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“This will be really good for you. And my brother,” she adds. “Honestly, he’s lonely. Who knows, maybe you two will fall in love and you’ll be my sister-in-law. How cool would that be?”
“Millie,” I gasp, my heart lurching. “I’m not going to fall in love with your brother.”
She exhales a small defensive squeak. “Why not?”
“Because. He’s my boss.”
“So?” Her tone is wicked when she says, “A workplace romance is hot.”
“Oh my god.” I huff and tip my face toward the sky. “You’ve been working for that audio app for too long. It’s turned you into a hopeless romantic.” In addition to performing musical theater, Millie is a voice actor for LULU, an erotic stories audio app. A damn good one too.
“Does your brother know about that?” I ask out of morbid curiosity.
“He does.” She giggles. “But I’ve banned him from downloading the app.”
“That’s fair.” I sigh into the phone. We’re getting off track. “Fine. I guess it’s not so bad. It’s just for the summer anyway, right?”
“Right.”
“Thanks for talking me through it,” I tell her.
“Absolutely,” she chirps. “What are future sisters for?”
I groan. “Oh my—Amelia!I am not marrying your brother.”
“We’ll see,” she sings. With that, she disconnects the call.
When I return to the kitchen, Asher offers me a fresh mug. “It got cold.”
“Thank you.” I bring it to my lips and savor the brew, the temperature perfect.
He watches me, his brow slightly furrowed, nervous anticipation written all over his pretty face.
“I’ll move in,” I say. “I mean, for the summer.”
With a sharp exhale, he stands taller. “Oh, that’s great news. Thank you.” A smile spreads across his face, showing off those damn dimples.
Out front, Bea is zooming around in one of those kid-size motorized jeeps, her grandparents supervising from their porch. They’re close enough to keep a watchful eye, but far enough that they’d have to shout to be heard.
She guides the little car in our direction at full speed, and Asher has to kick a foot out to stop her from bumping into my adult-size tire.
“Is this one of your birthday presents?” I ask.
“Yup.” She hops out, her braids bouncing.
“And who’s your friend?”
She yanks a beige stuffed rabbit from the passenger seat and holds out its arm. “This is Bunny.”
Assuming she wants me to shake her stuffie’s paw, I bend at the waist and do just that. “Nice to meet you, Bunny. I’m Claire.”
“Dr. Connelly,” Asher corrects.
I straighten, but before I can tell him that I don’t mind if his daughter calls me by my first name, Jack and Natalie appear.
“Dr. Connelly,” the man says. “We’re really sorry about the change of plans. I hope it isn’t too much of an inconvenience.”
“It’s no problem.” I slap on a smile, doing my best to convince myself too. Living with Asher doesn’t sound that bad. He comes with glowing reviews from Millie. Plus, Bea is adorable and I love kids.
