Page 16 of Love Song, Take Two

“I’m a growing teenager!”

She rolled her eyes and wiped down the counters. “We’re switching to fruits for midnight snacks. Put it on the list.”

She heard Emery groan and she smiled, setting her shopping list on the table before heading up to her bedroom to change. Switching into paint-stained denim overalls and an old T-shirt, she dragged a hand through her hair and returned to find Emery hunched over the list.

“What are healthy fruits?”

“All of them?”

“Ammachi said some have too much sugar and those are not good.”

Of course her mother would tell her daughter this after spending years trying to control Micah’s diet. Tugging on her sneakers, she snapped her fingers. “Put down what you like or come with me.”

“Late night shopping? That’s so lame.” Emery quickly scribbled something on the list and handed it to her. She’d always enjoyed late night shopping, because nobody else was around and she could wander the aisles without being jostled. The Mermaid Mart was the only one that stayed open until 2 a.m. and had everything she needed. She’d become friends with all the staff and cashiers over the years, so if she couldn’t find something on the shelves, they snuck it for her from the back.

She’d been slacking off with her shopping, because Emery was out of the house most of the day and dinner was the only meal they ate together, so it wasn’t a big deal. But it was clear that she needed to pay more attention to the crap her daughter might be eating. She started with the veggies, then tossed in fruits that Emery had picked and also grabbed a few snacks that she could hide in the back of the cabinets. With meat the last thing on her list, she turned into the bread section and froze at the sight before her.

Man bun and glasses in place, pencil sticking out of his mouth and a slight frown crinkling his forehead, Fletcher Kelley was examining the shelf of bread. His light blue printed shirt had pink flamingos riding surfboards and was paired with dark shorts. All of his tattoos were now on display and she wanted to trace each one slowly. If anyone was to wonder why she’d been obsessed with him, that sight alone would have been a good answer. Swallowing hard, she started to back away, but of course the cart chose that moment to squeak loudly and drew his attention.

His frown vanished and eyes softened, making her knees wobble. Goddammit body, you fucking traitor. He pulled the pencil out of his mouth and tucked it behind his ear as he turned fully to look at her.

“Hey Mick.”

That nickname.

Lifting a hand in an awkward wave, she steeled herself. “Hey Fletch.” And that nickname. “Never seen anyone look so confused by bread before.”

“Didn’t realize that there were so many different types and colors. I just need bread.”

The frustrated look on his face made her laugh and she abandoned her cart to join him. “Okay, this is way more than I’m used to as well.”

“Right? Bread is bread, why does it have to be so complicated?”

“Well, it depends on what you want the bread for.” She smiled when he shrugged, his forehead wrinkling again. “PB & Js or a grilled cheese or breakfast sandwich or something a little more fancy?”

“Let’s go with grilled cheese.”

She reached for the white bread that Emery favored and handed it to him. “That’s Emery’s favorite, she says it adds a little something to the grilled cheese.”

“What’s your favorite?”

She shrugged, eyes fixed on the shelf even though she knew he was looking at her. “I like bread, it doesn’t matter really.”

“So, what are you buying tonight?”

Grabbing another loaf of the white bread, she waved that and a loaf of brown bread and smiled at him. “Both, we like mixing it up in our house sometimes.”

He nodded, but kept his eyes on her. Micah blushed and turned to toss the bread into her cart. Her heart was racing, palms were sweating…the beginning of that damn Eminem song “Lose Yourself” filtered through her head.

“You okay?”

Blowing out a breath, she glanced at Fletcher with a forced smile. “Yeah, been a long day. You good?”

“Now that I have the perfect bread for a grilled cheese, yeah.”

“You’ll have to thank Emery for that choice.”

He smiled and she saw the wrinkles around his eyes, the lines around his mouth and she wished that she’d been able to see him age so beautifully. What are you doing? None of that, Micah Elisabeth George! Shaking off the thought, she started to move around Fletcher when he said her name. Not Mick, he called her Micah, the way the consonants sounded in his deep voice sent shivers up her spine.

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