Page 45 of Cautious Love

“So, how was your day?” she asks, trailing her hazel eyes over me.

I don’t know why the question takes me back, but it does. Maybe it’s because no one has ever asked me that. “Uh, busy but productive, we got vaccinations done for the young ones born in April.”

“Sounds like fun,” she says.

“You could say that.”

“Uh, how was your day?” I ask her and cough, clearing the tightness in my throat.

She smiles softly and pushes her curly blond hair out of her face. “Fine, busy, but the diner always is. I made decent tips today, too.”

“That’s good.” I should tell her June is suspicious of us and talk to her about Grey. We’re both avoiding conversations neither of us wants to have. “How are you feeling?”

“Better, I had my check-up, and they said in a few weeks I should be healed up. I have to be careful, but they said the fracture wasn’t terrible, and he surprisingly didn’t make it worse, so it’s healing quickly.”

I nod. “I’m glad to hear that.”

The air feels awkward, but it feels full of things unspoken. There’s a tension there, and I know she’s aware of it because it feels like it’s sitting on top of me right now.

“I’m going to take a shower. I smell like cow shit.”

She burst out laughing. “Yeah, I could smell you from here. I didn’t want to be rude.”

“But you just told me you could smell me from there.”

She tilts her head thoughtfully. “Oh, I did, didn’t I…” she trails off.

“Well, if we’re being honest, I didn’t want to be rude, but those men’s basketball shorts are doing nothing for you.”

Shiloh’s mouth drops open, and I grin at her.

She snaps it closed and lifts an eyebrow. “I’m sorry, why are you looking at me in my baggy shorts anyway,husband?”

I swallow the groan in my chest. “I can’t help that I’m observant,Mrs. Hayes.”

Shiloh slips her bookmark into the book and stands from the sofa. “Then observe this, Mr. Hayes,” she says and pushes her shorts down, kicking them to the side, leaving her in a lacy pair of panties.

Dammit Ledger, you are playing with fire, and she is going to burn you.

But I won’t back down now. I snap my eyes back to hers and she’s giving me a satisfied,I won this timesmile.

I pull my shirt out from my waist and yank it open so the snap buttons give. Her eyes widen as they trail over my body, but mine remain on her face as her cheeks turn pink. She clearly didn’t think I was up to the challenge.

I slowly unbuckle my belt and leave it hanging as I flip the button of my jeans and take a step forward. “You know, I do like gambling, but you need to remember something.”

“Yeah? What’s that?” she asks, her eyes still everywhere but on mine as her chest moves up and down with her rapid breathing.

Standing in front of her, I take her chin, and her lips part as I lean in close enough to feel her breath. “The house always wins,” I whisper, and drop my hand, leaving her standing there.

I don’t know what game I’m playing. I don’t know what gameshe’splaying, but it can’t end well. Can it? No.

We have an expiration date.

I get in the shower and leave the water ice-cold, trying to numb all my nerve endings. Maybe I can shake myself from the chokehold she seems to have on me. Even if I could, I’m not sure it would solve anything. It’s only going to get worse.

When I finish my shower, Shiloh is in her room with the door closed, and I swear I hear her crying.

As I start dinner, I can’t find my skillet. None of my pans aren’t in the places they should be. I can’t find my wooden spatula. Shiloh. I want to ask why she keeps moving my things, but I grit my teeth and look for them anyway. When I find it, it’s next to the drawer with silverware. In fact, she moved all of my cooking utensils closer to the stove. Taking a step back, I look at the drawer and then turn, looking at the drawer I originally had them in, in the island. I have to admit, this is a better spot.Dammit.