A need and desire I haven’t felt in years reignites in my veins.
Ugh. You hate him. You hate him.
He pulls away just enough to speak low into my ear. “By the way, when I was talking about your outfit, I meant that you are the sexiest woman, and in that top and those tight leggings and boots, no man would be able to resist you. Especially me. Good night, Laura. See you tomorrow.” He shakes his head as he walks away.
Turning inside, feeling like I got whiplash from how this night has been going.
Walking into the living room, I lock eyes with Charlotte, who is pigging out on a bag of chips.
I head upstairs, mentally exhausted from the day.
“Hey, Laura!” she shouts to me. She doesn’t wait for me to respond. “You’re fucking welcome.”
10
You ever look at yourself and think something looks off, but you can’t figure it out?
Well, I’ve been in front of this mirror for the last hour, getting ready, trying to figure out what it is. I can’t put my finger on it. Rolling my eyes, I officially give up on trying to place it.
I’m meeting up with Alec at Nikki’s in twenty minutes. He ended up getting my number from Reed, who had gotten it from Char. I swear this girl is just trying to play matchmaker. It’s like she completely forgot that she was there when Alec left in the first place.
Let’s just get through this. Then, he can go back to being a professional hockey player, and I can go back to being a mom. How it’s supposed to be. How he wanted it to be.
Tomorrow is all about Jack. I’ve been so busy with my new job and school. I feel like we haven’t had a lot of quality time together outside of visiting Mom.
Jack loves to go to the harbor and watch the ships. Whether they are coming in or going out, everything is extremely exciting to him. Personally, I’d rather be home, cuddled up, watching a movie with him, but nothing beats seeing that smile of his.
I pull up to Nikki’s and see Alec’s motorcycle in the lot already. Hmm, he’s early. That’s not his usual thing—punctuality.
I walk inside, and Nikki waves at me, lifting an empty cup, now prepping my usual order—a salted caramel cold brew. Alec’s back is to the door, so he hasn’t seen me yet.
I walk up to the booth and sit across from him. He immediately straightens up, offering a shy smile.
He takes a sip of his coffee. “I would’ve ordered for you, but I wasn’t sure what you wanted.” A short laugh leaves his lips. “And after all this time, I couldn’t imagine your order is still a salted cara—” He’s cut off as Nikki approaches.
“One salted caramel cold brew for my girl.” She smiles at me, handing me the cup.
I take the drink, stifling the laugh that wants to escape my lips. Looking up to Alec, I let mine go, seeing he’s doing the same thing.
He shakes his head. “I stand corrected.”
I nervously tap my fingers on my cup. “Yeah, not much has changed when it comes to my tastes.”
His lips instantly tip into that goddamn smirk.
And when I realize what I said, my face instantly heats.Ugh.
Were we always this awkward when we were younger?
He blows out a heavy breath. “So, what have you been up to?”
The roller coaster of mood swings from being around him is exhausting. One minute, I forget for just a second what happened between us, and I laugh and smile. Next, I’m fuming when my memory returns.
He must sense the anger boiling beneath the surface because seriousness shines in his eyes. But he waits for me to respond.
He doesn’t deserve any details about our perfect son. So, I guess that leaves just one thing.
My eyes drop to my tapping fingers. “My mom’s sick, which you already know.”
