Peering up, I watch as she comes undone until I feel it’s safe to return to standing.
Placing my arm by her head against the wall, I can’t stop staring at her mouth that’s home to a sleepy satisfied smile.
“Hockey, fucking me with your tongue, any other talents?” She’s breathless.
I kiss the corner of her mouth because I can, even though it’s far too sweet for this moment. “You’ll find out.”
She laughs before she reaches for my cock, but I tsk her away. “Not today, sweetheart. Your evil maple syrup episode means that you’re the bad girl, and now you have to wait for what you came for.”
She loops her arms around my neck. “Oh, but I did come.”
My response to her witty remark is turning the water off behind her. Otherwise, I may just say hell with it and literally fuck her.
* * *
A few minutes later,I’m perched on the edge of the desk in my room as I watch Violet tie her wet hair into a nest on top of her head.
“What do you say? Meet me here tomorrow on your lunch break?”
She’s searching for her purse now. “Right, you had this whole meet-every-day-for-a-week proposition.”
“You said yes,” I remind her before I tear off a piece of paper from the stationary pad and begin to fumble with it.
“I did say yes. Guarantee me a sandwich and I may even show up on time.” I enjoy her lighthearted tone.
“I’ll even throw in a bag of chips.”
“You’re trouble.”
She snags my gaze, and I toss the paper airplane that I just made—my other hidden talent being origami—in Violet’s direction, which she catches. “The best-kept secrets normally are,” I promise.
8
VIOLET
Ihum as I scoop a spoonful of cooked rice into Nugget’s bowl then place it in his cage, slightly taken aback that he doesn’t seem to irritate me as much today.
The bell above the shop door informs me that someone is here.
“What in the world?” Brielle’s perplexed voice causes me to look over my shoulder as I close the door to Nugget’s cage.
“What?” I say before closing the container of rice that I brought from home.
Brielle sets her umbrella by the door before she walks over to lean against the counter, with her eyes never parting from my direction. “You’re actually smiling while you feed the parrot.”
“So?” I shrug as I walk behind the counter. I feel like my sister-in-law came to have a talk. “What brings you by on this dreary Monday morning?”
We both look out the window to see the rain pouring down. “It’s supposed to be this way all week. Blah. I guess we needed the rain, and it doesn’t really matter, Ford and Connor are at the ice rink all week for summer camp anyway, and something tells me that your free time is spent indoors with a certain former hockey player.” She taps her nails on the counter.
My face tightens, and my eyes freeze on Brielle who isn’t wasting time and going the direct route, proven by her smirk that she caught me off guard. “Oh? What would make you say that? Nothing is going on, and with whom? So many hockey players waltz in and out of Ford’s life.”
Brielle continues to tap a steady beat, with her face poised with confidence. “The one who is in Lake Spark for a week and graced our dinner table over the weekend.” She raises a brow at me.
“And?”
“The old lady from the knitting club saw you two a little cozy in your store, then told someone at the general store when April just so happened to be there to overhear, who then informed me before the BBQ, which naturally meant that I was observing you with my lawyer eyes, and you failed, like completely. There is totally something between you and Declan Dash.”
My jaw goes slack because that’s one hell of a gossip train, and yeah, she’s a lawyer, so squirming out of this may be tricky.
