Page 18 of Cold as (N)ice

“I see you,” she whispered, shocked. “I’m just very surprised and happy for you. We’ll have to watch the…” her voice trailed off as the garage door opened suddenly nearby, and Barrett walked in.

His brown eyes met hers for a brief moment. He didn’t say anything. He simply swallowed causing his Adam’s apple to bob slightly before he looked away. It felt like an eternity before he turned to them.

“I picked up Chinese food,” he began, signing so Stephen was included, and her stomach did that weird little quivering thing again. She slapped a hand over it, tossing it up to being hungry.

And then Mario Cart?Her son jumped excitedly.Can we watch the news? I told Mommy about you coming to the school. It was so cool.

“Can we talk later?” Barrett said quietly, looking at her. She had a sinking feeling that she was about to get terminated again. After the morning she had, she was on edge, and later was not going to work for her.

“No,” she began hesitantly, seeing his doubletake. “Let’s talk in the other room now so he isn’t trying to read my lips. I think my plate is already full, so if you are about to dump something on me – do it quickly.”

“Okay,” Barrett nodded and looked at her – then Stephen.Can you put an eggroll on each plate and get out the forks by yourself? I need to talk to your mom for a minute.

Sure!

Irene’s heart skipped as Barrett’s strong hand clamped down on her wrist. His touch was firm, almost unyielding, as he pulled her along the hallway with an urgency that left her scrambling to keep up. The duffel bag he had been carrying was abandoned mid-motion, his focus entirely on her.

“What are you doing?” she demanded, her voice sharp with both confusion and irritation. She twisted her wrist against his grip, her other hand prying at his fingers. “I can walk, you know…”

“Irene,” he said curtly, barely breaking stride as he tugged her closer, “we need to talk, and we need to do it now, or we’llbe talking in front of your son. There’s a lot to cover, and I don’t have time to sugarcoat it.”

Her stomach sank at his words, a leaden weight settling low in her core. “What’s this about? What happened at the school?” she asked, her voice quieter now, a thin thread of dread lacing through it. Barrett slowed only slightly, glancing over his shoulder at her with an expression so raw and earnest it nearly stopped her breath.

Where was the cold, sucking-lemons-look?

Where was her curt, grumpy boss?

“I hate bullies,” he said simply, his tone like steel wrapped in velvet. “I wanted to give Stephen a little social boost, so I showed up. Figured if the kids saw me there, maybe they’d lay off him.”

Irene blinked, stunned.

“Just out of the blue? Just like that?” Her tone carried more skepticism than she intended, but she couldn’t help it. People didn’t just… do things like this.

“I’m a nice guy,” Barrett replied, shrugging one shoulder like his kindness was no big deal, as if this grand gesture wasn’t extraordinary.

And that’s when it hit her.

Hard.

Like a freight train colliding with her carefully constructed barriers. Her mind reeled, warning bells ringing in a deafening chorus. This wasn’t justsome guy.This was herboss. The person who controlled her paycheck, her ability to keep food on the table, classes, medical bills, and kept a roof over Stephen’s head. A guy like Barrett couldn’t blur those lines, couldn’t look at her the way he was now—like she was something more.

“Barrett…” she began, her voice trembling with the weight of unspoken consequences.

He held up a hand, cutting her off before she could derail whatever train of thought had him so wound up.

“Hear me out,” he said, his words rushed but deliberate. “Let me just… throw the spaghetti at the wall, okay? Then we can pick through the mess.”

The sincerity in his voice, the quiet vulnerability that cracked through his confident facade, made her chest ache.Something happened, didn’t it?Her mind was screaming silently in awareness.

She nodded mutely, watching as he rubbed his face with both hands, a gesture that screamed of frustration—and something deeper. Fear? Doubt? Whatever it was, it made the air between them feel electric, alive with something unspoken and heavy.

Barrett exhaled sharply and locked eyes with her. That sinking feeling in her stomach deepened into a full-on freefall. Her world felt like it was teetering on the edge of some seismic shift, and she wasn’t sure if she could handle it. The thought was a gut punch, but it was better to rip off the Band-Aid now wasn’t it?

“I’m fired, aren’t I?” she blurted, the words tumbling out before she could stop them.

“No,” he said quickly, his voice firm. “You most certainly arenotfired.”

Her breath caught. “You’re sure?”

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