But Addison?
No.
No.
The minute I lift my head to plot my path across the restaurant, he makes eye contact with me as if I’m the only person in the room.
Once again, my breath catches in my throat.
Exactly the way it did when he flew to my side to keep me from falling after he startled me in the kitchen earlier, which I am actively not thinking about.
Not thinking about the fear in his eyes.
Not thinking about the way his breath was coming too fast.
Not thinking about the strong grip of his long fingers wrapped around my forearm.
Not thinking about the conflicted emotions that danced across his face when he realized he was giving himself away.
He cares.
But the fact that he clearly doesn’t want to and keeps bringing up how I left him in Hawaii is a major red flag, waving in the wind, broadcastingI have trust issues and I’m ridiculously attracted to you still and pissed about it.
And what do I do with red flags?
I have one-night stands with them.
That’s my dirty little secret. It’s in my DNA to go for the guys that I know aren’t relationship material.
Until Hawaii, but that was safe because I was never supposed to see him again.
He stares at me a beat too long before turning back to Addison and whatever she’s saying as she crowds him too close for my comfort. I say a quiet thanks to the cappuccino gods that it takes me about ten seconds to reach his side.
“Hey, you made it,” I say as I let Jitter stick his nose in Grey’s crotch and stand too close to him, craning my neck as I look up. “I didn’t see you come in. Have you gotten a plate yet?”
Those blue eyes focus in on me with a mixture of distrust and intrigue. “I made it,” he repeats slowly.
I smile.
And wink.
His guard goes up so fast, it’s a wonder everyone on the whole block can’t feel the aftershocks.
“I see you’ve met Addison,” I say. “She posted Emma’s wedding video online.”
“Oh my god, Sabrina,” Addison yelps.
“She did,” someone behind me mutters. “I saw it on her TikTok first.”
“Have you ever made a mistake, Grey?” the slimy little backstabbing asshole says to him.
I touch his elbow and lean into him. “Oh, you canbethe has.”
She looks down at my hand.
He looks down at my hand.
At least three people around us suck in a collective breath.
