Page 106 of Not In The Contract

“You’re a little shit, you know that?” I cackled, breathing easy for the first time in ages.

She smiled as she linked our fingers on the car seat between us. I looked back up at her, only to find her close enough to kiss. And she did. She pressed her lips to mine for a short, electric moment before pulling away wearing that sad smile from before.

“You’re allowed to smile, too.”

35. Pleasant Surprises

Devon

Mylipsstilltingleda day later, and I absently ran my fingertips along my bottom lip, staring vacantly at the fresh produce in front of me. My phone screen had long since gone dark, hiding the grocery list from me. Not that I was actively looking at it, all I could think about was Alex. How easily she’d melted into my kiss, and how much I wanted to stay in the car with her, tasting the lingering coffee on her tongue.

“I wondered when you’d finally stop by.”

I turned to find Frankie walking toward me from the opposite end of the aisle, a bright smile dimpling her freckled cheeks.

“I was on my way home and passed by,” I replied with a smile. “I figured, why not drop in?”

Frankie beamed. “What do you think?”

The store was beautifully quaint, the wooden decor worn down from years of love, and it made me nostalgic for something unfamiliar.

“It’s as beautiful as Hayden said it was.” I laughed.

My phone vibrated in my hand and I glanced down at the screen.Alex.

“Sorry, it’s Alex,” I said, and Frankie darted off to help another customer with her signature smile.

“Hey.”

“Where are you right now?”

“Uh, Frankie’s store?”

“Good,” she said, her voice pitched low like she was hiding from something. Or someone. “Don’t move.”

Click.

Oh… kay?

I decided to continue my grocery shopping, ambling up and down each aisle and filling my basket with the most delicious food I’d ever seen. Barely five minutes had passed since Alex’s cryptic phone call before her hand slipped into mine and I squeaked in surprise.

“It’s just me.” She giggled, pulling the basket from my other hand. “Are you done?”

“Pretty much.” I shrugged, watching her carefully. “I was about to head to checkout.”

“Perfect, let’s go.”

I followed her wordlessly as she led the way to the checkout area where she and an employee talked briefly. Her shoulders curled into tight balls beneath the soft silk of her shirt, and a muscle ticked away in her jaw, and I wondered if this had anything to do with Jamie.

I didn’t dare ask. I just waited until Alex had steered me to the car and ushered me inside with a relieved sigh.

“So,” I began, looking at her expectantly.

She turned to face me, the ghost of a grin on her lips. “So what?”

“Is there a reason you’ve gone full undercover agent?” I chuckled, gesturing to the sunglasses on her face. “The sun set an hour ago.”

“Don’t exaggerate.” She smiled, but she pushed her sunglasses onto her head anyway. “It’s barely six in the afternoon.”