Page 22 of Eligible Best Friend

At the sound of a crash behind him, he whips around. “Don’t worry, buddy. We’ll put the Legos back together.” He focuses back on me, his gaze dipping down my outfit and lingering on my legs. His look is as good as a caress. Shivers cascade down my back.

“We’ve been playing this game for the last half hour,” Ford says, not missing a beat. “It’s one where I build up a tower of those big Legos, or Duplos—whatever—and he knocks it down. Why don’t you come inside?”

Crossing the threshold feels too much like I’m entering the ring, missing all the preparation I need for battle. Hearing that we’re dating is different than seeing me in Ford’s house.

The plus side is that Cass never deigned this place worthy enough for her. Too small. Too old. She was house hunting before Ford even graduated. Only the houses she liked were for a pediatrician who’d already paid off his school loans, not a new grad going into residency.

“What’s up?” Ford stands on the welcome mat just inside his door, a tiny pair of athletic shoes next to his big, bare feet.

I jerk my gaze up before I can contemplate how nice his feet are, long and strong, so much like the rest of him. They’re just feet. Oops. Guess I wasn’t fast enough. “You weren’t at work today.”

He gestures toward Jayden. The boy’s fisting giant red Duplo bricks in each hand. “Cass called at the last minute. Mitch saved me.”

I ducked my head. “He mentioned that you were spending the day with Jayden.”

His brow crinkles, a question in his eyes. If Mitch told me why Ford was missing work, then why am I here?

I blow out a gusty breath. “I was just worried things were awkward between us, you know, after…”

Understanding dawns in his blue gaze. “No. No, it’s not awkward. I should’ve called. It’s just that I don’t usually when I take a day off.”

Absolutely. Because we aren’t dating.

Feeling more foolish by the minute, I shuffle my feet and peek at the kid. Jayden’s too young to follow our conversation, but it still feels weird talking like this around him. “I just wanted to make sure we’re cool. Are you sure I should stick around for Cass? I don’t want to ruin any progress you’ve made.”

“She’s the one that wanted this.”

He lifts his gaze to monitor what Jayden’s doing. The loose T-shirt and basketball shorts are so much different than Ford’s normal look. Our uniforms are barriers and not just for bodily fluids. When we’re each dressed in our polo and tactical pants, it’s a clear signal to our brains that we’re working.

The wedding dance was different. His mom was there and we were out. Now I’m in his house, waiting to meet the mom of his kid. I know all about Cass, but I’ve never been introduced to her. She won’t come near the ambulance garage and I doubt we hang out in the same places.

“Since she’s the main reason why we’re doing this”—he sweeps his hand out—“have a seat.”

I pad forward, my footsteps swallowed by the banging of plastic blocks. Jayden has zero interest in me and since I have no clue what to do with kids and this visit is turning out more momentous than planned, I’m okay with that.

After dropping onto a surprisingly comfortable couch, I stick my hands between my knees to keep from fidgeting. I don’t know how else to act and that’s the last feeling I’m used to around Ford.

Ford doesn’t take a seat next to me but drops onto the floor next to his son. “Jayden, this is my friend Lia.” Jayden gnaws on a block. Ford smirks. “He says hi. How was the shift?”

“Pretty normal.”

“Normal’s good.”

“Yeah.”

Is this conversation only one-sidedly painful, or is he cringing on the inside, too?

To make it worse, the doorbell rings. We both tense and Jayden waves his little arms around.

“That’s probably her.” He unfolds his big body and I can’t bring myself to ogle him as he goes to the door. “Hey.”

“Sorry, the meeting ran long and since it was a video, I couldn’t text you without being obvious.” Cass breezes past him, shoving her aviator sunglasses on top of her perfectly windblown blond hair. Her suit manages to look chic and professional at the same time. She’s paired wide-legged black pants with a loose suit jacket that’s not meant to button. Her cream shirt is expertly knotted above the waist. All she has to do is strike a pose with her hands in her pockets and she could walk right out of a fashion magazine.

She stops short when she sees me. “Oh.” Emotions play across her face, every one playing through her green eyes. Confusion. Surprise. A hotter emotion bordering on anger, then grim acceptance. “Lia?”

I rise and stretch out a hand. Ford is in shorts and a T-shirt too, but I feel sorely underdressed. “Hi, Cass. Finally, we meet.”

“Right. Finally.” Her hand clasps mine for a millisecond before she snatches it away. She turns and squats in front of Jayden. “Hey, buddy. How was playing at Daddy’s?”

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