She laughed. “You’re not, but there’s nothing wrong with that. I’ve never met someone like you. That’s why I’m excited to know more.”
She released a sigh. It was barely audible and sounded like she’d been holding it for a while.
I leaned close, and she followed my lead. My fingers brushed across the back of her palm. She made a small hum of approval when my lips hovered mere inches from hers. I hadn’t planned on doing this again until we talked about everything. Until we talked about who I really was and what I wanted and what that meant for us. But, when our mouths touched, I was a goner. The awkwardness that lingered from days of avoiding one another washed away. We kissed one another like our time was running out, and maybe it was. Maybe this was all I’d ever get—small, stolen moments. My stomach twisted at the thought because it wasn’t enough.
“Um, excuse me?” a small girl interrupted us. Naomi pulled away from me in a flash. I swallowed an annoyed groan.
“Sorry, yes?” Naomi’s voice sounded high as she smiled down at our interruption. The kid couldn’t be any older than seven.
“Can you get that for me?” She pointed at a pack of sugary cereal on a top shelf behind us.
I grabbed the box. “There you go.”
She pointed to another box. “And that one, too.”
Okay…
I reached for her next request. When she gestured to a third box, I couldn’t help but ask, “You sure your folks want you to have all this sugar?”
Her cheeks went red, and her lips spread in an amused grin as she accepted the last box. “No, but I cry, so they give it to me.”
I raised a brow and Naomi burst into laughter as the girl giggled. We watched the mini master manipulator skip on her merry way.
“Unbelievable,” I muttered.
Naomi was still laughing as she said, “Come on. We probably need to speed this up. Those check-out lines are only going to get longer the later it gets.”
I nodded, ruefully agreeing. Naomi didn’t seem interested in circling back to the position we’d been in before. She even moved to the front of the cart now. She still rambled but kept her distance, so we weren’t close enough to touch again. I listened, doing my best not to convince her to abandon this shopping trip altogether. Tonight was the night. She needed to know about Mid and I needed to show her I could be so much more than just a grump.
“Thereyouare.”Henrikhad slipped back into the house unnoticed. “Ready to practice?”
I’d secluded myself in a corner of the living room. The music was too loud, thanks to Sam’s speakers. The house was too crowded, thanks to Lincoln’s flexible invitation list. There were more than locals here. Everyone and their mother seemed crammed into the house. We’d taped off the upstairs with strips of Christmas wrapping paper Naomi found in the garage. That seemed to keep people off the second floor for a few minutes. But, from my position, I could see someone broke through. The wrapping paper was now discarded and trampled under the foot traffic.
Henrik sensed my mood and gestured to my cup. “You should get something stronger than that. You only like parties when you’re drunk.”
“Figured.” I nodded and took another sip of my cranberry ginger ale. I’d asked for a cup when Naomi explained it was her favorite flavor. It wasn’t too bad, but Henrik was right. I’d need more of a kick if I was to survive the night.
“It also might help if you talk to her.” Henrik leaned in to whisper that part. I stiffened and he patted my shoulder. “She seems to work wonders on improving your mood.”
“We’ve spoken. I’m just giving her some space now.”
“Really? Seems like you’ve been avoiding one another. But what do I know?”
I scowled. After our shopping trip, I expected things would go back to normal. Our normal, at least.
My gaze strayed toward Naomi. She leaned on the kitchen island, listening to something Lincoln was saying. I watched them interact, getting jealous of how easily it looked for the two of them. Lincoln never second-guessed, moving close to her. He did this with all women and used space as a game. He touched her arm or tugged on her sleeve to get and maintain her attention. My grip tightened around my glass when he played with one of her curls at one point. He wrapped the black spiral around his finger, and she didn’t seem to mind in the slightest.
How the hell did he do that without feeling an intense emotional connection? Just standing next to her felt paramount to me.
“He’s doing what he does best,” Henrik said in a voice meant to calm me. “You know it’s nothing serious. Link knows you like her.”
“His best is pissing me off,” I mumbled. It wasn’t the flirting. Naomi wasn’t mine. She could flirt with whoever she wanted. It was the ease of their interaction. How he made her laugh until she cried. I wanted to be able to do that.
Henrik nudged me toward the glass sliding door that led to the back of the house.
“Come on,” he said. “I know a place where you can practice, and we won’t be disturbed.”
I followed him to the backyard, where fewer people were milling about around the pool. Sam had done a nice job of cleaning out the water. I figured out how to heat the pool, so a few people sat with their feet dipped in the warm water. When we passed by some of our teammates, they stopped us to say ‘hi.’ A few looked at me like they were waiting for something to happen. I stayed quiet, silently willing Henrik to finish up his small talk.
