Page 124 of Skylar

“Good morning, sunshine,” he said, then turned his attention back to the stove. “Would you like a fried egg?”

“Thanks, but I’m not really hungry at the moment,” she told him.

“You’ve never been one to eat breakfast, have you?”

“Not this early. I’ll probably get hungry around nine or ten.”

He turned with the pan and slid two fried eggs onto the plate that sat waiting on the counter. He also grabbed a couple of slices of toast from the toaster and put them on the plate.

“Do you have a kitchen downstairs?” Skylar asked.

“A small one. But since I brought groceries for all of us, I didn’t put any of them downstairs.” He pulled the carafe from the coffeemaker and poured some coffee into a mug on the counter. “Would you like some coffee?”

“That I could do with,” she said. “But I can get it. You don’t have to wait on me.”

“I know I don’t have to.” He removed a mug from the wrought iron mug tree next to the coffee maker. “But I’d like to.”

After he filled the mug, he handed it to her with a smile. “Cream is in the fridge, and sugar is beside the coffeemaker.”

As they moved around each other in the kitchen, it occurred to Skylar that this could have been their life, if things had worked out.

But maybe there was a chance it still could be their life. If she was willing to give him a second chance.

That was what had disrupted her sleep. Wondering if she could really open her heart up to Aiden again.

The problem wasn’t that she didn’t love him. She did. The man he’d become was appealing to her, and because he’d already had a place in her heart in the past, it seemed like he didn’t even need to work to get past her wall that other men had commented on.

But the thing Skylar struggled with was the fear of being hurt by him again.

When they’d been together in the past, she’d never felt insecure or jealous. He’d never given her any indication that he was interested in anyone but her, so she’d never worried about it. That was why it hurt so badly when he had basically said he wanted to break up so he could find someone better.

Sure, he’d said that both of them could find someone else, but she hadn’t been interested in finding a guy who might be better suited for her. In her teenage mind, Aiden had been perfect.

So now, even though he’d said it wouldn’t be an issue, she knew it would be something she struggled with. So how was she going to deal with it?

“Do you have plans for today?” Aiden asked as he sat down at the island counter with his food.

“I’m going to put in some applications, I think. They’re mainly online, so I can do that from here. Might look around at apartments, too.”

Aiden smiled. “So does it really seem likely you’ll settle here instead of Serenity?”

“I think so,” she said.

“I could ask around at the office to see if anyone knows if the interior design companies we work with are hiring.”

“That would be helpful,” Skylar said. “I’m not even sure if anyone will hire me with no sort of experience in the industry. Or even as a receptionist.”

“You won’t know until you try,” Aiden said. “Are you planning to go see Shiloh when your parents do?”

“I thought I’d go when you do,” Skylar told him. “Spread the visitors out a bit.”

“I can swing by and pick you up when I’m done with work.”

“Okay. Let me know when you’re on the way, and I’ll be ready to go.”

Skylar could have gone with her parents, but she enjoyed going with Aiden. And she thought maybe Shiloh liked it when they came together.

They talked a bit more as Aiden finished his breakfast, then he got up to put his dishes in the dishwasher.

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