AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She walks ahead of me to trail after the girls on the Panda Trek, and I fidget nervously as I follow. Is it really that obvious? Ihave to do a better job of keeping things under control. I sidle up beside Camila, not looking at her.
“It’s not what you think,” I say.
I mean, it is, but I doubt that’s something I should be openly sharing with people.
Camila gives me an innocent look. “I wasn’t thinking anything.”
“Oh yes, you were,” I huff.
“Is he hot?”
“Shh.”I glance up a few feet to where Lucia and Sophie are still chatting excitedly. “What does that matter?”
“So, he is,” Camila laughs. “Whew. And you’re living with him? Please tell me you’re hitting that.”
“Oh my God,”I hiss. “Can you be any louder?”
“I haven’t had a date in months,” she says. “You know what our schedule is like. Honestly, good on you for finding dick with our workload.”
“It’s notlikethat,” I say again, but it sounds feebler this time.
“Hey, no judgments here,” Camila assures me. “Sophie’s a cool kid. Her dad has to be pretty cool too.”
I chew at the inside of my lip, turning my head to watch Sophie’s smile, grinning when she catches me watching and gives me a little wave that I return.
“She is a really cool kid,” I agree.
“Much less of a gremlin than Lucia.”
I elbow Camila. “Lucia is great.”
“Yeah, yeah, she’s all right.”
I hesitate a moment, wrestling with the desire to tell someonesomethingand knowing I should keep my mouth shut. I let several more steps pass in silence as it weighs on me, and then I let out a slow breath.
“Her dadisreally great,” I say quietly.
Camila’s grin is slow, but she leans into me conspiratorially, stealing my move as she elbows me in the side. “Yeah, I bet he is.”
—
By the end of the day, the entire group is exhausted. We’ve had more than a normal human’s fill of lions and tigers and bears (oh my), and by seven o’clock, we’re all just ready to go home.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to take you guys home?”
I shake my head at Camila. “It’s so far out of your way. Aiden said he’d come get us.”
“He’s late,” Sophie grumbles beside me.
“Seriously,” Camila tries again. “It’s not a big deal. Just text him and tell him that—”
“Oh, there he is,” I say, spotting his car approaching the drop-off point.
“Finally,” Sophie huffs.
Aiden’s car comes to a stop at the curb, and he puts it in park before stepping out of the driver’s side to lean on the hood. “Sorry I’m late,” he offers. “Traffic.”
He’s still in his chef coat, so I know he came straight here from work and that he’ll probably even most likely have to go back—and why does it make me warm all over again that he would put everything on hold for us?
