Page 179 of The Re-Proposal

“Are you kidding? Now Ihaveto see them.”

Cody chuckles and lifts my hand to his mouth. His lips are soft against my knuckles. “I love you. You know that?”

“Of course I know that. Now shut up and drive.”

* * *

I finish packinga bag of Joel’s necessities. Walking over to Cody’s office, I lean against the door and watch him. He’s sitting in his chair, putting a laptop into a case.

The groan of the zipper reminds me of the way my dress sounded when he peeled it off me. Was it just earlier that he was growling in my ear, making me scream with his expert caresses?

The Ice King. The man I swore I’d never give into again.

He had me on my back. On a fluffy rug.

Naked.

And now we’re here packing for the hospital.

How fast the night can turn.

I slip into the office. “Hey.”

“Hey.” He glances up. His eyes turn velvet green when they rake over my body. “My shirt looks good on you.”

“Don’t get any ideas.” I pad into the room. “You ready to head out?”

“Not yet.” He ropes an arm around my waist and scoops me into his lap, holding me so close I can feel his pulse pounding under his skin.

We sit like that for a moment, just… breathing each other in.

Cody’s gaze drops to the bottle I’m clutching. “What’s that?”

“Wheel grease. For… for Joel’s wheelchair.” I feel the emotions balling in my throat already. “I don’t know why. I was packing his stuff and as soon as I saw it I couldn’t let it go.” My eyes swell with tears again. “What if he never comes back, Cody?”

“What happened to thinking positively?”

“I don’t know. It’s harder than it sounds.”

He sets his chin on my shoulder. “Joel’s wheelchair makes a weird creaking sound when he moves around at night.” Cody closes his eyes. “At first it was so irritating, but now the house feels quiet.”

“You miss him.”

He shrugs.

“It’s okay to admit it.”

“I barely knew him.”

“You barely knew me before you started harassing me for a date,” I remind him.

“Harassedyou?”

“What else would you call it?”

“Something not-felony adjacent.”

“You admitted you stalked me and spied on my student information,” I tease, glad to see the wrinkles in his forehead smoothing out.

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