Page 59 of Skate the Line

His mouth twitches—just barely—but I catch it. “I did.”

“How do you know I like cauliflower crust?”

“Because…” He pulls out his phone and does something to it before facing it in my direction. I recognize the front porch footage. It only takes me a second to see that it's a live feed. “I get an alert when the pizza boy comes to the door. He’s rattled off your order every time with his shaky, teenage croak of a voice when you answer the door.”

I blink a few times.Oh.I can’t deny the relief that hits me, knowing he has cameras outside his home.

Rhodes leans over the counter and pops open the smaller box of pizza.

Sure enough, it’s identical to the pizza I’ve ordered more times than I’d like to admit since moving in.

“He watches you walk away every time, by the way.”

I snap my gaze to his. “What?”

Rhodes pushes the box over to me. “The pizza boy.” He takes a bite of his pizza and chews before finishing.

I watch the way his throat moves against his neck. Rhodes Volkova isallman. It’s almost hard to look at him.

“He practically drools every time you say thank you and turn. He watches you with a little lovesick look in his eye.”

A laugh flies from my mouth. Rhodes lifts an eyebrow, and this time, I amcertainhis mouth twitches.

“That’s silly. He does not,” I argue.

“He does too. Haven’t you noticed that it's the same teenage boy that delivers your pizza every time? I’d bet my life that the second he sees the order for a cauliflower crust, extra cheese, no pepperoni pizza, he volunteers to deliver it.” He shrugs and takes another bite of his pizza.

My cheeks flame.

He hums in between a chew. “Do you like that the teenager is crushing on you?”

“What?” I squeal. “No!”

A grumble of a laugh comes from deep within his chest.

I panic and start to cut the cucumber faster. I don’t like that the teenager is crushing on me. It’s just embarrassing to think of some teenager crushing on me and to have Rhodes, of all people, notice such a thing.

“You’re not that much older than him,” he states. “Only a year or so and he’ll be of age.”

He isclearlyamused by this.

I huff before briefly catching his eye. “Says the guy who said I was too young to nanny his daughter.”

He rolls his eyes, and I’m blindsided by how attractive the motion is. How can someone roll their eyes and make it look…hot?

Flustered by the thought, I slice faster.

He’s mid-chuckle when the knife clamors to the counter. My right hand clamps onto my left one before I even feel the burning sensation.

“Shit,” he mutters.

Rhodes is over to me before I even register what has happened. His large hand comes down on top of mine, and I almost forget that I’ve possibly lost a finger underneath our joined hands.

“Let me see,” he says.

I shake my head quickly. “I’m fine.”The hell I am.

His green eyes narrow. “It wasn’t a question, Sunshine.”

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