Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
MILES
My back hurts.
Fuck.
Being in your thirties isn’t old, but that couch is ready to put up a damn good argument.
I groan and roll off the sofa, rubbing my back and arching backward, stretching in a way that I don’t think the body should ever be stretched. Well, not mine anyway.
I hear two pops before I let out a deep breath.
It’s only for a couple of weeks.
As soon as we get through the next fourteen days, it’s breakup time and back to normal life we go.
I know I’m a workaholic and I can be pretty strict in my free time, but the small pieces of fake dating we did do in public were a nice break. It was a fresh reminder that there is more to life than work. There is more to life than pretending to date someone, too, but baby steps here.
I wander into the kitchen to start some coffee, and my fake girlfriend herself strolls in. Her hair is in a messy bun on top of her head, she’s wearing a red pajama set with white slippers, and the sleepy dazed look in her eyes gives her this whole innocent look.
I’ll admit this, too: seeing Quinn the moment she wakes up is not the worst thing. In fact, I can’t remember the last time I smiled this much over a woman in my kitchen, if ever.
It might have something to do with the fact that Quinn isn’t expecting anything from me right now. I think we can agree that the morning after sex can be unpredictable, but since that’s not the case with us, I can do whatever I want with no consequences. Funny thing is, though, I want to do something for Quinn, and I wish this were the morning after sex.
“I’m making coffee and was about to cook some bacon and eggs. Do you want some?”
“Mmm, that sounds delicious. Yes, please.”
She moves for the fridge, grabs the creamer, and stands next to the coffeepot. I maneuver around her to reach the fridge, pulling out what I need and returning to her other side.
“Sleep okay?” I ask.
“Yep. You?”
I let out a little laugh. “Not even a little.”
“Oh.” The sleepy expression turns to a frown. “We should switch.”
“Hell no,” I say quickly. “Now that I know how bad the couch sucks, I’d never let you sleep on it.”
She smirks.
“That’s oddly kind of you.”
To that I smile.
“I think we can agree that whatever is going on between us is … well, just expect the unexpected.”
“Oh, you’ve never been more right.”
The coffeepot stops, so Quinn pours a cup for herself and one for me.
She doesn't move as she takes her first sip .
The moan that escapes her makes me freeze.
It’s not a sex moan, and it’s not a this feels great moan. It's a this coffee is yummy groan of appreciation, and yet I instantly grow hard in my shorts.
I close my eyes and take a deep breath as I stir the eggs.
Last night when we were making my bed, I wanted to kiss her. I didn’t want our night to end the way it did, but fuck, I’d just told her why we couldn’t do anything more than what’s going on now, and then we agreed to break up. Kissing her would have been … it would have been me doing exactly what she said. Being someone who basically gives her whiplash.
She’s not wrong.
I’m just having a hard time controlling the way I’m feeling.
I want her, but she isn’t staying, and everything is getting complicated.
How can I get what I want and then just watch her leave when the summer is over?
Simple.
I dig deep. Really fucking deep and use self-control.
“Why don’t you sleep in your room with me tonight?”
“No.”
Her sigh can probably be heard all the way over at my dad’s apartment.
“If the couch sucks, you shouldn't sleep on it, and your bed is big enough for the two of us.”
I blow out another breath.
“No. The couch will be fine for a couple of weeks. I don’t want to intrude on your space.”
“Oh, please. I’m the one who took over your room.”
She steps closer to me to look at the bacon cooking in the pan, her chest brushing up against me.
“Shit, sorry.” She steps back .
“It’s fine,” I grumble, even though now all I can think about is that she’s not wearing a bra.
“Breakfast looks good. Thanks for cooking.”
She pulls two plates from my cupboard and sets them by the pan.
“I’ll shower and get ready after we eat.”
And then it happens again: her body brushes up against me.
I don't know if it was an accident or intentional, but the self-control I’m practicing is growing very thin.
I adjust my stance to hide my erection as I dish our plates and set them on the table.
I swear to god, if she moans while eating, I will shove every fucking thing off this table and eat her for breakfast instead of the meal I cooked.
If she wants to moan because of something I’ve done, it won’t be from my goddamn cooking.
Jesus, I’m in a mood this morning.
The ding of my phone distracts me from any more thoughts of Quinn on my kitchen table. The drop-down on my screen is a notification from the pet place I emailed about their golden retriever puppies. I open it quickly, read the email, and then hold it up for Quinn.
“Look, they approved me.”
“Who?” she asks as she takes the phone. “Oh my god! You’re getting a dog!”
I grin and take my phone back, reading the remainder of the email.
“Wow. I can go as early as today to pick one out.”
“Let’s do it.”
I set the phone down, then take a quick bite. “Can’t. I have to work.”
Quinn rolls her eyes .
“And last I checked, you’re the boss, so you can play hooky if you want.”
“That’s no way to run a business.”
“Yeah, if you do it every day, but once in the entire time you’ve owned that shop isn’t going to hurt anything.”
“How do you know I’ve never played hooky before?”
“Oh, please, Miles. I don't have to live here to know that you love your work more than anything else in this world.”
Now it's my turn to roll my eyes.
A couple of days ago, she would have been right, but I don’t think right now is the time to remind her of my new favorite things.
“I think we need to go get you this dog today.”
I take one more bite, letting her words sink in.
I mean, it would be a good reason to skip out on work. I wouldn't mind having a dog right now. Something to keep me busy.
“What’s on my schedule today?”
“All restoration work. No appointments.”
It’s as if it were meant to be.
I nod before I can change my mind.
“All right, let’s do it.”
“Yay! Road trip,” she cheers and then shoves the last of her eggs into her mouth. She sets her dish in the sink and takes off up the stairs, leaving me at the table with nothing but a smile on my face.
Why is it that every day I’m with her, she surprises me more and more?
I grab my phone to let the breeders know I’ll be there in a few hours.
Then I glance back to the stairs.
I only get a limited number of mornings like this before our arrangement is over .
Why does the thought of that make my chest ache?
“How are you supposed to pick just one?” Quinn whispers to me.
The gal who’s selling the puppies led us to a pen in her backyard and said there are five puppies left. Two boys and three girls.
My instinct says to pick a boy, but this girl at my feet seems to be smitten with me.
Quinn crouches down to pick her up and hands her to me. Then she grabs another.
“What if you get two?” Her eyes go wide as if it’s the best idea in the world.
“No, no, no, I can’t handle two puppies.”
“But then we would each have one. I’ve never had a puppy before.”
“Really?” I ask, leaning away from the girl in my arms as she licks my face profusely. “Never?”
“I travel too much.”
Yeah, I guess I could have figured that out.
I lower myself to sit crisscross, and so does Quinn. The puppies play all around us, and damn, she’s right, it’s going to be hard to pick just one.
“Why did you start traveling?” I ask, taking any reason to distract myself right now. How do I pick just one of these furballs?
Quinn doesn’t respond right away, so I glance up. She’s studying me.
“Why are you asking me this now?”
I shrug. I have no idea.
Ever since last night and our agreement to break up, I feel lighter. Like … I don't know. Like I can get to know her now on my terms and not under some false pretense.
“Let’s just say it’s something I should have asked you a long time ago.”
She smirks. “Well, my parents got me started young. Legally, I had to go where they went, and then after so many years, traveling felt more normal than not traveling. I could attend college online at a lot of places, so that worked out well. I really haven’t known anything different since I was a teenager.”
I get it. My family knew the small-town life, and that’s what they passed down to me. Same for Quinn but with traveling.
I’ve been judging her for living the life she knows, when that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. The fact she was able to turn something she loves into a paid career is even more impressive. I, too, was able to find a job I love, but it’s a lot harder than you think.
“Well, I’m glad some of your family found Lovers.”
“Me too.” She bites her bottom lip and looks away. “Okay, I have an idea.”
“What's that?”
“You choose a name, and the first dog to respond to it is the dog we pick.”
“I like it.”
I also like the way she says we .
“Okay, what's the name?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Miles!”
“What? I’ve had other things on my mind. Plus, I sort of thought I’d know which dog I wanted when I got here and a name would just come to me.”
Quinn shakes her head with a smile. “You’re something else. ”
“Yeah.” I pick a few strands of grass from the yard, tossing it at her. “So are you.”
“At least I have name ideas.”
“Let’s hear them.”
“Buddy.”
“Too common.”
“Rocky.”
“Pass.”
“Max.”
“Eh.”
“Charlie.”
“Too human.”
“Too human,” she repeats with a laugh. “Okay.”
“That’s it?”
She pinches her lips together and then sighs. “I have one more, but I don’t know if I should tell you.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s from a movie, and anytime I think of this one scene from the movie, I want to cry, but I just love the name so much.”
“Does it have a golden retriever?”
She nods.
“If you say Shadow, I’m stealing it.”
“No! What if I get a dog someday? Then what? Our dogs will have the same name.”
“Yep. Shadow!” I yell, not giving her any time to argue with me.
The boy pup in her lap yelps and licks her right across the mouth.
Quinn falls back with a laugh.
I think we have a winner.
We pull back into Lovers by mid-afternoon, and instead of driving straight for the shop, I drive down Main Street and park in front of the bakery.
“What are we doing here?”
“I’m grabbing some snacks for later.”
“Do they make dog treats?”
“Not for the dog,” I laugh. “For me.”
I get out before she asks more about it. Today has been oddly relaxing, and the company has far exceeded my expectations.
Brooke is behind the cash register today. Her hands go to her hips instantly. “Miles, hey, where have you been all day?”
“Why? Did I miss something good?”
Shakes her head. “Unless you’re referring to Luca blowing a gasket that your shop was closed today, then no.”
I chuckle.
“So, where were you?”
“Yeah, where were you?” a voice from behind me asks, and I spin to find Luca himself standing in the doorway.
“If the two of you must know, I went to Wind Valley to get a dog.”
“For who?” my brother asks, and I glare at him.
“For myself.”
“A dog, really?”
“Yes, really. Why is that so hard to believe?”
“Dogs are a big responsibility.”
“Your point?”
“My point is, you work a lot. What’s it going to do, sit in your shop with you all day?”
I nod. “Yes.”
Luca crosses his arms, but instead of waiting to see what he’s going to say next, I give Brooke my order. She rings me up, cashes me out, then hands me my goodies.
Luca is still standing in the same spot .
“Anything else?” I ask.
“You’re being weird,” he says and points at me. “Where is the wrinkle between your eyes?”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t think I’m the one being weird. You are.”
As I stride past him, he groans.
“No. Not you, too. No, no, noooo.”
I know I should keep walking, but he’s my best friend and twin brother and he knows exactly how to make me take the bait.
“What now?”
“You’re pulling a Hudson on me.”
“I’m not pulling a Hudson. Hell, I don't even know what that means.”
“It means, you’re being all happy and shit but pretending it’s not because you’re in love.”
I hold my hands up.
“I’m not in love.”
He slaps his cheeks.
“You’re already in the denial phase. That wasn’t one of the options from yesterday morning, Miles.”
“I’m not in denial. You’re being crazy.”
“Oh god, I’m going home. All alone. The only Asher son left. What will I do? Who will I hang out with? Not that we hang out much anymore anyway, but what will?—”
“Stop, stop,” I cut him off as Brooke laughs behind us. I glance at my watch and then back to him. “Come over in a couple of hours, and we can grill burgers. I’ll call Hudson, Dad, and Ruby when I get home.”
Luca’s bottom lip drops, but no words come out.
I chuckle as I walk out of the bakery, and at that exact moment, I see Quinn taking a selfie with Shadow. Then she kisses his forehead and hugs him .
I’m not in love.
It’s impossible to love someone you’re not actually dating and have disliked for the last however many years.
It just doesn't happen like that.
It doesn't.
“Hey,” Quinn says as she rolls her window down. “We should go get him a bed for the house, my office, and your shop.”
Her smile lights up her entire face.
And there’s no way I can say no to a smile like that.