Emmett tries to bite back his laughter as he looks at me, both of us clearly having something else on our minds.
“Hey, Arthur. I’m good. How are you?”
“I’m great. Enjoying retirement.”
“So that’s why you’re at the field today?” he teases. “Enjoying your retirement?”
“What can I say? This place is like a drug.”
Emmett uses his arm out to keep the elevator doors open, allowing for my grandfather to take his time getting off. “That it is, Arthur. Have fun today.”
My grandfather’s smile is boyish and excited because he gets to make the rounds and see some of the people he misses from his daily life.
“Love you, Reese’s Pieces!” he calls out over his shoulder.
Emmett steps into the elevator next to me, but doesn’t select a floor, clearly going to the same level as me. The doors close and an instant wave of déjà vu crashes over me again, even stronger this time now that the man at the center of those memories is standing next to me.
Alone.
For the first time since we kissed.
Through the reflection in the metal doors, I see the way my body involuntarily leans in his direction. Like a flower finding the sun. But it’s not one-sided. Emmett is doing the same, his arm brushing mine, his fingers skating the backs of my own.
The silence is suffocating. The knowledge of where we are now and where we were the last time we were alone sits heavy in the air between us.
“Well, so much for staying away from one another,” I say, trying my best to break the tension.
It doesn’t work, so Emmett gives it a shot.
“This uh...” He looks around. “This looks awfully familiar.”
I huff a laugh and through the reflection, I see the smile he’s wearing as he looks down at me. His fingers find the spaces between mine, dangling there but nothing more, and something about that small point of contact takes the edge off.
“So, Reese’s Pieces, huh?” His tone is all tease.
“No. Don’t even think about it.”
“Ironic nickname, if you ask me. Named after a candy when there’s nothing really all that sweet about you.”
I try to bite back my grin. “Thank you. That’s the way I like me.”
Looking up, I find him watching me, his voice all soft. “That’s the way I like you too.”
I’d really like to kiss him again right now.
The string keeping us apart is pulled too tight, tempting to snap at any moment, but thankfully, that tension is relieved when the doors open on the second floor.
Taking a deep breath, I inhale some of the new air that wasn’t stuck with us in this elevator, that hasn’t been laced with not-so-innocent touches and soft-spoken words.
Emmett’s fingers leave mine, his palm finding the small of my back, and even that touch, which is seemingly normal and appropriate, feels anything but. It pricks my skin with acute awareness, sensing the pad of every one of those five fingers pressing into me.
His other hand gestures for me to exit first. “After you.”
Swallowing, I gather myself and take a step forward, needing to get to these interviews and just hoping like hell I don’t come off as flustered as I feel right now.
“Where are you headed?” he asks, stepping off the elevator with me.
We both stop just on the other side of the doors before we’ll separate for our destinations.
