Page 78 of Stolen Kiss

Emilia

I trekkedup the long driveway, cursing the fact that Evelyn’s house rested on top of a hill, and even though I had parked my car pretty close, the walk over still felt unbearable.

Evelyn was waiting for me by the open front door, Ensley standing behind her, her little arms wrapped around Evelyn’s leg.

My niece’s brown eyes brightened when she saw me.

None of Evelyn’s kids took after her. They were both versions of Jace.

But Ensley inherited her brown eyes and smile, and Elliot had the same smile. Which was to say, Ensley looked like the female version of her brother.

Of course, my niece and nephew were beautiful. And I wasn’t saying this because I was their aunt.

They were. They had heartbreak written all over them.

Their dad was a good-looking man, objectively speaking. But whereas my sister’s beauty was beautiful in the soft kind of way, in the girl-next-door kind of way, Jace was beautiful in the untouchable kind of way.

The kids had the best of both worlds. They had Jace’s stunning good looks and their mother’s softness.

“Hey, cutie,” I said to Ensley. She moved out from behind her mother and ran to me. I bent down and picked her up, ignoring the protest of my back muscles.

“Aunt Millia!”

I smiled and ruffled her hair, bringing her close to me and kissing her head. She had that baby smell I was addicted to. Elodie had that baby smell as well, and I wondered at what age that would go away.

Evelyn took me in. “Are you feeling okay?”

I frowned at her. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t I?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. There’s something about you today… I can’t put my finger on it.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re seeing things.”

Evelyn kept looking at me, and I worked hard to keep my expression neutral. After a moment, her shoulders relaxed and she stepped aside. “Come on, I have lunch.”

“Sure, lunch sounds nice.”

I had eaten nothing all day. I had a cup of coffee this morning, but that was about it. Yet I wasn’t feeling hungry.

I didn’t know why that was.

I followed Evelyn inside with Ensley still in my arms. “Where’s your brother?” I asked her.

She looked up at me with big brown eyes before shrugging. I laughed.

Evelyn looked back at me. “He’s at school.”

The tone in her voice suggested I should have known that, which was probably true. Had I really thought it through, I would have realized today was Tuesday.

“And why isn’t this little miss at daycare?” I asked.

“Because Ensley’s not feeling well and needs to spend the day with her mommy,” Evelyn said, giving me a look. “Isn’t that right, Ensley?”

“Right, Mommy,” Ensley answered before she produced one of the fakest coughs I’d ever heard. “Sick.”

She coughed again.

I looked away so she wouldn’t see me smile.

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