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“This is so embarrassing,” I mutter through the gaps between my fingers. “I should have just let you think it was Mr. Lopez. Can we go back in time and redo this conversation? Yes, it was Mr. Lopez. I was unbearably attracted to him. He was a silver fox and I fantasized about the way he talked about fractions.”
Lincoln chuckles, looking at me. There’s a warmth in his gaze as he reaches for my hand and pulls it away from my eyes.
“You don’t need to be embarrassed,” he says. “I’m flattered as hell. I had no idea.”
“Please don’t tell Brett,” I say, groaning again.
“I won’t.”
“Promise?”
Lincoln’s eyes twinkle. “Cross my heart. Now let me make you some lunch, okay? I don’t know about you but I’m starving.”
I press my lips together and nod. “Thank you, that would be great.”
Lincoln stands and heads for the kitchen, looking back at me once before walking inside. Immediately I let out a shuddering breath. Being around him is making it hard to breathe normally. He sucks the air out of my lungs with every look, and it’s enough to leave me light-headed.
Oh God.
I can’t believe I admitted that he was my childhood crush. He probably thinks it’s funny, that chubby little girl doodling his initials in hearts all those years ago. Maybe he even thinks it’s cute. But I don’t want him to think of me as his best friend’s kid sister anymore. I’m a grown woman, and that childhood crush feels like something much stronger now. I want Lincoln to take me seriously. I want him, period. I just wish I was confident enough to prove it.
7
Lincoln
I whip up a couple of BLTs, my mind reeling after what Daisy said. Logically, I know it doesn’t mean anything. So what if she had a crush on me when she was a kid—that was over ten years ago. It doesn’t mean she feels anything for me now. But a crazy part of me is daring to hope that maybe…just maybe…she could still feel something for an old grump like me. It’s a long shot. She’s a gorgeous curvy girl who’s only twenty-one, while I’m a gruff, jaded mountain man in my late thirties. I’ve dealt with a lot of shit in my lifetime: not just my mom but my dad’s death too a few years before her, then falling out with Nash followed by ten grueling years in the military. A guy like me doesn’t belong with a pretty young thing who works in a cake shop. But fuck, that doesn’t mean I don’t want her. I want her more than I’ve ever wanted anything.
“Thank you,” Daisy says as I bring the plated sandwiches back into the living room and pass one to her. “Smells amazing.”
She’s still a little pink and it’s fucking adorable.
“You’re welcome,” I tell her, my eyes drifting discretely to her plump red lips. I bet she tastes so damn sweet. Like vanilla frosting.
“I hope your sister-in-law enjoyed that cake, by the way,” she says as we eat. “Ava. It’s her birthday today, right?”
“Sure is. I haven’t seen her today but I’m sure she’s loving it.”
Daisy smiles. “I was so surprised when Brett told me Nash Stirling was getting married. Your brother always seemed like he was happier alone.”
I shake my head. “He just hadn’t met the right woman yet.”
Nash and Ava met when she hired his Airbnb and called him out to get rid of a raccoon that was making itself at home in the kitchen. They fell hard and fast, and my brother is absolutely crazy about his wife. Now they’ve got a baby on the way and they’re more in love than ever. I was shocked as hell when I found out my loner older brother was in love, but I couldn’t be happier for him. He finally has the happy ending that he deserves.
“What about you?” Daisy asks, clearing her throat nervously. “Did you, um, y’know, did you find the right woman while you were in the military? Meet anybody”
“No. Honestly, it was the last thing on my mind.” I meet her gaze, my heart stuttering as I ask, “What about you?”
Immediately, I think back to Jake, the guy from the cake shop, and I steel myself, ready for her to tell me he’s her boyfriend.
“No, never,” Daisy says with a shrug. “Maybe I’ve been unlucky, but in my experience, guys my age are usually assholes.”
Her answer is a relief, but it also worries me. It makes me wonder what experiences she’s talking about. Did somebody hurt her? Has a guy her age treated her badly?
“I kind of assumed that you and that guy, Jake…” I let my voice taper off, and Daisy’s eyes go wide.
“Jake?” She shudders, like the thought disgusts her. “No way. Not ever. He’s…well, let’s just say, he’s not a very good person.” She sighs. “I don’t want to talk about him.”
My curiosity is piqued, but I don’t ask anything else about him.
