Page 44 of In this Moment

Chapter Eleven

After a full day in the sun and a night as equally full of dancing, laughter, and fun, Evie was exhausted. Thankfully, she had her employee April opening the store the next morning and she allowed herself a luxurious and very rare sleep-in day. They’d been out late, way later than they should have been. It finally took Jonah putting his head down on a picnic table and dozing off for Evie to check the time and pull the plug on the party. She hadn’t expected him to leave with them, but Declan walked home with them, almost carrying Jonah on a few occasions, the boy was so tired from his fullday.

After she tucked him in and changed into her pajamas, she’d joined Declan in her bed. It should have seemed strange for him to be sleeping in the same bed as her, or a little bit awkward, but it wasn’t either of those things. She slipped under the covers and into the crook of his arm that he held open for her to snuggle upto.

It felt natural to have Declan in her bed, even if they weren’t fooling around.

Which was why when she woke up late the next morning and stretched her arms up and over her head, she immediately felt the emptiness of the bed. Evie’s eyes drifted open and confirmed what she alreadyknew.

Declan wasgone.

Of course, he no doubt had work to do just as he did every morning, but she couldn’t help but feel disappointed that he was gone. She liked waking up to him and his smile. The way he would gently reach over and brush a stray hair out of herface.

The lines between what was real and what was for show were definitely starting to blur together until more often than not she simply allowed herself to believe it was allreal.

The way he took care of Jonah and cared about him, hanging out with him, making sure he was happy—that couldn’t possibly be an act. Never mind the way he touched her. The way he kissed her, even when no one was looking.

That wasreal.

Her heart flipped in her chest and she had to force herself to slow down. She wasn’t going to rush it. She needed to be sure. She was a practical woman and she didn’t rush into things. Just because she was starting to develop feelings, it didn’t mean that it was love. After all, Declan was doing her a huge favor and it was entirely likely that she was just so grateful to him that she was feeling strong feelings towardhim.

That wasn’tlove.

That was gratitude.

Wasn’tit?

She needed to besure.

Besides, she had enough going on in her life that the last thing she needed to worry about was whether or not she actually loved her fake fiancé. She could have laughed at herself. And she almost did. She was being ridiculous. She needed to focus on what was important and that was making sure she had sorted out her custody situation.

That was the only thing that mattered.

And she needed to call Russ and get an update on that very thing.

Evie forced herself out of bed and into the shower, certain that she’d be interrupted by Jonah at any moment looking for his breakfast, but by the time she got dressed, her hair wrapped in a towel, there was still no sign ofhim.

She made her way out to the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee from the pot Declan must have made and checked her phone. There was a text from Joanne.

Took the boys down to the lake for the morning. Declan gave it a thumbs-up.

She smiled and sipped her coffee. For the first time in her life, she had someone helping her and it felt good. Even just the little things, like approving a playdate or making coffee, made a difference. Maybe it was the little things that made all the difference.

Either way, she was free to make her calls and enjoy her morning. And that washuge.

She heard Declan in the other room, no doubt on the phone with someone from his foundation. She didn’t fully understand what it was that he did, but she knew it was important and his foundation helped thousands of people every day with some of the basics of life. He’d assured her that it was fine for him to be in Cedar Springs, but she couldn’t help but wonder whether that was reallytrue.

She walked a little closer to the kitchen door. It probably wasn’t a good idea to eavesdrop, but she couldn’t help it. Especially when she heard what sounded like an intense conversation.

“I’m not going to be there,” Declan said. “No.” There was a pause and Evie held her breath. “I think you can handle it.” Another pause. “I don’t think it will be the end of the world if I’m not there.”

Where was he supposed tobe?

“No, Wes. I need you to handle it.” The pause was longer this time as whoever was on the other end of the line spoke. Finally Declan sighed. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll see what I can do but I have this…thing I’m taking care ofhere.”

Thing? A shot of pain flashed throughher.

“See if you can push off the meeting a few more weeks until I have things tied up here.” Tied up? “Yes.” He was talking again. “I should be ready to go in a few weeks if needed.”

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