Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 67973 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67973 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
I tried to maintain a poker face. “You’re clearly imagining things.”
“And you’re a bad liar,” he countered. “You both looked guilty when I walked in here, and you were blushing.”
“You’re too observant for your own good,” I muttered beneath my breath.
I wasn’t going to admit to anything going on between us, but I also felt my cheeks growing warm once again as I remembered the way Liam almost kissed me. And how much I’d wanted it.
“You’re blushing again,” Parker pointed out.
I sighed.
“Listen, I’m not trying to give you a hard time, and you know I’ve never been one to interfere in your love life, but you and Liam…that’s a bad idea.” His lips pursed with disapproval. “The two of you hooking up wouldn’t be good for business.”
His words landed hard because I already knew Parker was right. Hearing him say it out loud just made the truth impossible to ignore. I was playing with fire. And for what? A man who had disappeared the first time I’d slept with him? A man who made it very clear he was emotionally unavailable?
The attraction wasn’t worth the risk. Not to the job, and certainly not to my pride.
Of course, it was easier to be resolute about the situation when Liam wasn’t standing three inches away, looking at me like he wanted to ruin my self-control all over again.
“Don’t worry,” I said. “There’s nothing going on between us.”
There was a moment of tense silence as Parker studied me. Finally, he gave a curt nod.
“Okay, I’ll let it go,” he said, his brows still furrowed. “I just…I don’t want anything to compromise our business arrangement with Liam.”
“Me neither,” I assured him. I didn’t want to linger on this conversation, so I pivoted fast. “How’s Becca doing? It’s been a while since I’ve talked to her.”
Parker grinned. It was a little strained because of his lingering back pain, but I knew he was trying his best to act normal. “She’s good. Still dealing with some heartburn, but she had it with the first pregnancy too. It’s manageable.”
I laughed. “She’d probably disagree.” I remember her complaining about those symptoms when she was pregnant with Gracie four years ago.
“Yeah, probably,” he admitted, rubbing at his back again. “Actually, that reminds me. Would you mind babysitting tomorrow night? It’s been a while since I took Becca out, and I wanted to treat her to a nice dinner.”
“Of course,” I said immediately, since I had no set plans for Friday evening. “I love spending time with Gracie.”
We parted ways and I walked back to my own office, closed the door, and set my tablet down, determined to actually focus on work this time. No more replaying almost-kisses, heated looks, or imaginary scenarios where Liam Powers forgot what professional boundaries were.
Time to get my head on straight and keep it that way. For real.
* * *
“I gots the nail polish,” Gracie said, walking into the kitchen with her little hands full of the colorful glass bottles.
I’d just finished loading our dinner plates into the dishwasher, so I rushed over and rescued the glass containers before they tumbled to the floor and made a mess. Gracie followed me to the kitchen table. I’d been babysitting for about an hour. We started off with a game of hide and seek before eating a simple dinner of spaghetti and green beans, the three-year-old’s current favorite meal.
Now, I assumed she wanted pretty fingernails. “So, we’re giving each other manicures, huh?”
Gracie shook her head. “No, I gonna paint your nails,” she said, correcting my assumption.
“Well,” I said, fighting a laugh. “I guess I’m the client tonight.”
I grabbed the nail polish remover from the bathroom to remove the red color I was already wearing. This was going to be a huge mess, but honestly, I didn’t care. There was no universe in which I’d tell my adorable niece no.
She insisted on doing each nail a different color, and I ended up with more polish on my skin than my nails. But half an hour later, we were done, and she looked so proud of her work that I made sure to make a big fuss over how much I loved it.
Once the nail polish was dry, we went into the living room and turned on a Disney movie. I grew up watching the classics, but Gracie’s current favorite was about a Scottish girl with a bow and arrow that accidentally turned her mom into a bear. I actually enjoyed it and got so wrapped up in watching the movie that I didn’t immediately notice when Gracie fell asleep on the couch beside me.
When her little snores reached my ears, I looked over to see her sprawled out on her back, her long eyelashes resting against her cheek and her dark curls haloed around her head. She looked so cute that my heart swelled with affection.