Page 25 of Kiss Me Forever

I frowned, because that wasn’t a good thing to harp on. They had found their happy ever afters and were living their lives accordingly. I’d thought I’d done that myself already. After all, I thought I’d found the love of my life, what more did I need?

I just hadn’t realized we hadn’t been on the same page.

I shook my head and pushed those thoughts out of my mind. No, I wasn’t going to think about Duke today. I couldn’t. Not if I wanted to focus.

I grieved him. I missed him. But I knew it was time for me to move on. And baking every other evening wasn’t the way to cope.

I quickly showered before doing my hair. I had a couple of meetings and also needed to head out to one of the newer contracts we had. And since I would be meeting the committee that had worked on the historical preservations campaign, I needed to look a little nicer than usual. I added product to my hair, diffused it, and pulled it back in a loose braid. I’d be able to undo the braid and let it fall in waves around my face later. I didn’t bother covering up my freckles, but I added sunscreen, some tinted moisturizer, and a little extra mascara and eye shadow. I wouldn’t be working outside for too long, so that meant I wouldn’t sweat it off, and I would still look nice for the committee.

Not for a certain coworker that I would be seeing today.

I blew out a breath, annoyed with myself for letting my thoughts go down that path once again. I didn’t know why I suddenly couldn’t stop thinking about Reece. Maybe it was because he was going through his own set of changes. That had to be it. I was worried about him and Bella, and how they were making do, and nothing else. It was totally not anything else.

I packaged up my bread loaves and got in my truck. I needed to head to the office first and go through a few pieces of paperwork, so dropping off the bread would be easy. Now it was time to schmooze.

Honestly, Dash was the best at schmoozing. It wasn’t that he was insincere about it, but he was good at reading other people. And he can make anybody in his circle feel welcome. That was probably why I needed to keep him and Aly apart.

I snorted at that, knowing it was probably true. I liked Aly. A lot. We’d already had one quick coffee, and I had a feeling that I’d just found a new friend. But I had also seen the way Dash had smiled at her, and that meant I couldn’t let my cousin ruin a good thing for me.

Not that he would do it on purpose. Dash didn’t want forever right now, and while that was all good and well, I kind of wanted to keep one friend that wasn’t married into the Montgomerys. A totally selfish thing to think, but maybe it was okay to be selfish today.

I grabbed my things as I pulled into the parking lot and checked my phone. Still no answer.

It was fine. It had to be fine. Duke’s family no longer needed to be connected to me. They were grieving, and had lost their son, brother, cousin, and grandson. They didn’t need to worry about the girl he’d left behind. I wasn’t family. I was nothing. And the sooner I remembered that, the sooner I would be able to move on. No matter what move on meant in this case.

“Here, I got the door,” a deep voice said from behind me. I nearly tripped over my feet, and a blush covered my cheeks. I hadn’t even sensed his approach. I was off my game.

I looked over my shoulder, trying for a smile that conveyed that I hadn’t been up far too late for the past two nights dreaming of him.

“Oh. Hi, Reece. You’re early today.”

He raised his brows at me and gestured for me to walk past him. I did so, cringing. What the hell was wrong with me? I could usually speak around Reece just fine. Okay, that was a lie. I’d always been a little off when it came to him. Probably because I was usually so nervous. He was an attractive man. And he didn’t see me as anything but a co-worker. One he growled at when he thought I wasn’t doing something right. There. That’s what I needed to remember. He was usually an asshole to me. And that helped me get through whatever I was thinking of in that moment.

“Was there some form of bake sale that I missed?” Reece asked. Without saying another word, he took both loaves from me, as well as the muffins, bagels, and garlic knots I had made. I really didn’t get much sleep these days.

“What? No. I just felt like baking. And you guys get to reap my rewards.”

“You’re lucky that I burn so many calories on the job,” he said dryly. He shook his head, glaring at the bread, and I tried to reach out and take the bags from him.

“If you’re going to be mean, you don’t get any.”

“The bread you brought a couple nights ago was good. Really good. And the fried chicken. I should probably learn how to do something like that.”

Shocked he’d even mentioned me coming over without asking, I pressed my lips together and went into the break room. Without words, he helped me take everything out of the bags and set it on the table.

“I’m glad you guys liked it. Well, you liked it. Did Bella?”

“Of course she did. You’re a damn good cook, Brooklyn. And baker. Whatever you want to call yourself.”

“I’m a gardener who likes to plant trees. I just happen to have a sourdough starter.”

“Thanks though. For everything. I’m not good at this, you know. Saying thank you…or having to rely on other people.”

“Oh. You don’t really have to thank me for that. And you’re doing great. Bella’s at art camp today, right?”

It was the first day and my cousins were all excited for it. They had started the camp a few years ago, even before the gallery had opened, and now had a full on waitlist. I might’ve felt bad about using my family connection to get Bella back on the list after her grandparents had summarily kicked her off, but I didn’t really. She deserved a little bit of happiness and sameness from before, and I would do whatever I could to make it happen.

“Well, I hope she has fun. And you didn’t have to waive the fees. You guys pay me pretty well.” He rubbed the back of his neck, and I forced myself not to look at the way that his biceps bulged as he did so.