Page 15 of Tangled Hearts

Eli

“Ishould head home. Kassie probably needs to go out.” Nic looks slightly confused, so I clarify. “My dog.” His eyes light up a little and it surprises me, but then I remember what he said about being a vet tech. Man, I really was being a little shit.

“It’s getting late, so I should go too,” Nic says.

“Damn. A whole brother and a whole nephew, andbothof you are leaving me here alone?”

I laugh. “If I were you, I’d enjoy the seven seconds of peace and quiet you’ll get before Uncle Julian gets back with the kids.”

Holden gets a contemplative look on his face. “Very good point. See, I knew I kept you around for something.”

I give Holden a hug and glance toward the front door. I still can’t believe I slammed into Nic like that andthenturned into a grade-A asshole. It’s not my fault, really. I mean, yeah, okay, itis,but like… truly? Not only is Nic trying to steal my uncle from me, but he has the audacity to look that fucking hot while he’s doing it? Unacceptable. So my defenses kicked in, and, well… we all know how that went.

Thankfully, he gave me the chance to start fresh and redo our first meeting because I would be even more upset about someone in our family not liking me than someone in our family taking Holden from me. And even if I don’t want to admit it, Nic is part of the family. Holden won’t have it any other way, which meansIcan’t have it any other way.

Nic and I both stand, and I watch, slightly jealous, when Holden stands too and pulls Nic into a hug. He’s taller than Holden, but probably not taller than my dads are. To be fair, though, most peoplearetaller than Uncle Hold.

I’m already on my way to the door when Nic’s voice stops me. “Hey, give me a sec, and we can walk out together?”

I turn to face him, and Holden is staring at me with big eyes, basically begging me without words to let Nic do this and be nice. I think I’m done being a dickhead, though, so I nod and lean against the wall. “Anything for a fellow bean water hater.”

I avert my eyes to allow the two of them a little privacy for their goodbye, and when Nic’s footsteps catch my attention, I look back. Holden gives me a wave, and I wave back, then I slip out the door, holding it open so Nic can walk out too.

It’s dark and chilly. I should have dressed for the weather since it may be spring during the day, but when the sun goes down, so does the temperature. No dice. I shiver, rubbing my hands up and down my arms.

“You cold?”

“Little bit,” I answer, glancing at Nic.

“I can give you my jacket.”

That stops me dead in my tracks, both literally and figuratively. Nic makes it a couple of steps ahead of me and then halts, turning around to look at me. “Why would you do that?”

He shrugs. “You’re cold. I have a jacket.”

“I also have heat,” I say, gesturing to my car.

“It takes a while to warm up, yeah? I know mine does.” Before I can either agree or protest, Nic is sliding his black leather jacket off and standing in front of me, wrapping it around my shoulders.

It really is fucking warm, and it smells so good. Great. Hot. Trying to steal my uncle. Smells good. This man is going to be the end of me. “Thank you,” I force myself to say.

His lips tilt up in a smirk. “Don’t mention it. Have a good night, Eli. It was very nice to meet you.” Without another word, he turns and walks away, leaving me standing dumbfounded in the middle of the driveway.

He’s opening the door to his car when my brain catches up and I dart after him. “Wait.”

Nic pauses, hand on the handle, and glances up at me. “Yeah?”

The way this is going to be a mistake, I just fucking know it. “Let me give you my phone number.”

Surprise flashes across his face. “Why?”

“Can’t you just take the damn win?” I snap, my cheeks burning the second the words are out of my mouth. “I’m sorry. Let me try that again, yeah? I want you to have it in case you need to talk to me about anything. Welcome to the family.”

The smile on his face has me rolling my eyes. “Sure. Sounds nice.”

I dig my phone out of my pocket and ask for his number, sending him a quick text with my name after he rattles it off. When his phone dings, he takes it out of his pocket and glances at it, his smile blooming brighter. “Thank you.”

Ugh. Why do I like his smile so much? “Don’t mention it. Have a good night.”