I got my phone out to take another picture of the twins—it wasn’t as if I could have too many, and Zara would want to see too—just as the door swung open behind me, and I turned to see who it was.
I nearly dropped my phone on one of the twins when a familiar figure slipped inside.
“Mom?”
31
XANDER
“The rolledup sleeves are a good look on you.”
I smiled as Milo turned to look at me leaning in the doorway, watching him work. There was already paint in his hair and his drop sheet technique left something to be desired, but at least he looked great doing it, ruffled and rumpled and soft.
There was something very sexy about a man painting a nursery.
“How did you get in?” he asked, frowning at me. “Shouldn’t you be sleeping?”
I laughed. “In order: I have my own key for emergencies, and I’ll sleep when I’m dead. Or at least, like, when I’m not in danger of missing out on helping you paint.”
Milo paused mid-roll, looking at me like I’d just told him I was secretly a Martian.
“Help?” he asked.
“Obviously,” I said. “Pretty sure helping out with painting is like, point number three of the Boyfriend Code. After unlimited kisses and reminding him how attractive he is. Which you are. I think I already said.”
“Yeah,” Milo gestured at his forearms, one corner of his mouth turning up shyly. “The rolled sleeves. But you really don’t have to. I feel like you’re not getting nearly as much out of this boyfriend deal as I am.”
I pushed away from the door frame and picked my way around half-assembled cots and the bed he’d shoved to one side, along with the nightstand and tiny little desk and chair. “I came here in my most threadbare sweatpants and my oldest band t-shirt to help you,” I said. “And I’m getting everything I want out of this.”
Milo raised an eyebrow. “You are?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said, darting in for a quick kiss. “You.”
Milo blushed all the way past his temptingly open shirt collar, which earned him another kiss. And then another, because two wasn’t enough.
Neither was three, but when he made a soft, needy noise into my mouth, I pulled back.
“We’re here to paint,” I said. “Not make out.”
Milo sighed, but there was still the hint of a smile playing around his lips.
“I guess the sooner this is done, the sooner we can make out?” he said.
“That’s the other reason I’m here to help.” I grinned at him.
He chuckled as he rummaged through the supplies and found me a wide brush. “You handle the details, I’ll handle the main coat?”
“Deal,” I said.
Just being in the same room with Milo was making me feel better about the day I’d had. After a few minutes of soothingly simple painting, I even felt like I could maybe talk about it.
“Brady dropped by the bakery today,” I said before I could chicken out. The last thing I wanted was for Milo to hear it from someone else and think I’d been hiding it from him.
The squelching of the roller came to a sudden stop.
“Oh yeah?” Milo asked. I hated the note of uncertainty in his voice, but I knew it wasn’t either of our faults.
“It was fine. Muriel of all people chased him off,” I added. That was still a surprise. She’d been so calm about it too.
