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“Better than LandonLifts,” he says dryly.
“Hey, I came up with it on the spot. Give me a break.”
He smirks. “You want kids?”
I nod, rinsing another plate. “Someday. One or two. You?”
“Maybe. Depends on who I’m having them with. I’m not that worried about securing my legacy—”
I nod solemnly, playing along. “What with the extinction and everything.”
He smirks. “—But with the right person, sure.”
Smiling faintly as I run a salad plate under the faucet, I joke, “Well, you can’t betoopicky about it.” Then, lowering my voice, I tease, “You didn’t seem overly concerned about the possibility of knockingmeup.”
I expect him to have a comeback that makes me roll my eyes, so my heart slides into my throat when instead, he says, “Like I said. With the right person, I’m open to it.”
My gaze snaps to his, searching for some sign he’s messing with me, but there’s no hint of malice or mischief. It seems like… he means it.
Before I can respond, Mom peeks around the corner. “Hey, are you guys going upstairs after you’re done in here, or do you want to stay downstairs with us? Hayden wants to be a couch potato and watch some home improvement shows.”
Swallowing, trying to coax my heart out of my throat, I look back at Mom. “I’m always down for home improvement shows.”
“Great.” She flashes me a smile, then looks to Landon.
“Yeah, sure,” he murmurs, pushing off the counter. “I guess we can keep doing the family thing.”
“Yay,” Mom says, clapping her hands a couple of times. “Do you want to come in and help us pick?”
I’m sure Landon suspects that part of her motivation is to lure him out of the room he’s in alone with me, but rather than the annoyance I expect to see when I look at him, there’s a faint smile tugging at his lips. “Sure.”
“I’m almost done in here anyway,” I say. “I’ll meet you guys in there in just a minute.”
“Sounds good,” Mom says brightly.
Landon follows her out, but before he leaves the room, he glances back at me.
I shoot him a smile to let him know I appreciate his cooperation.
He rolls his eyes, but then he gives me a faint smile, too, before rounding the corner.
___
Over the next couple of days, things go pretty smoothly. It’s easy to pretend I’m in a normal relationship with a normal guy and there’s nothing to worry about.
I even get my period, which is a relief, but a bit annoying when we get to the pet shelter. Like Landon, dogs have no interest in manners, so one shoves its face between my legs to sniff much more aggressively than it did when it greeted Landon.
“Tigger, you rude, rude boy,” says Melissa, the manager of the pet shelter we’re volunteering at, as she grabs the lead and tries to pull her dog away. “I’m sorry about that.”
My face warming, I assure her, “It’s okay. Dogs are gonna dog.”
“Where do you want this?” Landon asks, nodding at the big box he’s carrying. It’s a vacuum cleaner that boasts its ability to handle pet hair without wearing out as quickly as an ordinary vacuum cleaner.
“Oh, you can put that right over there,” she says, pointing to an alcove housing a shelf lined with toys, treats, and assorted pet supplies. “Right by the shelf. Thank you so much for bringing that, by the way. We never expect our volunteers to bring presents as well.”
I watch Landon put the box down, then flash her a smile. “I saw it was on your wish list and figured it was pretty important. It’s brand new, obviously. We just picked it up on our way here.”
“Thank you so much. Our old one broke down and we’ve been in desperate need, as I’m sure you can imagine.”
