Chapter Sixteen
IZZY
The weekend went by entirely too fast, even though I didn’t do much besides cleaning and grocery shopping. Not exactly how I imagined twenty-one to be. At least I was going out tonight for Nicole's birthday.
“All done?” I asked Alice.
She nodded. “Your turn.”
I took over stirring the cookie dough mixture. They wanted to make chocolate chip cookies before their mom got home, stating it was her favorite treat. And as it was one of my favorite things to do, I'd use any excuse to bake.
They took turns scooping balls of dough onto the cookie sheet before I slid it into the oven. The timer went off, and my phone chimed from the counter as I was pulling the cookies back out. I picked it up and clicked on the text from Maggie.
Maggie: Would you mind getting the girls packed up and driving them over to Logan's? I've got an emergency surgery.
Any other day I would have taken them to Logan’s after school, but school was closed today for a teacher in-service day.
Maggie and I already discussed the possibility of me taking them to Logan’s if she was running late.
And I couldn’t even bring myself to be upset about the change in plans.
The idea of seeing him again shouldn't excite me so much.
But it did. I typed out a response to Maggie.
Me: Of course.
“Hey, girls.” I waited until they appeared at the entrance to the kitchen. “Can you run upstairs and get your stuff for your dad's? Your mom's going to be late tonight.”
They both nodded and took off running. Apparently, the change in plans didn’t bother them either. But they were always excited to see Logan. He’s their dad. What was my excuse?
Shaking that thought from my brain, I busied myself in the kitchen separating the cookies into two containers. Alice agreed to leave some for Maggie and take some to their dad, too. That was only fair.
When I pulled down the driveway that ran along the side of Logan's house, my gaze landed on Logan under the hood of his truck in front of the detached garage. My breathing increased as I took in his shirtless back, his jeans hanging low on his hips.
Jesus. The amount of muscles on him was insane.
I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth as he turned to face us, struggling to look at anything but his wide shoulders and how defined his chest and abs were. My core throbbed. Why did he have to be so freaking sexy?
The girls jumped out and grabbed their bags before running toward him. I took a deep breath and grabbed the container of cookies from the passenger seat. Not like I could sit in the car any longer and drool over the man.
Having gotten hugs and hellos, two identical heads, with their dark hair pulled back in matching ponytails, blew past me on their way to the side door of the house. “Bye, Izzy,” they both said before disappearing inside.
It looked like I was giving the sexy single dad his cookies because his kids forgot all about them. I stopped a few feet from him and thrust the container out toward him. “Here.”
He cocked a brow, glancing down at the cookies and then back up to my face.
“They're cookies,” I clarified.
The corners of his lips twitched. “I see that.” He pointed to his chest, and I tried not to follow the movement. “For me?”
I nodded and ran my tongue along my bottom lip as my gaze took in the dusting of hair on his pecs that trailed down along his toned stomach before disappearing under his jeans. He cleared his throat and my gaze shot back to his face.
Focus, Izzy. But the slight smirk on his face made me think he knew he was affecting me. Couldn't he put a freaking shirt on for Christ's sake?
“Yes. For you.” I huffed. Who else did he think they were for? “The girls and I made them.”
He took the container and smiled. “Thanks, Izzy.”
Why did I ever complain about his piss poor attitude? It was so much easier to pretend he was unattractive when he was grumpy. This Logan though, with his smile and shy gratitude, was making it awfully hard to avoid how incredibly sexy he was.
“Uh huh.” The words came out more as a breathy sound. I needed to get out of there. I couldn't even think straight. “I have plans, so I need to run.”
His lips turned down instantly. He obviously didn't like that idea. But at least he wasn't smiling at me anymore.
“Okay.” He lifted the container of cookies. “Thank you for the cookies.”
“Yup.” I turned and hightailed it to my car, freezing when he called my name and glancing back at him over my shoulder.
“Be careful.”
I swallowed. The double meaning behind his words sunk in deeply.
I needed to be extra careful with the way my body responded to him.
That was more dangerous than anything at the bar.
I really liked this job, and the last thing I needed was to mess it up because I was crushing hard on my single-dad boss.
I nodded and climbed into my car before backing down the driveway.
But space didn't help when, an hour later, sitting around a high top table with my friends, I still couldn't stop thinking about Logan shirtless and smiling at me.
“Izzy.” Lyla snapped her fingers in front of my face. “What's going on with you?”
I shook my head and looked up. “Sorry, it's been a long day.”
“Did you work the nanny thing today?” she asked.
I nodded. “Yeah.”
“How's that going?” Nicole smirked. “Any other weirdness?”
Oh God. I did not want to go into any of this with this group. I'd never hear the end of it. Izzy crushing on her new boss would not surprise any of them. Nicole and Lyla would tease me relentlessly, while Mia would lecture me.
They all knew my track record. I pick the absolute worst guys to like. Every time. Usually because they were assholes. Not because they were my boss or one of my brother's teammates.
“I told you.” I narrowed my eyes slightly in Nicole's direction. “It's fine.” I turned back to Lyla. “How's the EMT classes going?”
“Nope. Spill the tea.” Mia raised her glass to her lips before shooting me a smirk.
Lyla bounced slightly on her stool. “Yeah, come on. It's not like you to hold out on us. And EMT classes are boring. I could use a little drama.”
I sighed. “There's no drama. Nicole just won't let something I said go.” I glared over at my friend and brought my glass of cider to my lips.
She shrugged. “I think you like him.”
I choked on the liquid I'd taken a sip of.
Lyla tilted her head, glancing between the two of us. “I feel like I'm lost. You like your new boss?”
Nicole giggled. “Remember her brother's teammate she complained about for weeks? The one who flirted with her at the wedding and then almost immediately gave her the cold shoulder?”
Lyla's eyes widened. “Yeah...”
Damn Nicole. I wanted to strangle her.
“He's the single dad she's nannying for.”
“Oh my God, no way.” Lyla smirked at me. “And didn't you say he's like really hot?”
I sighed. I could feel the disappointment in Mia's look without seeing it. “Yes. But he's my boss now and he's not interested in me anyway, so I'm trying not to go there.”
“Liar.” Nicole coughed as she said the single word.
“I'm never telling you anything ever again.” I should have called or texted my sister that day. Why did I think Nicole was the best option?
She laughed. “I've heard that one before.”
“What does she think you're lying about? I'm lost again.” Lyla pouted.
I rolled my eyes and huffed. “I told her I thought he was checking me out that first week I’d started nannying. But I was probably just reading into things.” I chuckled. “You know me.”
“But Nicole's right, you did tell us he was definitely flirting at the wedding,” Lyla reminded me.
I shrugged, trying and failing not to remember. Because of all things I was fairly sure of. The way he leaned forward to talk to me. The way his gaze heated when I said I wasn’t there with a date. And I surely didn't imagine his eyes drifting down to the cleavage of my dress.
I shifted uncomfortably on my stool. It had only been two months since that day, and it was still fresh in my mind. The way he made me feel. Like not a single other person was in that damn ballroom but me.
“Maybe he was.” I schooled my features and shrugged. This wasn't helping. “But that was a one-time thing.”
“Back up.” Mia narrowed her eyes. “So was he or was he not checking you out a couple weeks ago?”
“Ugh.” I crossed my arms. “I don't know. I thought so, but—”
“I'm with Nicole.” Mia slapped the table and leaned back. “It's not like you to be unsure. You were convinced he flirted at the wedding, and spent the next few weeks after that determined to figure out why the one-eighty. So now you really like him and are trying to talk yourself out of it?”
“I hate you all.”
“Nah.” Nicole bumped my shoulder with hers. “You love us. So how about you start from the beginning and tell us everything? Let us actually help you figure it out.”
I looked around at their sincere expressions. “Guys,” I whined. “There's nothing to figure out. I can't like my new boss, and nothing can happen even if I do like him.”
They had to agree. I couldn't imagine they wouldn't, but they all stared at me like they were waiting for me to go on.
Mia would give it to me straight. “Right?” I directed at her across the table.
She shrugged. “I need all the details first. Dating your boss isn't ideal, but dancing around mutual attraction isn't either.”
I glanced around at their expressions laced with anticipation, and finally gave in, starting at the beginning—that first night when he came home.
I barely took a breath as I poured out the details of the past two weeks, ending with my ridiculous reaction to him when I dropped off the girls and the cookies.
Lyla tapped both hands on the table excitedly. “He's totally into you.”
Nicole smirked. “I agree.” She tipped her head in my direction. “And she knows it too.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but Mia spoke first. I wished I had their confidence.