Page 51 of The Wedding Engagement

He grinned as he took a bite, licking the crumbs from his lips and catching her gaze being drawn to his mouth. “Excellent. Glad to take on the mantle.” He wiped his fingers on his serviette. “So you’re telling me Maya puts thecreamon first?”

Liv nodded, a sage expression on her face. “I am.”

He pretended to gag. “That is appalling. No wonder you’ve ousted her.”

“Right?” she replied. “It really is disgraceful.”

He took out his phone. “I’ve got an idea.” He opened Google and began typing.

Liv leaned forward in an attempt to spy what he was doing across the table. “What is it?”

“You’ll see.” The results of his search popped up and he grinned. “Aha! Got it.”

She clearly couldn’t wait for him to elaborate because she got to her feet to come around their low table. He took the opportunityto grab another gander at her gorgeous legs, feeling as if he was burning up inside. She was wearing a black above-the-knee pencil skirt with a white button-down shirt tucked in and black suspenders, which accentuated the curve of her breasts. The ensemble was completed with a black bow at the neckline. She looked like a sexy librarian.

Suddenly the thought of a secret tryst between the bookshelves slammed into his mind—her legs wrapped around his waist and him covering her mouth with his hand so the library patrons didn’t hear her cries of passion and point angrily at the “Shh! Quiet, Please” sign. His heart pumped harder in response to the tangibly clear image, blood rushing straight to his groin.

She settled in next to him on the two-seater chaise-style sofa, her petite form fitting snugly beside him, and her scent exacerbating his inappropriately sexy thoughts. “What is it?”

He cleared his throat, shifting in his seat. “See? The late Queen Elizabeth the second used to apply the jam first. So if it was good enough for Queenie…”

Liv took hold of the phone, her hand covering his and sending hot pulses over his skin. He shifted uncomfortably, trying to keep his thoughts on the former Queen of England and away from the sexy library fantasy.

“Good old Liz, God rest her,” Liv said, releasing his hand and giving him a grin. “Just wait until I tell Maya about this. She’ll be livid.”

Arran gave her a wink and admired the way her cheeks flushed in response.She’s so gorgeous.

His phone vibrated on the table and Jess’s name flashed up, killing his buzz. He could tell Liv had spotted it from the way she immediately put some distance between them on the sofa. Grabbing the phone to check that everything was okay, he read the message, which was a photo of Jayce waving. Jess had taken him backearly so that he and Liv could come to Glasgow for their Sunday afternoon tea. Though she’d asked quite a few questions about the outing.

“How’s Jess doing?” Liv asked, reaching across the table to pick up her teacup.

A weird feeling infiltrated his stomach at the sound of Liv saying his ex’s name. He’d been infinitely confused since Jess had started her calling-all-the-time-to-keep-tabs routine. “She’s okay, I think.”

Liv sipped her tea. “Has she still been calling you as much?”

He ran a hand over the top of his hair. “Yeah. She gave me a bit of a grilling about today, actually. I just changed the subject in the end.”

Liv eyed him for a second, seeming to be thinking about what she wanted to say. “I know how hard the breakup has been for you. But it must be really hard for her too.”

He frowned. “How do you mean?” It hadn’t seemed too hard for her when she’d told him the wedding was off and then promptly taken up with Rory, moving in with him only a few weeks later. He rubbed at the hollowness the memory left in his chest.

She gave him a soft smile, reaching over to touch the back of his hand. “I’m not taking away from your hurt. I just feel she’s insecure, like Elise said the other night. Perhaps she’s always had that tendency, but it must be worse now that she’s with Rory. Sam says he’s a major player without much integrity.” She glanced away for a moment. “Maybe Jess is missing the trust she used to have with you.”

His heart seemed to thud a little more forcefully in his chest. She was missing him? Could that be true? It hadn’t seemed like it thus far. “Really? She’s seemed pretty infatuated with Rory from the word go.”

She nodded, bringing her gaze back to him. There was an odd look in her green eyes, but what was it? Sadness? “Sometimes people need a frame of reference in order to realize what they’remissing. I wonder whether Rory’s example has provided that, and now it’s dawning on Jess that she doesn’t like what she sees.”

A few months ago, he would’ve been delighted to hear someone express that opinion. But now it made him feel uncomfortable and sad. “You think she’s unhappy?”

She winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you worry about her. I just think that you need to open yourself up to the idea that she might want to rekindle things. I mean, I don’t want you to get your hopes up and then it not come to anything, but if the opportunity arises, you should have a conversation about it.”

Get his hopes up? He hoped for nothing of the sort. He’d tried to seek a reconciliation when they’d first broken up, and she hadn’t been interested. And now that ship had long sailed. He eyed Liv, feeling their connection and his deep, “want her to the depths of my soul” attraction. “I can’t do that.”

She shifted a little closer, her scent distracting him. “Arran. Don’t let your pride get in the way. If there’s any chance of a rekindling and you still love her, you can’t let it slip through your fingers.”

Love her?He didn’t love Jess. Not anymore. But before he could say that out loud, a couple of women walked past the back of their two-seater sofa, and Liv leaned in. “You see those two ladies?” she asked softly.

He nodded, even though he didn’t. He’d been distracted by Liv and for all he knew it could’ve been a couple of wild beasts wandering past the area. Though that was probably unlikely in a five-star city hotel.

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