I don’t know why, but my cheeks flush.
“Looks like it,” I say quietly, appraising him. I grab the bowl from his hands and stare into it. I walk over to the already-papered cupcake pan, and he watches me as I slink over. I begin to fill each paper with the proper amount of cupcake batter. They’re chocolate. My favorite. “Why are you making so many cupcakes?”
“They’re for Bria’s birthday.”
I spin around. “When’s her birthday?” How did I not know this? I’m the worst nanny ever.
“Tomorrow,” he says, smiling. “Or today, I guess,” he adds, looking at the clock. “I thought I told you.”
I rack my brain.
“No, I don’t think you did. I didn’t get her anything!” I say, slightly panicked.
He laughs again. He’s in a really good mood.
“Don’t worry about it. She’ll be happy just to spend some time with you. She adores you.” His voice lowers as he says the last part, and he looks at me with inquiring eyes, like he’s trying to discern why she likes me so much.
“She’s a great girl,” I say honestly. “So happy. It’s hard not to be happy around her.”
Nick slumps a little bit and looks down.
“Yeah,” he says, putting his hands in his pockets. “Do you have plans tomorrow?”
“No,” I lie.
I do have plans. I’m supposed to meet Violet and Marcus for a movie, but I hate being the third wheel on one of their dates. I’m sure they won’t mind some alone time.
“Good. I meant to ask you this week, but I didn’t really see you,” he says, and his voice gets a little hard. Somehow, I suspect he knows about my Nick embargo. I was stupid to think he wouldn’t catch on. I practically sprint to my guesthouse every night. “We’re going out to dinner. It’s Bria’s favorite restaurant… kind of fancy. Want to join us?”
“Thank you,” I say, taken aback. “That’s really nice.” He observes me wordlessly, waiting for an answer. A small smile tugs at the corners of his mouth. I try not to notice how he’s grown his stubble out a little bit—it’s sexy. It adds to his “perfect-yet-disheveled” look. “Are you sure it’s not just a family thing?” I ask, uncertain.
“Evianna… you are family now. Whether you like it or not,” he chuckles.
I stare at him—this coming from the guy who less than a month ago freaked out when someone asked him if we wanted the family pass.
“Of course I’ll go,” I whisper quietly. I’m feeling emotional all of a sudden.
I turn around and finish pouring the batter into the papered cups. I don’t know what to say to him… thank you for considering me a part of the family? I have no idea. I’m speechless. His kindness is… it’s a lot, all at once.
The song changes, and a different band comes on… Coldplay, I think. It’s a slow song, and it’s melodramatic and heavy. I finish with the cupcake batter and plop the tray into the oven. This oven is really nice—I have no doubt that the cupcakes will be evenly cooked and perfectly browned—unlike the oven at my parents’ house.
The mood of the song seems to have affected Nick, because he wanders over to me slowly and stands next to me. We’re standing so close. I can smell his deodorant. It’s nice—smells like cinnamon. He crosses his arms and his body leans closer to me—god, I can’t handle this. I bite my lip and look down, concentrating hard on the cupcakes and not the fact that he’s an inch away from me.
“So, Evianna, how are you?”
“What do you mean?” I look up at him, and his face is serious.
“With… everything. Life, you know…”
“Oh. The ex.”
“That too, but just life in general, too.”
Other than the fact that I’ve been ignoring you?
“Good,” I lie.
“You’ve kept to yourself. I miss our breakfasts,” he adds, and when he looks down at me, I look up at him.
“You miss having breakfast with me?” I ask weakly.