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“I think I hate him too. I can’t be around him anymore.”
“You’re removing yourself from his power, which is exactly what he deserves.”
I nodded, eyes catching on him. This was V in front of me, the man who I’d talked to for years, the one I’d shared every single book with. The man who read every single one of my suggestions.
“What are you thinking?”
“Remembering you’re V. I have a feeling I’m gonna be seeing a lot of things differently,” I said.
“Hopefully in a good way.”
“Yes, definitely in a good way.”
He gave me a smile before fully turning to me. “What’s on the agenda today?”
“First things first, I’m gonna try to convince you that you don’t have to take the day off work.”
“And I’ll stay home anyway. What’s next?”
“I still have tomatoes to plant. Then I was thinking about reading once it gets too hot outside.”
“Count me in,” he said.
“You wanna work in the garden with me?”
“I’ll do anything with you, even plant tomatoes.”
“Planting is not the same as eating, thankfully. I think it’ll be fun.”
After breakfast, we went outside. It was starting to get warm, but the breeze kept us cool as we finished the garden. By the time the sun was high in the sky, both of us were covered in dirt and in need of a shower. I got in first and then lounged on my bed while Levi did the same.
I was in the middle of a spice scene that had my entire body warm when the door opened and Levi strolled in.
“What are you reading?” he asked.
On instinct, I threw down my Kindle. “Nothing. I was just ...” I trailed off when I saw himshirtlessof all things.
Was he trying to torture me?
“You were just what?” he prompted.
“R-reading a book.”
“I gathered as much.Whichbook?” His eyes landed on my burning cheeks. “Judging by how red your face is, I’m guessing smut. Wanna tell me about it? Was it good?”
“We don’t have to talk about it.”
“We were in a book club for years. Of course we have to. I’ve personally been dying to talk more in person about books.”
“Even when you were V, we avoided the topic of spicy scenes.”
“I didn’t want to talk about that kinda stuff when I knew who you were and you didn’t know who I was. But now all of that is different.”
I tapped the side of my Kindle and handed it over. I watched as his eyes widened for all of one second before he focused on reading.
“This is . . .”
“I know, right?” I grabbed the Kindle. “I need to cool down after that.”