Page 8 of Restless Ink

“I close tonight since I didn’t open. But not too much longer.” Something beeped behind her, and she turned, bent over, and reached to tap something on the counter.

He blinked and did his best not to look at her, not to stare. And that’s when he knew he was screwed. Because he hadn’t been able to get her out of his head, and she was the one person he shouldn’t be looking at.

He wanted her as his friend. Nothing more.

And nothing less.

“I don’t close tomorrow, though.” He blinked as she turned back to him, biting her lip. “And you were right about the whole being friends things. We were friends before you got married, and I miss you, too.” She swallowed hard. “So, anyway, I’m having a family and friends game night at my house. Silly games and lots of snacks and booze because…why not. Do you want to come?”

He let out a breath. “I might have plans with my brother. I have to see what he’s thinking for tonight, and then I’ll let you know. But, Thea? Thanks for the invite.”

She smiled. “I hope you can come, but I understand if you can’t. It’s at seven at my place. Show up if you can.”

And with that, he paid for his snack and headed out of the shop, the image of her very pert backside firmly in his mind. He couldn’t help but want to kick himself. That wasnothow to keep being her friend, damn it.

And the sooner he got that through his thick skull, the better. Because Thea Montgomery was only his friend. That was all she’d ever been. He’d never thought about her in any other way before this, and he wouldn’t start now.

No matter how hard it was.

Chapter 4

How was half the day gone already? Thea shook her head, that same question running through her mind for the eighth time that day. She had worked that morning before handing over the reins to one of her assistants. It wasn’t like she worked twenty-four hours a day every day, but sometimes, it sure felt like it.

Once she’d left her bakery, she went to the store to pick up all the groceries she would need to start making everything for their game night. The others had offered to do some of the cooking and were each bringing a dish, but she was the one doing the heavy-lifting.

When her brother, Shep, and his wife and baby girl moved back to Colorado Springs, she and her siblings had decided to start a game night. They did dinners often with the whole family at her parents’ house, but this was more for the Montgomery kids, even if thekidswere all in their thirties and forties at this point. Okay, Roxy was twenty-eight, but Thea wasn’t going to think about the fact that she was getting closer and closer to being old.

She already used enough serum and night cream every night to pray away the wrinkles.

She wrinkled her nose, then stopped, remembering the time her mother had said that wrinkling her nose—or wrinkling anything—would lead to wrinkles in general. She was already thirty years old and counting on upcoming fine lines and the oncoming gray hairs. Maybe if she focused more on her personal life instead of just her work life and business, she wouldn’t be looking for every nonexistent wrinkle and gray hair.

And now she was once again thinking herself into a corner, so she pushed those weird thoughts out of her mind and stared at the groceries in front of her on the kitchen counter.

She already had a few things in the oven, chilling in the fridge, and simmering in the crockpot, but she still had a couple of other things to make and bake. She should’ve just brought some stuff home from the bakery. But in her mind, she wanted to make something special for her siblings. She hadn’t wanted to bring work home, but rather make this a family thing. A family andfriendsthing now since, sometimes, Abby, her new friend and fellow business owner, joined them, as did Kaylee, another business owner and artist. Those two weren’t coming tonight, but they were planning on coming next time. It wasn’t easy to match everybody’s schedules, and Thea understood that. And considering that she had invited Dimitri, who she was pretty sure wouldn’t be able to come, she really understood that.

Thea still couldn’t believe she had invited him. Dimitri and Molly had already been divorced by the time Shep moved up north. That meant they were already having big game nights when he was in her life—at least more than he was now. But they were both trying to change that. It was still awkward, but she was glad that she’d invited him. He had been the one to put himself on the line and ask to be friends again, so she’d decided to take the step she had.

And she was only slightly disappointed that he probably wouldn’t be able to make it.

Her stomach rolled, and she frowned. Okay, so maybe she was more than slightly disappointed, but that didn’t mean anything. Just because she had watched the way he moved in his jeans, and noticed the way her eyes always glanced at his forearms didn’t mean that their friendship was going to be any different than it was. It just meant that she was going to have to split her time between Molly and Dimitri.

And now she felt a little sick, and a little bit like she wasn’t making the right choices. She needed to talk to Molly to make sure the other woman was okay with Thea hanging out with Dimitri. Her best friends had said more than once that Thea didn’t have to make a choice, didn’t have to take sides. But she was going to double-check, just in case. Because the last thing she wanted to do was hurt her friends.

Knowing that she was probably making too much of it, Thea started the call to Molly, putting it on speaker so her hands would be free to continue work around the kitchen. Molly picked up on the third ring, her voice soft and sweet.

“Hey there. I was just thinking about you. I take it you have the afternoon off?”

Molly didn’t work a nine-to-five job and usually only volunteered for different committees and charities around the city. More often than not, her friend was up in Denver, working with the bigwigs, trying to raise funds for one cause or another. Molly came from money, and she’d never held a job where she earned a wage for herself. Then again, the amount of time and energy that the other woman put into raising money for others constituted more than a full-time job in Thea’s opinion. At least the times when Molly was actually working. Sometimes, Molly got burned-out from volunteering and committees and jumped into the Denver socialite circles. Thea hadn’t even known that existed before she and Molly became friends, but then again, that wasn’t her world. From what Thea could remember, it wasn’t Dimitri’s either.

“Thankfully, yes. I didn’t know if I was going to actually work today at all, but you know me, I can’t stay away.”

“You and your baked goods, Thea. Luckily, you don’t sample every single piece you make, or your ass would be twice as big.”

Thea winced and did her best to try and take that as a compliment. After all, Molly’s butt was firm, high, and tight, but she also had far more time to go to the gym and work with her personal trainer to ensure it stayed that way. Thea walked the hills of her neighborhood. She never ran. The idea of running unless there was a serial killer chasing her made her want to throw up. She would just deal with any extra pounds on her behind.

“Thankfully,” Thea said dryly. “Anyway, I was calling to see if you wanted to come to game night tonight. I know I’ve invited you before, but you weren’t able to make it. Just letting you know that we’ll have an extra seat in the circle if you’re interested.”

“Oh? Who’s coming?”

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