Oh, yeah.” She did, and I look like a fool in front of her sister. Again.
“Is there something going on?” Liv asks, and again, she reminds me of my mother. But, since she’s not my mother, she doesn’t know my tells. I hope.
“No.”
“Yes,” Avery says at the same time. “Jon is apparently good at staring contests.”
Her sister shakes her head. “I need to get the kids back to the house. Houdini is apparently depressed without them.”
“I told you that you should bring him with us.”
“He would have been fighting with McLovin the entire time. See you tonight, Jon.”
“Oh, yeah.”
