Page 72 of Love Me Again

Jo chuckles, “My God, she’s just so beautiful!” She chirps, reaching over and squeezing Alaia’s cheeks gently. “Oh, I’m going to eat you up, you adorable little munchkin.”

“Jo, you can eat her later. Please focus on the task at hand.” I whimper, burying my face in my hands.

“I don’t know, Shay, maybe get him something to do with the baby? He’s a new Daddy, maybe go with a gift with that mind?” She suggests, and I look at Alaia thoughtfully. That’s not a bad idea, but what can I get him? “You’ve already given him the greatest gift in the world,” Jo adds, smiling as she picks up the baby and kisses her forehead. I wasn’t going to get much out of her anymore. She’s got the baby fever bad, and whenever she’s around Alaia, she can’t focus on anything else. Not that I blame her, she is pretty darn cute.

“Shayla?” I look up from my cup of coffee and see Blake standing before me dressed sharply as always.

“Blake? Hi.” I stand, and we hug rather awkwardly. “What are you doing here?” I ask, genuinely surprised

“Christmas shopping.” He answers with a small smile and shrug holding up some bags he had in his hands.

“Wow, I’m impressed. I thought a busy guy like yourself would have had his many assistants to do the shopping for him,” I reply, only half-joking, and he laughs, clearly amused.

“It seems you still have a lot to learn about me, Shayla. I’m all about Christmas. It’s my favourite time of the year.” He explains with a charming grin and looks at Alaia in Jo’s arms. “Oh wow, is this her?” I nod, and he smiles, setting his bags down. “May I?” He gestures, asking permission to hold her. I exchange a quick look with Jo and nod with a polite smile. Blake expertly takes Alaia from Jo and smiles, looking down at her. “Shayla, she’s gorgeous.”

I smile, rubbing my nape awkwardly, “Thank you.” I take a sip of my coffee and watch as he rocks her in his arms, smiling rather handsomely. “How’s Elle?” I question, pulling his attention from Alaia, and he grins at the mention of his own daughter.

“She’s great.” Blake beams, looking down at Alaia again. “Enjoy these moments because they don’t stay this little for long.” He sighs, handing her back to Jo, and he looks at me.

“Tell me about it. She’s changing every day.” I sigh, smiling dotingly at my daughter.

“They do that, at the blink of an eye, she’ll be crawling, then walking and talking, and you’ll wonder where the time has gone,” Blake explains, catching my eye and smiling handsomely. “Listen, Elle and I have that parent-toddler class tomorrow afternoon if you want to join us. It’s honestly so great for her development, and the parents there are supportive too. I know first-hand how overwhelming and daunting being a new parent can be.”

I nod and shrug, “Sounds great. It might be nice to be around people who are experiencing the same things I am.”

Blake smiles, nodding. “I’ll text you the details later, then?”

I nod, taking Alaia from Jo when she starts to cry and lay her back in her stroller. “Sure, uh, I better go. It’s her feeding time. It was nice seeing you, and I’m so sorry for disappearing on you like that. New mum life as you know it can get hectic.” I say apologetically, and Blake shakes his head, waving his hand mindlessly.

“Don’t be silly. I get it.” He grins and hugs me again, holding on for a little longer this time. “I look forward to catching up with you tomorrow,” Blake adds once he pulls away. “I better go finish my Christmas shopping. I have a meeting to get back to.”

“Of course. I'll see you tomorrow.” I wave, and he nods before he walks off. Blake glances back at me once more before he disappears out of sight. I look at Jo, who was watching me with her big russet eyes. “What?”

“What are you doing?” She mutters, her brows fused together. “How do you think Cole is going to react when he finds out you’re meeting up with Blake?”

I sigh, rubbing my forehead, “I’m going to a parent-toddler class that he happens to be at. I work with the guy. I can’t avoid him forever; we’re going to have to see each other occasionally. Cole’s just going to have to trust me and deal with it.”

Jo shakes her head and gets up from her seat. “You’re inviting trouble, Shayla. You and Cole have only just gotten back into a good place. Do you want to risk that for a play date with a guy you’ve kissed and who is very clearly interested in you?”

I shake my head as we walk together through the mall, “Blake isn’t interested in me Jo, he’s just a nice guy who wants to help out a friend. That is all.” I reassure her as I look at the window displays at a store.

“Mark my words, Blake is trouble, and nothing good is going to come from this.” Jo states, clearly concerned, and I sigh. Was she right? Was I just inviting more trouble into my life? Blake was clear he wasn’t interested in me like that and only offered to be there as a friend. I’m not hiding anything from Cole, I'll tell him about the playdate, and if he’s got an issue, we can deal with it like adults.

“You worry too much, Jo Jo,” I utter with a smile, and she rolls her eyes smiling when I poke her. “Can we please focus on finding a gift for my baby daddy?” I joke, and Jo snorts with laughter.

“Fine, you little heifer. Let’s go.” I laugh affronted at the nickname, and she grins, hugging me when I flip her off.

“Let’s go, bitch.” I chuckle, and we continue our hunt for the perfect gift for Lord Tristan Cole Hoult. Later that evening, after dinner, Cole suggested watching a movie after putting Alaia down for the night. I honestly don’t know why we pretend like we’re going to watch these movies because ninety-nine percent of the time, the film is long forgotten, and we end up having some type of sex on the sofa or, at the very least, a heated make-out session. I won’t give in to him tonight, though. Just because we slept together doesn’t mean we’re back together or that I forgive him…completely

“You pick the movie, and I’ll make the popcorn,” I call out as I heated the pan and dump a generous amount of sugar in before I add the popcorn kernels. I gasp when Cole suddenly wraps his arms around my waist and kisses my neck. My knees go weak instantly, and I moan, sinking into him. “Is this you behaving?” I ask breathily when he sucks my pulse point.

“Mhm,” Cole groans, nipping at my ear gently. “I just can’t keep my hands off you.” I close my eyes and moan when his fingers tweak and pinch my nipples. Goddamn it, get it together, Shayla! The first couple of popping was missed entirely by us. We were too engrossed in one another until it was too late, and it was raining hot popcorn all over the place.

I gasp and try desperately to cover the top, but the hot popcorn kept burning my arm. “Oh my God, don’t just stand there, grab that bowl and catch them!” I chuckle and hit Cole with a cloth when he laughs hysterically. We run around trying to catch some in the bowls in our hands. One hit Cole on the nose, and he drops his plastic bowl, which I then step into and go tumbling over, pulling Cole with me, who was trying to catch me before I hit the floor. Needless to say, we fell over in a heap of arms and legs. Cole lands on top of me, both of us laughing while it rains popcorn over us. Just another day at the Hoult residence. I look up at Cole and pull a piece of popcorn out of his hair as he gazes down into my eyes. “This is all your fault.”

He laughs, “Me?”

“Yes, you! You had to come in with your irresistible lips and sexy hands and distract me. Well, this is what you get.” I huff, pulling popcorn out from between my breasts.

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