Page 14 of Wicked & Wildflower

She softly places her small hand in Everett's large one. “Monica calls me Lucy. My Aunt Darby calls me Lulu.” She glances at me. “My mom calls me Lou.”

He chuckles. “You have a lot of nicknames, don’t you?”

She blushes, and I understand the reaction. I feel the same way when he smiles at me. Lou nods. “Do you have any nicknames?”

Everett shakes his head. “Nope, I’m not a big fan of nicknames. There are no good ones for the name Everett.”

Lou takes on a contemplative look. “I’ll think of one. Everyone should have a nickname.”

“Maybe I’ll have to make a new one for you too, then.”

Lou drops her hand as Everett stands tall, still smiling to herself. I glance up at the man in front of me, unable to ignore the way he towers above us both. Everything about him is massive.

“She looks like you,” he says.

“Thank you,” I respond. Somehow, I know he meant it as a compliment. “You ready to go, kid?” I ask my daughter.

“You two are more than welcome to stay for dinner if you’d like,” Monica chimes from the other side of the kitchen.

“That’s so kind, but I promised her a movie night,” I say as I zip up Lou’s backpack and fasten it around her shoulders.

“What movies?” Everett asks.

“Spiderman,” Lou says.

He looks at me. “Please tell me it’s the originals.”

I smile as I shake my head. “We’re Tom Holland girls through and through.”

He groans as he tips his head back. My eyes get stuck on the way the column of his throat moves at the sound. Looking back at Lou, Everett asks, “Who’s your favorite superhero of all time?”

She contemplates for a moment. “Ironman.”

He nods. “Alright, good choice.”

Their conversation bounces back and forth as I quietly hug Monica and thank her again for watching Lou. I guide my daughter toward the front of the house, Everett on our heels, still entertaining Lou’s spiel on Marvel superheroes. She’s going through a phase.

Said phase allows me hours to stare at Chris Evans, though, so I can’t complain.

“You kind of look like The Hulk,” she says to him as we open the front door.

His mouth drops open as he looks at me, appearing almost offended.

I shrug. “Mark Ruffalo’s hot.”

His features morph into a sly smile, and he winks at me. “Thanks, Wildflower.”

“Oh, I didn’t say I agreed with her.” I wink back.

He frowns as we reach my car, and I help Lou into the backseat. “Bye, Lucille.” He waves at her from behind me. The widest smile is on her face, waving back at him as I shut the door.

“You didn’t need to walk us out,” I say as he follows me around to the driver's side.

“Walking you to your car seems to be a new habit of mine.” He grins at me. “Plus, I was having an important conversation.”

I can’t help but smile at that. It normally takes a while for Lou to warm up to someone new, but she seems to have taken an immediate liking to Everett. While I’m glad for that—glad she’s finding people in this new place to feel comfortable around—it reiterates the idea that what happened between Everett and I in that bar can’t ever happen again.

I open my door and slip inside the car.

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