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I’m just a dude who thinks she’s gorgeous and seems fun.
A dude dressed up in a big furry dog suit who always knows where she’s at during the game, and that she has three Racketeers T-shirts that she rotates, and that she always gets popcorn with light butter and a diet soda and…
Okay, shit, maybe the roommate and I are both creepy.
CHAPTER 20
Dani
"Thankyou for coming down here tonight. I love working here, but I've missed seeing you," I say, reaching out and covering Michael's hand with mine.
We're sitting at one of the tables in the bakery section of the shop. I wanted some quiet time to write tonight but wanted him to read through the pages that I've done since he’s been gone.
I’ve had one-on-one time with both Nathan and Crew over the past few days, and I’ve missed having the same with Michael. I just wanted a chance to connect. We haven't had a chance to really sit and just talk and read. I thought it might be nice if we did it outside of the house, just us.
I'm also trying to make an effort tonight to show some interest in his life. It's a gesture that I want to be sure he sees and understands, and I thought it would be best if it was just the two of us, at least for a few hours.
He turns his hand up so we are palm to palm and laces his fingers with mine. "You know I always love coming down here and spending time with you.” He gives me an affectionate smile. "Is business going well? How are things with the bookshop?"
I nod. "We’re very busy. Things are going great. We started another book club. We have two author signings next month. And our Blind Date With A Book book box project has been huge."
He squeezes my fingers. "That's amazing. I’m proud of you."
I preen under his praise. As always.
"I started a new story and I have four chapters for you to read. Is that too much for tonight?" I ask him.
"Of course not. You know I love helping with your work." He brings my hand up to his mouth and presses a sweet kiss across my knuckles.
I pass my laptop over to him. "Here you go."
"Are you going to keep working ahead?" he asks as I pull out some papers from a folder.
"Actually, I've got some things to read too."
He nods. "Okay. Sounds good."
He settles in to read over the chapters I’ve finished, and I start with the top page of the first article.
I was able to find the two articles that Michael helped author in his professional journal. It wasn't hard, and I'm excited to learn more about what he does.
But thirty minutes in, my eyes are glazing over and I'm feeling frustrated and bored.
I have no idea what most of this means. The first was an article about thumb sprains in hockey players. I didn't even know those were common. But apparently, Michael is an expert. I’d abandoned it on page three. The second is an article about groin strains in hockey players and I thought, with Crew’s injury, at least it would hold my interest a little longer than something about thumbs. I was wrong.
I don't understand the anatomical references, so many of the terms are seemingly six syllables long, and I definitely don't understand the interventions or the medications that they're talking about.
I feel frustrated. I really want to be interested in his work, his life outside of the Racketeers and what we do at home, but what he does is very over my head.
Hell, I've just finished memorizing all the hockey terms I should know because of Crew’s job.
Michael blows out a breath, and I look up.
He's frowning at my laptop screen.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
He glances up at me but hesitates. Then he shakes his head. "I'm not finished yet."
