Chapter Seven
Layne
The drive from my place to Jace’s was less than ten minutes. Even so, the idea of that extra time alone with Elias had me pacing my living room.
It was too soon for me to be interested in a new man.
That he was my pretend boyfriend and was treating me better than the man I’d actually been engaged to was messing with my head.
I needed to focus on the task at hand: get rid of Teddy from every aspect of my life.
After that, maybe I could think about other things, but for now I had to stay focused. Elias was kindly helping me meet my goal. I couldn’t afford to confuse that with anything more than friendship.
God knew I’d made enough mistakes with men to last me a lifetime.
Maybe an evening with my friends and co-workers would distract me from what was going on, and I could keep Elias in the right place in my brain. A group setting would remind me how things worked. He was my brother’s employee, and friend. He was now my co-worker and friend, too.
Nothing more.
Even if it felt fantastic to be in his arms.
I hated to arrive empty-handed, even though Jace said he had everything handled, so I put together a quick plate of meat and cheese, and wrapped it up just in time to see headlights illuminating my driveway.
Snow was still falling, those light flakes the size of golf balls that looked beautiful but accumulated quickly.
I was no stranger to driving in snow, but it was nice to let someone else worry about it. Especially because this way I could have a few glasses of wine.
Although lowering my inhibitions tonight might not be the best idea.
I stepped out the front door and locked it behind me, the cold biting at my ears.
I crossed the driveway, snow crunching under my boots, and climbed into Elias’s truck. There was a bakery bag on the seat between us, so clearly I wasn’t the only one who hated to arrive empty-handed.
“Hey,” I said, buckling my seat belt.
The truck smelled like freshly cut wood, but underneath that was what could only be his body wash or deodorant. Something spicy and masculine that made me want to shift a little closer.
Which was bad.
I had literally just pep-talked this crush out of my head, and now it was back because he smelled good.
Ugh. How low is the bar?
“Hey yourself, ready for this?”
I nodded. “I’m starving.”
“Yeah, me too.” He backed smoothly out of my driveway and onto the road. “Has Jace said anything to you about our whole fake dating thing?”
I shook my head. “Been too busy with the Beast. I think it slipped his mind. Why?”
“No reason.” He gave a shrug that almost passed for nonchalance. “Just curious if the guys are going to give us the third degree.”
I hadn’t thought of that. Teasing was fine, but it would be hard to take when the underlying feelings were developing. “We can handle it.”
He nodded, and focused on the road.
I studied him in the dim light for a moment before turning away. Staring at him was doing nothing for my crush.
The drive was mercifully short, and when we arrived, I could see a line of Wild Timber trucks and my best friend Sloane’s car.
We were still working on getting back to our old rhythm after things had been strained while I stressed about my wedding and she quietly fell for my brother.
She was enjoying a new relationship while I was mourning the end of an old one.
Maybe tonight could be normal. Focus on time with my best friend instead of whatever weirdness I was feeling toward Elias.
We walked in the front door, and Sloane met us with a smile. “You guys made it, man it is really coming down out there, eh?”
“Sure is.” We all headed into the kitchen, and I put the platter I’d brought on the counter. Sloane snatched the bakery bag from Elias. “Are these the little cupcakes you brought last time? Oh, I could kiss you.”
He laughed. “I’m not dumb enough to show up without them. Where are the guys?”
“Out back,” Sloane said, already helping herself to a cupcake.
Elias grabbed a beer and headed out the door.
I cocked an eyebrow. “Why are they outside?”
She shrugged as she chewed. “Jace insisted on barbecuing even though it’s below zero and dumping snow.”
I laughed. “Sounds like my brother.”
She nodded. She was clearly gone over the guy. I hadn’t known until after they got together that they’d both been crushing on each other since we were teenagers.
“Wine?”
I snorted. “As if you have to ask.”
She frowned. “Is it not going well with Teddy?”
She poured us each a glass, and we settled onto the sofa. I filled her in on how things had been going with separating Teddy’s life from mine.
“Hold on, so Elias has been pretending to be your boyfriend?” She nudged my shoulder with hers.
My cheeks heated, and I told myself it was the glass of red that was already half gone.
“It’s not as exciting as it sounds. He literally just talked to Teddy on the phone and showed up when we met.”
“Did you want him to do more?” She wiggled her eyebrows.
I giggled. “We’re co-workers. He’s my brother’s employee. There can be no more.”
Sloane pulled her legs up under her on the couch. She wore leggings and a slouchy sweatshirt, looking casual and comfortable in the home she shared with my brother. A stark contrast to the high-powered lawyer she was at her job.
“Look, I can’t talk about my sex life since it involves your brother.”
“Eww. Mental block.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying, you don’t have to take a vow of celibacy just because Teddy didn’t turn out to be the one. Elias is cute, and he wouldn’t have jumped at the chance to be your fake boyfriend if he didn’t think of you that way.”
I glanced over my shoulder toward the window. The guys were standing out on the deck, drinking cold beer despite the frigid temperature. My gaze found Elias easily; the light catching on his glasses.
He was exactly the kind of person Teddy loved to demean. Blue collar. Made his living with his hands. Honest, hardworking, not scheming or manipulative. Just doing what needed to be done.
I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t watched him on the job site more than I should have. He was hot. Sloane wasn’t wrong.
“He’s a helpful guy; I don’t think it’s any deeper than that.”
“You don’t have to punish yourself for Teddy’s sins forever,” Sloane said, refilling my glass from the bottle. “Just think about it.”
Little did she know that was all I had been thinking about.