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I gave him a half-hearted smile. “Fine.”

“You… want to talk about it?”

I shook my head and waved a hand dismissively. “No thanks.” Instead of going straight to my room, though, we stood there quietly for a few seconds before Kieran cleared his throat.

“So… the space.”

My stomach fluttered in nervous anticipation. “What about it?”

He lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “Have you decided?”

“I don’t know.” I rubbed the back of my neck with one hand. “There are so many pitfalls.”

“There are pitfalls in everything, though, right?”

That was fair. Instead of answering, I shrugged and held my hands out, palms up.

“Take working for someone else. There are drawbacks there, right?”

“Sure,” I conceded. “But it’s… I don’t know, safe. Safer, anyway.”

He raised his eyebrows. “You don’t strike me as the kind of guy who prefers to keep the status quo because it’s safe.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Okay, fine.”

“Just think about it. Maybe now is the right time for you to make the leap.”

I leaned against the counter. Maybe he was right. I could afford the space. I had steady work coming in. And even Emma thought it was a good idea. I closed my eyes and took a slow breath. When I opened them again, I looked at Kieran, who was watching me expectantly. “Okay,” I said with a nod.

“Okay?”

“I’m going to do it. Rent the space. Start my own shop.” The words sent a nervous thrill through me.

“You’re sure?”

I smirked. “Don’t make me second-guess myself. I’ll do it, but only if you promise to help me get it set up. You had some good ideas back there.”

“Of course!” His smile was blinding and before I knew what was happening, Kieran had thrown his arms around me and pulled me into a firm, warm hug.

At first, I froze. I wasn’t much of a hugger, especially not with whatever weird tension was going on between the two of us. But after a fraction of a second, I found myself relaxing into it. Pulling him close. Tightening my grip around his body.

I was hyperaware of him then, my breath catching in my chest as I inhaled the scent of his body wash or deodorant or something. He buried his face in the crook of my neck and the stubble on his chin scraped against my skin, lighting me up. My stomach churned with a feeling I couldn’t quite identify… desire?

After a few seconds of holding each other, we released at the same time, stepping apart.

Kieran’s cheeks were blazing red. “Sorry.”

I chuckled and looked at my feet quickly before forcing myself to look back at him. “Don’t be. It’s fine.”

He gave me a weak laugh. “I’m a hugger. What can I say?”

“Really, it’s fine. It was… nice.” My chest and throat were tight and I dipped my head in a nod. “I’m going to…” I gestured toward my room.

“Yeah, of course. Go right ahead.”

I left the kitchen and headed straight for my bedroom, where I firmly closed and locked the door behind me. I collapsed onto my bed, heart pounding in my chest, my jeans uncomfortably tight in one particular area.

I cleared my throat and took a few deep breaths in an effort to get my body back under control. What was Kieran doing to me that I was reacting this way to a simple, friendly hug?