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Liv: WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED LAST NIGHT?

Della sent three cringe emojis.

Henrietta: It wasn’t *that* bad.

Liv: I have a million texts to Fletcher that say otherwise!

Della: It was really hot though, the way he showed up at the bar and took you home. I mean, except the part where you sang a Disney song on the way out.

Liv: *facepalm emoji*

Liv: This is very important.

Liv: Which song was it?

Crickets.

Liv: Tell me.

Henrietta: I’ll make a man out of you. From Mulan.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

A knock sounded on the door, and I wished with all I had that the bed would swallow me up. “Yes?” I finally squeaked.

“Liv, I need to talk to you,” Fletcher said. “Meet me in the office when you’re done getting dressed and ready.”

I squeezed my eyes shut. This was it. I was getting fired all because I couldn’t turn my phone off like a rational freaking person.

Well, if I was getting fired, it was not going to be looking like a tired, hungover wreck. I had to spare some of my dignity—if any was left.

I chose a pair of clothes I knew I looked good in and went to take a shower, brushing out every tangle, washing off the mascara and eyeliner smudged around my eyes that made me look like a hungover panda.

I may have been stalling, but I even shaved everywhere and put on a facial mask for my skin. When I ran out of hot water, I got out and took my time doing my makeup, drying my hair, occasionally cringing at those texts I sent.

When I couldn’t stall any longer, I took a deep breath, looking at myself in the mirror. “You, Liv Griffen, are a grown woman. You’re an amazing nanny.You are turning off your phone next time you go out.Everything will be fine.”

I only half believed myself.

Squaring my shoulders, I walked out of the bathroom and into the office. I hardly came in here, except to get extra paper for Maya’s crafts, but Fletcher sat at the rustic desk like he belonged there. He had on glasses and his hair was messy, his shirt unbuttoned, with five o’clock shadow darkening his jaw. And now he was that much hotter, knowing he could sling me around like I weighed nothing.

When he looked up at me, his eyes were just as dark, tortured like they were that night we kissed. “Can I talk to you?” he asked.

I nodded, stepping through the doorway. “Where’s Maya?”

“I had Hayes take her for the day.” He took off his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose, then stood up. The invisible weight of the world clearly rested on his shoulders.

My stomach sank. “Please don’t fire me. I promise I will never text you about toilet paper or lumberjacks again. And I certainly won’t be singing Disney songs to you...”

His lips lifted in a sad smile, and he shook his head. “I could never let you go.”

The words did strange things to my heart as I looked up at him and saw how much he meant it.

“I wanted to tell you the truth about our kiss.” He rubbed his hand against his chest like he had a physical pain.

I braced myself for him to tell me it was a mistake after all, that it would never happen again. That I needed to move out of the house and find a place to live in town so we couldn’t tempt each other anymore. Instead, he whispered, “I didn’t want it to end.”

My lips parted in shock. “What?”