Page 44 of The Grump

Xander: What a coincidence. Neither could I. I kept thinking of a certain feisty woman enjoying the lights as if she was seeing them for the first time. Why didn’t you sleep?

I licked my lips, looking over my shoulder at my sister.

Bailey: I was thinking of a certain grump who doesn’t have time to watch the lights at all.

That was a good comeback.

He responded only seconds later.

Xander: He did come to watch them with you. You’ve got a strange power over him.

My pulse quickened as I shifted my weight from one leg to the other. God, I wanted to hear his voice. I wanted to ask him exactly what kind of power and how far it went, but instead I simply replied to the message.

Bailey: Sounds dangerous.

Xander: It is. Very much so. Do you have a lot to do today?

Bailey: No rest for the wicked. I’ve still got plenty of deliveries, and a hot handsome man is keeping me away from my work.

What are you doing, Bailey? You told him that this isn’t a good idea, yet you’re sending him mixed signals.

Xander: Wouldn’t dream of it. Have a great day.

I’d essentially told him to leave me alone, yet for the rest of the day, I kept checking for messages. Isowanted to hear from this man. Mixed signals or not, I was glued to my phone. But he didn’t write anything.

I had to focus on my pralines. They weren’t going to bake themselves, and I didn’t want to make Avery shoulder more than her share of the work. It simply wasn’t fair.

Later in the afternoon, I did get a text from him.

Xander: How was your day? What are you doing this evening?

Bailey: It was productive. I’ll relax with a vampire show. You?

Xander: I’m on a date.

I stared at the phone.What the hell?Why would he even write that to me? I was about to swear off men, but then he sent me a picture of himself and Bella, and I just melted. My heart seemed to quickly fall back in place again.

Xander: I’m taking my niece out for some beignets. I promised her back at the party, and I can’t break my word.

I read his text a few times, smiling more and more. Okay, it was true that he was a grump, but he was also an amazing person. Two things could be true at once, right?

Xander: I wish you were here with us.

Ha. I actually wasn’t a beignet person, which was weird for someone living in New Orleans. But I didn’t want to say that right now because I was still busy swooning. So I replied with something entirely different.

Bailey: I wish that too.

Way to send a guy mixed signals after turning him down last night.I had no idea where I’d gotten the willpower to do that, but it was melting away completely.

Bailey: Have fun with Bella. I don’t want to hijack your time with her.

Xander: That means you’re willing to hijack it another time? Let’s pin down exactly when.

I started to laugh. Leave it to Xander to try and nail this down.

My entire body was on high alert.Oh, Bailey, what are you doing?I had no idea, but I simply didn’t have it in me to shut him down again. I didn’t want to.

Bailey: You focus on Bella. We’ll see about the rest.

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