NINE
STELLA
We entered the restaurant—my face likely still fifty shades of red—and I let the delicious smell of pizza take over the thoughts in my head.
For the last few moments, it had been filled with Axel’s crotch.
I can’t believe I said that out loud!
We all sat down and ordered drinks and food.
Anna gave her husband a droll look. “Seriously? You ordered wings, and Axel got French fries and macaroni and cheese. Who goes to a pizzeria and doesn’t get pizza?”
“Us.”
Archer’s response had her rolling her eyes even more, but I just smiled.
I had met both of them but hadn’t spent much time with them together—usually just Anna. They were cute, and I loved that she had that in her life, especially since they’d had a lot of ups and downs to go through to get where they were today.
“French fries are always a good choice,” Axel interjected. “Though I do need to cut back on sugar and sweets so I don’t get handles of love like Ruthie said Jack has gotten.”
We all burst out laughing at his comment before Anna politely corrected him, followed by Archer telling him that he couldn’t wait to give Jack a hard time.
I, however, glanced down at Axel’s body, struggling to find anything remotely close to love handles. When my gaze rose back up to his face, his cheeky grin told me he had seen me checking him out.
“Well, other than getting an up close and personal look at Axel’s crotch,” Anna teased, causing me to groan again, “I’m glad you had fun. Not everyone enjoys the sport or wants to try it out.”
“They should. It’s a highly underrated sport and one built of champions,” Axel chimed.
Anna and Archer were very competitive, and then there was me, who had no idea what I was doing half the time.
Axel, though, looked like he belonged on the ice.
“You’re really good, by the way,” I told him. “I don’t know how often you play, but you are such a natural out there.”
“Don’t make his ego any bigger,” Anna groaned and rolled her eyes. “If we want Axel and Archer to join our curling team, we can’t have them getting all cocky on us.”
I chuckled at her comment and then looked back over to Axel. “I mean it. I was a total hot mess out there today, but you were just…well…hot.”
And there I go again, saying things before thinking them through.
“Sorry. I’m not usually this flustered.” I shook my head at my ridiculousness.
“I think it’s cute,” he replied, grinning at me. “I like that you say what’s on your mind and don’t try to play coy.”
“Usually, that’s easier said than done, but around you my brain seems to stop working.” As soon as I finished the words, his grin turned into a full-blown smile. It wasn’t cocky, but at thesame time he knew it was a compliment. And seeing that full-blown handsome smile just made me want him even more.
What was it about this man that made me want him so much? I mean, yeah, he was hot, but it wasn’t like I’d never seen a hot man before. With Axel, my mind forgot how to speak like a normal human.
Trying to avoid looking at him and further embarrassing myself, I glanced over in Anna’s direction to see her grinning like a loon at me.
“Alright, time for me to get home so I can show my wife just how cocky I can be,” Archer interrupted while giving Anna a lewd smile.
She just rolled her eyes in response, but there was also a smile tugging at her lips.
We paid our tabs and headed out to the parking lot. I had picked Anna up so we could go shopping earlier, but she would just ride home with her husband. I waved goodbye and noticed Axel walking in the same direction I was walking.
“Are you parked over here, too?”
