Page 90 of The Snowball Effect

“Better to give your eyes a break after you cry,” Regan surmised, feeling her emotions pitch out of heat and into sympathy.

Emma’s cheeks turned pink as she cleared her throat and turned back to her laptop. “Ah, yeah. Ergo, the glasses.”

“They look really good. You should wear them more.” She couldn’t hold the comment in. Really, she couldn’t.

Emma spun back around quickly, eyeing her closely as the color on her cheeks deepened. “The compliments – enough with them. Seriously. Andwhatdid you say about my shirts? What, would you prefer me to change into something else?”

“No!” Regan all but shouted as she jumped forward, as if propelled by an invisible force.

She found herself standing in the middle of the kitchen, dropping her hands listlessly to fall on her thighs as she stared at Emma.

Who stared at Regan with nothing short of alarmed confusion.

“That is to say, no. You should wear what you feel comfortable in. Always. But especially here, at home. Of course.”

“Of course,” Emma repeated skeptically.

Regan hadn’t even registered that she was still clutching her phone until it vibrated in her hand.

Stunning Charlotte Thompson – 2:37 PM

Congratulations. I will personally send you a toaster.

Regan – 2:37 PM

Charlotte, this is no time to talk about random kitchen equipment!

This is a MAYDAY

What do I DO now!!!

BTW we really need to talk about your text response times. Like what if there’s a national emergency – and you take 5+ minutes to see it?!

“Uh, so,” Emma started, easily regaining her full attention.

Regan licked her lips as she stared at the way Emma drew her own bottom lip between her teeth. She’d always admired how full Emma’s mouth was.

She supposed now she understood why.

“I talked to my gram earlier today. She heard all about our dinner from Kimberly, and she, ah, she really wants to meet you now.” Emma blew out a deep breath, as if she’d been preparing herself for this. “Is there any time next weekend that you’re free?”

Regan could only stare for several beats as her heart rate doubled. Amidst this whole realizing she was attracted to Emma aspect of her life, she’d forgotten that she was also Emma’sfake girlfriend. Oh, wow.

Real attraction for a fake girlfriend. Not on her bingo card!

“It’s fine if you’re not.” Emma frowned as she tapped her fingers lightly against the edge of the table, looking uncomfortable. “And, really, it’s fine if you don’t want to do it again. You going out of your way to meet Kimberly for dinner was enough. I can–”

“No!” She asserted again, far too loudly, as she took another step forward. She was only a foot away from Emma now. “I mean, no. I’d love to meet your grandmother; I told you that before. I’m free all next weekend. Just tell me when, and I’ll be there.”

She grimaced, the day's excitement dimming slightly as she remembered Audrey’s weird brunch. “Except for Saturday, late morning and early afternoon. But any time other than that, I’m yours.”

The smile that bloomed on Emma’s face was tentative, sweet, and far more than enough to shake Regan out of any stressful Audrey thoughts. “Thank yousomuch. Really. How’s Friday? I checked your work schedule – off by one? You’re doing the morning shift?”

Regan nodded; honestly, she didn’t have her work schedule memorized that far in advance, but she believed that Emma and her love of schedules properly checked their calendar, so…

“Allegra is taking that afternoon off; she’s going to the Hamptons for the weekend. I’ll be home around lunch. So, we can plan to leave here by three?”

“That sounds great. Consider it booked.”

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