“Yep.”
“He’s outside on the front porch. Mom’s at the hospital.”
My first inclination is to go outside to talk to Axel, but courtesy dictates that I ask, “Can I help with anything?”
“Nah, I’ve got it.” She throws me a cheeky grin. “Go on outside and find your man. I know you want to.” Her voice is rolled with amusement. “By the way, I heard y’all laughing and talking on the couch last night, and when I ventured out to get a drink of water, y’all were sucking face.”
My cheeks blaze. “You’re enjoying razzing me, aren’t you?”
“Immensely,” she chirps.
“I didn’t realize you were serving up a helping of snark with the pancakes.”
She snorts. “Good one.”
I perch a hand on my hip. “What about you? Do you have anyone special in your life?”
She smirks. “Like I have time for romance with my work schedule.”
“I could always fix you up with Bryce. He’s not dating anyone right now.” I can’t even say the words without grinning. When Cassie and I were younger, Bryce pestered us to death … to the point where Cassie dubbed himThe Little Menace.
She spins around, eyebrow lifting. “Seems like I’m not the only one serving up snark.”
“Come on, Cas, we’re all adults now. Lots of girls are into Bryce—now that he’s a kick-butt engineer. And he’s not half-bad looking … at least to hear the girls tell it.” Truth be known, Bryce is a good-looking guy, but he’s my brother, so I’m not about to sing his praises too loudly. If he heard me, his head would swell up like The Goodyear Blimp. Bryce already has way too high an opinion of himself as it is.
“I don’t date younger men,” she sniffs.
“You don’t know what you’re missing out on,” I tease.
She waves her hand. “Go on outside. I’ll call y’all when it’s ready.”
“Thanks,” I chime as I sashay out.
Axel’s on the phone. The rigid set of his shoulders and thinning of his mouth let me know that it’s a tense conversation. I go over and sit down beside him on the swing.
“Why are you acting like this?” His voice goes hard. “It’s a stupid party that I didn’t even want to have to begin with.” He balls his fist. “My dad’s in the hospital in critical condition, and all you can think about is yourself. I guess some things never change.”
He goes silent, the muscle in his jaw flicking. I can only imagine what Zoe must be saying on the other end. He looks at me. “Yes, she came with me. In fact, I drove her SUV.”
I cringe, remembering what Harmony said about Zoe being a powerful enemy.
He shakes his head in weary disbelief. “I’m not doing any of this to hurt you. I didn’t know that my dad would get ina car accident and end up in the hospital. I didn’t cause the winter storm that grounded flights.” He pauses to let her talk. A few seconds later, he raises his voice. “Zoe, you’re being unreasonable. If you’d take a second to think about what you’re saying—” His eyes pop. “How do I feel about London?”
My breath catches as Axel and I look at one another. Time slows as he utters,
“She’s great.”
The depth of affection in his tone brings tears to my eyes.
He swallows, zipping his throat up and down. “Look, I wanted to do this in
person, but maybe now’s the best time. It’s not gonna work between us, Zoe. Things haven’t been good for a while. And well … it’s over. I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you … yes, I do have feelings for London. I’m sorry,” he says again and then lowers the phone.
“She hung up on me.”
I touch his arm. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.” He shakes his head. “I tell her my dad’s in bad shape, and all she can do is pitch a fit about the party. The two of us were never gonna work.” A slow smile tips his lips. “I can’t exactly be with her when I’m falling for someone else.” He studies me with such tenderness that it melts my heart. “If you didn’t know this already, I’m crazy about you.”
