Page 21 of Hidden Hearts

Confused, Avery glances at the screen again and mutters an epithet under her breath. "I scrolled too far." Finding the right picture, she shows me the actor dressed in a suit with his hair cut. "And I don't have naked guys saved to my phone. They're all on this board. For... well, just for whenever." She huffs as she puts her phone away and tries to end the conversation by returning her attention to the TV screen.

I muted the show. "Not so fast. Define whenever." Curiosity is killing me to know what she’s using those pictures for. I wouldn't have thought Miss Perfect would keep what amounted to a secret porn stash stored on her phone.

"Nope. You can unmute now."

"Sorry, firebrand. No can do. I want to know what you're keeping those pictures for. You want me to guess?"

Avery glares at me.

"I'm sure I can already imagine what your perverted mind is concocting. But it's nothing so sordid. Can't a woman appreciate people's attractiveness? Is there something so wrong with that?"

She’s definitely not telling me the whole truth, but it’s good enough for now.

Because I don't plan on her needing pictures of other men to fulfill her needs for very much longer.

CHAPTER TWELVE

AVERY

Elsie’s talking to somebody at our front door, so I pause Tangled on my laptop and carefully crawl to the end of my bed, peering around the bedroom door into the living area.

It’s Dominic.

Dominic is here.

At my apartment.

Elsie lets him inside, and I scramble backward to avoid being caught spying. When I look up from my nest of blankets, Dominic is at the foot of my bed with a grocery bag in his hand.

"What are you doing here?" I texted him earlier that I wasn't feeling up to working on office plans today. My period started in the middle of the night, which means I woke up with awful cramps and a headache. I've already taken a Midol to relieve some of the symptoms, but the cramps are being uncooperative, hence the need for a feel-good Disney movie.

"I figured we're both having a bad day, so I'd join you. I brought medicine since I wasn't sure what was wrong with you." He holds up the bag.

That’s sweet.

"Thanks, but none of that can cure what I have,” I say awkwardly. “Since you're here, though, I guess you can stay." I pat the space next to me, wondering what the hell I’m doing. My bed is twin-sized and wedged between the wall and Elsie's bed because our room is so tiny. It’s close quarters, yet here I am inviting Dominic to join me.

A large mountain of a man who will dwarf the itty-bitty mattress.

And me.

"There won't be a lot of space, but if you can handle it, so can I."

Kicking off his shoes, he climbs in beside me after setting the bag down. The bed rocks with each movement as he gets situated.

Why did I think this was a good idea again?

"Be careful! I don't want us to fall through. The frame has wheels that don't lock, and the mattress is being held up by two by fours."

Dominic shoots me a look of wild disbelief. "Why? Just... why?"

Embarrassment spreads over my cheeks. This is such a bad idea. I hadn't planned to sleep on something so rickety when I bought the frame, but these kinds of frames don’t come stationary or with beams to hold a bed. A fact the salesman failed to mention to my newly graduated twenty-two-year-old self.

So, I made it work. Kind of.

Dominic mutters inaudibly to himself after I explain the situation. When he settles, he props his head on his hand and lays on his side facing me.

Damn, he’s big.

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