Page 37 of Crazy Thing

“The babies are with their fathers today,” Alana says, breathing out a soul-deep yawn.

Emma rubs at the dark circlesunder her eyes. “Yeah. The guys decided to take the afternoon off of work to have some daddy-and-kiddie time. We’d never complain about that.”

“Brava,” I say with a nod. “You, ladies deserve a little self-care time.” Davis and Jasper Westbrook are amazing fathers and my girls clearly need the break.

Even though I have a lot to get done, I’m grateful for some bonding time. As we get cozy on the group of meditation pillows arranged in the corner of the shop, I’m even more grateful to have my girls to vent to. I sip on the kale smoothie they brought me, updating them on my eventful week in the corporate world.

“It couldn’t have been that bad, right? You sound like you totally crushed your first week,” Emma says, encouraging as always.

“Only because I bit my tongue every single day.” I scoff, trying not to think about the fact that I hadDarius’stongue in my mouth only yesterday.

“It’s called diplomacy,” Nadia says with a chuckle. “Even though it sucks, sometimes it saves you a lot of headaches.”

“But you have no idea how awful and capitalistic Darius is. He may do most of his business locally, in Starlight Falls, but don’t let that fool you. He’s no laidback, small town hero.” I vent away. “It’s all, ‘profit margins’ this and ‘net gains’ that. I’m pretty sure he tucks in his spreadsheets in bed with him at night. If I wanted to be around that kind of toxicity, I’d get a corporate job in some high rise in New York.”

The girls laugh, but I’m only half-joking. He really seems to have a serious thing for his spreadsheets. The bigger, the better.

Nicky squeezes my arm. “Aw, I don’t think Darius is that bad,” she says gently. “I mean, hedidbuy a whole, entirehockey team just to help Ronan when his career was floundering.”

“That’s why he bought the hockey team?” I ask, surprised to hear that Darius would do something like that for his brother.

Meghan nods. “When Cash presented him with the hockey deal, he said that the only way he’d get involved is if Ronan would be named captain of the team.”

“He invested in Karli’s meal prep business when med school wasn’t working out for her. Then, he bought the medical clinic for Felix and Mason. He’s helping Nolan pay for the bar remodel, too. Plus, he’s the one paying for Dr. and Mrs. Brighton’s tour of Europe.” Nicky continues to count out Darius’s good deeds on her fingers.

Slowly, my perspective is starting to shift. One itty bitty centimeter at a time.

As much as I hate to admit it, my friends are making me reconsider my viewpoint. I’m stubborn, though, and I’m hesitant to admit it out loud.

Even still, I think back to the generous paycheck that was deposited into my bank account last night. Heaven knows it’s been a while since I’ve seen that kind of money. It was enough to drop my bus off at the mechanic’s this morningandstill have cash to cover my usual expenses for the rest of the month. If not for Darius, I wouldn’t have been able to pull that off.

My thoughts must be written on my face because Alana hums. “I guess this Darius guy is really notthatbad, huh?”

“Yeah, he might be pretty focused on making money, but he does seem to have a good heart,” Meghan comments. Then she cringes apologetically when I shoot her a harsh look.

“A good heart?” I question doubtfully. “That might be a stretch. You should hear that man on the phone. He’s a cut-throat negotiator.” I shake my head. “I could never crush others just to get myself ahead. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

Nicky leans over and wraps me in a hug. “And that’s why we love you, Zig. But are you sure you aren’t the teensiest bitinterested in him?”

“What?! No!” I shriek. “That kiss meant nothing!”Oops!That just slipped out.

Eyeballs bulge around the room. Foreheads shoot upwards in shock. So much judgment from my girls. Judgment everywhere.

“You kissed him…?” Meghan whispers, wide-eyed.

Guilty and embarrassed, I try to explain myself. “We were arguing about the whole waterfall thing, and then he tried to bring up that time we kissed by the waterfall as teenagers, and then he started calling me beautiful, and the next thing I know, he was kissing me and I was kissing him and now everything is a mess!” I pant, feeling short of breath.

My girls fall completely silent. Their jaws are dragging on the floor. Their unasked questions buzz around the room like house flies in the air.

“Wow. So much to unpack there…” Emma mumbles.

My head hangs. I can’t look anybody in the eyes. I’m so utterly confused.

Finally, Alana speaks. “We won’t judge you if you decide to give Darius the benefit of the doubt,” she says kindly with a hand on my shoulder. “Sexual attraction is a complicated thing. Sometimes, you can hate a person and still want to jump their bones.” She giggles.

I drop my face into my hands and groan.Shit—I do want to jump his bones.Truth hurts.

And I’m not used to feeling this conflicted. Thanks to years of inner work, I usually have clarity in my head. But not these days, not when it comes to Darius.

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