Tomorrow was Isla’s party, and she wasn’t looking forward to seeing him again when she dropped off the cakes, knowing that sometime soon they’d need to address that kiss. Hallie didn’t usually shy away from the hard topics, but for perhaps the first time in her life, reason had failed her in this situation.
She could no longer deny it. She was falling for Christian. Hard. But as much as she cared for him, she wasn’t ready to step into the mom role, no matter how much the girls had grown on her. Watching them for a few hours a day was one thing. Anything more than that seemed so … permanent. And scary. What if she didn’t measure up? What if the arrangement turned out terrible for everyone? What if Christian ended up regretting trusting her with his kids?
Stop overanalyzing this.She couldn’t read Christian’s mind. That kiss may have meant nothing to him. Why did the prospect of thatsend a squeamish feeling to her gut? But truthfully, he could’ve just been caught up in the moment. Hallie had been wrapped up in it too.
Thank goodness for Saturday. She needed this Christian-free day.
A little distraction from her conflicting thoughts was exactly what she needed to figure out the next step. And the ticket to return to her logical self.
If only she could forget about the kiss. She pressed her hands to her cheeks to stop the flush. Never in her life had anyone kissed her like that—so tender, yet with an urgency that made her knees feel like they’d disappeared entirely.
It can never happen again.
Picking up another tombstone, she pushed it strategically into the cake—not in a straight line, but at a crooked angle to add to the spookiness of the scene.
A quiet knock came from the front door.
She frowned. Who could that be? McKenzie had gone to Mexico for the weekend to watch Mitch’s tournament, and Beej was on a date tonight. Hallie hadn’t seen Kendall all day either, which meant whoever had stopped by wouldn’t be for any of them. A deliveryman, perhaps?
Wiping her hands on the towel hanging from the stove, she left the room and made her way to the entryway. When she opened the door, her eyes widened at the sight of the same man that had dominated her thoughts standing on the stoop, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his jeans. “Christian.”
“Hey.” He bounced a little on the balls of his feet.
She looked past him into the dusky glow of the fading sun before flipping on the porch light. “Where are the girls?”
“They’re out with my mom and sister for a special girls’ night. You busy?”
No. I mean yes. Argh!“Sorry, girl’s night here too. No boys allowed.”
“Oh.” His shoulders drooped, as did the hope in his eyes.
She chuckled, despite the nerves swimming in her stomach. “Just kidding. Come on in.” She held the door open, ignoring her brain’swarning of what happened the last time they were alone in a house together. “Actually, I want to show you Isla’s cake.”
She led him to the kitchen, stepping aside when they entered so Christian had a direct view.
“Wow, Hal.” He approached the island, bending at the waist to inspect the cake more closely. “Isla will love this.”
Hallie climbed onto the stool at his side, angling her body to face him. “It still needs a few finishing touches, but I’m close.”
“You even have the witch on there,” he said without pulling his focus away from the crooked old house. The witch sat on a broomstick suspended from the leafless tree by a wire disguised with spun sugar to look like fog. “I really didn’t think you’d be able to pull this off.”
“Are you saying you doubted me?” She leaned forward to cross her arms over the countertop.
“It won’t happen again.” Christian turned from the cake, aiming his smirk on her.
Hallie’s breath caught at the intensity in his eyes, his face only inches from hers. His stare burned through her like a wildfire rampaging an entire forest. The overwhelming urge to continue their kiss from yesterday came over her.
Clearing his throat, he straightened to his full height. “Listen, I need to apologize for what happened yesterday.”
Apologize? Hallie swallowed, her throat thick. So he did regret the kiss. Shouldn’t that be a good thing?
Yes. Yet her stomach dropped.
“It was wrong to come onto you like that.” He stared at the cake. “I’d never intend to make you uncomfortable in any way. I feel horrible for taking advantage of you.”
Why were her eyes watering? She’d tried all afternoon to figure out how to address that amazing kiss and hearing him indirectly admit to their mistake cut a hole straight through her heart.You’re hopeless, Hal. Stop being so wishy-washy.
She turned away, afraid that if he looked at her, he’d see her heart traveling through the cheese grater. She should’ve walked away at thebeginning. Should’ve honored her boundaries before her heart got involved. Because now that it was? Wow, it hurt.
