Page 69 of Stuck with Mr. Grump

“Emilia, can I ask you a question?”

“Of course.”

“Why do you likeWizard of Ozso much?”

“Because it helped me realize there’s a whole world out there that I might not have known about. And that nothing is permanent. Everyone is capable of change.”

“I don’t want anything to change,” Sean says timidly. “Change is bad. It took my mom away.”

“I’m sure she’ll come back, honey,” Emilia assures him.

Deciding I’ve heard enough, I step forward. Sean notices me first, eyes widening. Emilia’s crouched down in front of him, running a hand through his hair. She turns around to see what’s caught his attention. When her eyes meet mine, they grow brighter. I don’t know if she knows this, but her eyes sometimes change color depending on her mood.

They grow bluer when she cries or if she’s pissed. And when she’s really happy, they almost seem to sparkle. It’s mesmerizing. Even more so that she’s looking at me like that. It’s why I have faith we’ll find each other eventually. Her mind just needs to catch up to whatever it is she’s feeling in her heart.

“Hey, Tin Man. How long have you been there for?” she questions, rising to her feet.

She’s a vision in the dress she’s wearing. It’s a short, dark blue flowy dress that’s cinched tight around her waist. She’s paired the outfit with thigh-high boots, and blonde strands of her hair float across her face in magnificent curls. It makes her look like the stuff of dreams. Probably a wet dream where she’s a sexy-as-sin cowgirl riding my cock.

My jaw tightens as I try to focus. I force a small smile, walking toward them.

“Long enough,” I answer her before looking down at Sean. ‘Hey, bud. If you don’t want to be at the party anymore, you don’t have to. You can go to your room.”

He bites down on his bottom lip, hesitating. “But what about Grandpa?”

“I’m sure Dad won’t mind if you rest for a bit. I’ll tell him when I head outside.”

He brightens. “Okay. I’ll just read some of my books a little, and I’ll come back after playing with Lion.”

“You do that.”

He runs off without another word, heading further into the house and leaving me alone with Emilia. Neither of us says anything for a couple of minutes. We just stare, our gazes intertwined. My eyes on her don’t make her nervous. Eye contact is sexy, and Emilia could teach a master class in it.

She continues to look at me without saying a thing. Like she can read the thoughts running through my head, see into me the way I so desperately want to see into her.

“You know staring’s rude, right?” I ask, breaking the silence.

She blinks. “You started it.”

“What are you, five?” I ask on an eye roll. “I was staring at you because you look beautiful. What’s your excuse?”

Her lips part and they’re momentarily distracting. She has on red lipstick. I want to lick it off, bite down on each cherry lip until they’re naturally red and swollen.

Fuck, this woman has no idea what she does to me.

“What’s with the compliment?” she asks, recovering. “Buttering me up isn’t going to get you anywhere, Harrington.”

“Oh yeah? So what is?” I question, my tone serious.

She arches an eyebrow. “You sound like you’d really do anything I ask.”

“I think I would,” I reply honestly. “Do anything you asked, that is. You have a lot of power, angel. And you don’t even realize it.”

CHAPTER 19

Emilia

The average resting heart rate for a healthy adult is typically between sixty and one-hundred beats per minute. While I’m unsure how many times my heart beats per minute, whenever I’m around Sterling, I’m pretty sure that number increases exponentially. Doubles, triples, it doesn’t matter.

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