Chapter 18
EIGHTEEN
ivy
I balanced Levi against my chest while trying to single out the key for the house.
Moments ago, we’d stepped out of my car—a new luxury SUV I traded my sedan for to better navigate Greene Gardens and make trips to the city with Levi when needed.
Like today. I’d taken Levi to his first mommy-and-me activity.
The ladies in the group I’d found online were fascinated by our story, constantly mentioning what a blessing I must be to him. Little did they know he was more of a blessing to me, and I was finally starting to see that.
For May, the weather was beautiful. With summer just a month away, Greene Gardens was living up to its name. Lush green grass, blooming trees, and vibrant flowers created a picturesque view. Outside the house, the scenery felt like an extension of a painting.
With the key in hand, I slid it into the lock, turning it to enter. The moment the door opened, the smell of food hit me.
I paused, wrinkling my brows.
“Hey,” Leo called from the kitchen, waving at me.
“Hey…” I stepped inside, blinking through the momentary shock. “What are you doing here?”
He chuckled, turning his attention to a pot on the stove, steam swirling up from it. “I gotta have a reason to be here now?”
I shut the door behind me, heading in his direction.
The last time I saw Leo was a few days ago when he’d dropped Levi back at Greene Gardens after having him for a weekend. Even then, he was acting strange.
Actually, he’d been acting strange ever since his awards ceremony.
That night, I’d noticed something different in how he looked at me. He was attentive, more present, even flirty—like the version of Leo I’d seen with other women he was attracted to. It felt nice, I won’t lie, but it was equally confusing.
I dropped Levi’s baby bag near the shoe rack as I made my way to Leo. Levi stirred a little in my arms, still drowsy from his nap after our mommy-and-me meetup at a Gymboree in Manhattan.
“Are you… cooking?” I asked, stopping by the kitchen island.
“Yeah.” He nodded casually. “My mom shared a chicken stew recipe I figured you’d like.”
I arched a brow, rising on the arches of my sneakers to peek into the pot. The sight actually made me smile. “And it looks… edible.”
Leo snorted. “Don’t play me like that. I grew up in a single mama household. Of course, I know how to cook.”
“I grew up in a single mama household and I can barely boil water.” I leaned against the counter, watching him.
“Well, your mother is mad laidback. My mama wouldn’t let me live under her roof, eating the way I did, without knowing how to cook.” He shrugged. “It’s a Cheryl thing, I guess.”
We stood there for a moment, staring at each other.
Even the way he was looking at me now was different. It wasn’t teasing or playful like it usually was. His gaze was softer, more intent, and it did something to me.
Leo always joked about how uptight I was, teasing me for my need for order and structure. But now, there was no trace of that.
“Everything okay?” I asked, adjusting Levi against my shoulder.
“Yeah, everything’s good.” He smiled. “Why?”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Because you’re acting weird.”
“Damn.” He laughed softly, shaking his head. “A man can’t just cook for you?”
“You cooked specifically for me?”
“Yeah.” He shrugged, as if it were no big deal.
I blinked a few times, my head tilting slightly. “First the Woman Crush Wednesday post a few days ago, and now this?”
He licked his lips, offering a small smirk. “Yeah.”
I didn’t know what to make of this shift. Since the night I tried to talk to him—the night he was getting ready to meet up with Vanessa, his friend-with-benefits—he’d been guarded. Closed off.
After that, I decided to mirror his energy. We’d hooked up twice, and he clearly didn’t want to discuss it, so I wasn’t going to lose sleep over it. When he told me he was moving back to his loft in the city, I forced myself to accept it. I shut down emotionally and made Levi my only priority.
But now?
As much as I tried to stay closed off, I couldn’t ignore the pull I felt. The way he was looking at me, cooking for me, posting about me.
It made me wonder if Leo felt it too.
This unexplainable pull.
This… possibility.
I cleared my throat, quickly dismissing the swirling thoughts in my head. Peeking down at Levi, still peacefully asleep, I refocused on Leo. “I’m going to walk him to his nursery, set him down, and freshen up in my room.”
“Cool.” He nodded. “The food will be ready whenever you’re ready.”
As I walked away, I glanced back toward the kitchen.
He was cooking… for me.
The whole thing was perplexing.
After laying Levi in his crib, I only took off his jacket before gently covering him with a lightweight blanket. I grabbed the baby monitor on my way out, closing the nursery door softly behind me.
As I headed to my room, I turned the monitor on, keeping my eyes on the screen. Lifting my attention just in time to avoid bumping into the doorway, I did a double take as I stepped inside my room.
I suppressed a laugh, my jaw slacked as I stared at what was before me.
Red roses. Made out of LEGOs.
My dresser was covered in vases filled with intricately crafted Lego roses.
There were so many I couldn’t begin to count.
I approached the dresser, marveling at the plastic roses. The detail in them was insane.
“I had no idea such a thing existed,” I murmured to myself.
“Neither did I,” Leo said from behind me.
I turned quickly, startled to find him standing there, holding another vase of Lego roses in his hands.
It was… adorable. The sight of all those roses filling my dresser, the time it must have taken to put them together—it made my heart swell.
“Leo, what the—” I shook my head, a laugh escaping me. “What is happening right now?”
He walked into the room, setting the larger vase he was holding beside the others on my dresser.
Before I could fully process it, he closed the space between us. His hand cupped my chin, gently turning my face to meet his gaze.
His eyes were locked on mine, softer than I’d ever seen them, but still carrying a playful glint. Yet, beneath that playfulness, there was something serious.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice low and steady. “I’m so sorry for how I acted last month after we got physical. It was childish and stupid. I couldn’t make sense of what was happening between us, and I didn’t want to fuck anything up if we continued to take things further.”
“And what’s happening now?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper as I glanced between him and the roses on the dresser. “What’s all of this?”
Leo licked his lips slowly, his expression growing more resolute.
“You being here, cooking…” I gestured toward the Lego roses. “Filling my room with these. What’s happening right now?”
“I caught feelings for you, Ivy,” he admitted. “Big feelings. Colossal.”
My brows shot up.
“I caught feelings for you that I never knew were there until we uncovered them.” He took both my hands in his, stepping even closer.
“I didn’t know how to process what happened between us the first night.
But when I couldn’t stop thinking about you—even when I tried to hang out with Vanessa the way we used to—I realized that night wasn’t just a hookup. It meant something.”
I swallowed hard, nodding as he continued.
“That was just a hunch until the second time. That time… things felt different for me. Real.”
“They felt different for me too,” I admitted, my voice trembling. “And I haven’t been able to figure out why. We’ve known each other for years, Leo, and not once have we seen each other like that. I don’t know. Maybe it’s all this stuff we’ve been through together these past few months.”
“But what if it’s not?” His thumb gently stroked the back of my hand. “What if it’s something more? Something real? Something we didn’t notice before because we didn’t allow ourselves to?”
I shook my head, glancing away, overwhelmed by the weight of his words.
“It’s crazy, I know.” He chuckled softly. “It feels crazy to me too. But it feels right at the same time.”
I studied him, my heart racing as I watched the rise and fall of his chest.
This was unreal.
Leo and I had been opposites from the start. We wouldn’t have even been friends if not for our mutual friends. But now… now it was like we couldn’t ignore whatever was building between us.
His gaze dropped to my lips, and I scoffed. “Why are you looking at me like you want to kiss me?”
He cradled my face with both hands, his touch warm and steady.
“Because I wanna kiss you,” he said.
“An interested Leo seems to be a more honest and forthcoming Leo.” A smile tugged at my lips. “I’m not used to that.”
His fingers brushed along the edge of my jaw, then buried themselves in my hair. His simple, “Mm-hmm,” was all the warning I got before his lips claimed mine.
I exhaled sharply against him, my body instinctively closing the distance between us. My hands ran up his back, my fingertips pressing into his warm skin as he lowered his tall frame to deepen the kiss.
In one fluid motion, I was in his arms, and a second later, he was walking me to the bed.
It didn’t take long for us to shed layers, our movements eager but deliberate. His hands moved quickly, helping me out of my tee and jeans before stripping out of his own clothes with just as much urgency.
When he stood at the foot of the bed, sliding his boxers down, I couldn’t resist crawling toward him. My hands wrapped around his dick, and without hesitation, I lowered my mouth to the tip, tasting him.
“Shit,” he groaned, his voice husky and weighted with need. “Damn.”
The way he stiffened against the roof of my mouth sent a rush of heat through me. Slowly, I worked him, sucking him in and letting him slide out with intentional tension. His hand found its way to my hair, holding my strands in a firm but gentle grasp.