Page 25 of Love Me Like It's Real
I leave him to it though because I have a guy of my own to focus on. And I approach the table slowly, like a prey trying to avoid the eyes of its predator.
“Ah! There we go!” He sits up again, coats flying around him and he lifts a toy dog triumphantly pinched between his fingers.
His eyes widen as soon as he sees me and my breath catches. Yeah, still as stunning as I remember.
“Hey!” I wave at him and wait for his reaction, his words, his expression as if…as if my life depends on it.
EIGHT
FELIX
“Girls!” I look away from him, focus on my daughters, focus on their chaos and certainly not the chaos that erupted inside as soon as he approached me.
What is it about this man that gets me so on edge?
“Yay! You found it, Poppy!” Arya bounces up to me and takes the toy dog from my hand with delicate fingers as if she’s afraid to break the plastic toy. The same can’t be said about her fashion doll, which she’s holding by the hair and dragging all over the floor.
Kids. Make them make sense.
Elsa also approaches and takes the toy from Arya who in turn looks at Jack Hayworth and bats her eyelashes as if in awe of him.
“You’re pretty,” she says and I can barely manage to hide my chuckle.
“You are!” Elsa agrees and drops her hands, forgetting all about the tiny little doll accessory that had caused the biggest ruckus moments ago.
“Why thank you. I think so myself. What doyouthink?” Jack turns to me and raises an eyebrow, waiting for my response.
“Erm…uhm…” I start and desperate for something to keep me busy, I pick up the coats that have fallen on the floor and try to tidy them up. “You’re okay,” I mumble, if only to appease the staring girls.
“Aw such a charmer,” he bites back with a chuckle and I fight with myself not to roll my eyes.
“I’m Elsa.” My eldest stretches her hand and he takes it gently to shake it.
“Nice to meet you, Elsa. I’m Hayworth.”
“Hayworth?” Elsa frowns but before Hayworth catches me staring at them I get busy pushing the air out of the puffy coats over and over again. “What kind of name is that?”
“Elsa! That’s rude.” I glance at her but when Hayworth looks at me I bend over to pick up the bags from the floor and pin my gaze on their contents instead of him.
“It’s okay. It’s a good question. Well, my name is Jack, but I don’t like it, so everyone calls me by my last name, Hayworth.”
“I like it!” Arya beams and he turns to her.
“And who are you?”
“I’m Arya.”
“Well, nice to meet you both.”
As much as I try to keep myself busy I can’t help but look up. He’s standing before me, after all, like a tall glass of water and I’m thirsty for a sip. Or a gulp.
His offer from a week ago still circles my mind every now and then, when the lights are out and I’m in bed all alone with my thoughts and my hands as my only company but I couldn’t be happier turning him down.
We’re starting to settle down here in Maplewood and I don’t need to complicate things further. And complicated they would be ifMaplewood Mattersis anything to go by. According to the anonymous gossip blogger, Hayworth and another guy ambushed the second speed-dating event yesterday and caused an even bigger commotion than the first time. Apparently, they have been blacklisted from Valentine events for years but they always find a way to cause trouble.
Even if I didn’t mind gossip rags talking about me—which I do. Isodo—associating with a troublemaker is not on the top of my list. Not when I’m trying to make this place our home. The last thing I need is everyone hating me and my daughters by association. No. The best thing I can do is to stay far away from dates and fuck buddies and definitely far, far away from Jack Hayworth.
“What have you got there?” he asks Elsa and she opens her palm to show the toy dog that made the last ten minutes a living nightmare.
