Page 64 of Moonstruck Kiss

“I thought you might want some of this honey sponge cake I made,” Elsa says, her gaze shifting from Brax to me.

I suppress a sigh. Clearly, she thinks something’s going on with me and Brax, having caught us sitting so close together in the egg chair.

She’d be right, of course, but we can’t let her know that. Thank God she didn’t see us snuggling together.

“Brax and I were discussing the selection of art schools for Ollie in Manhattan,” I say casually.

“Yes. We didn’t want Ollie to hear,” confirms Brax in a stage whisper.

Elsa frowns. “Why not?”

“Because I want to have chosen the best one already before I speak to him about it.”

“Oh.” Elsa’s lower lip juts out. “And there I was thinking you two were about to kiss.”

Brax and I burst out in laughter, and we sound unnatural to my ears. Talk about overdoing it!

“I thought all my dreams had come true,” Elsa adds, her eyes narrowing a little as she continues to watch us.

“Sorry to disappoint you, Mum,” Brax says. “But Joey and I are not an item.”

“The two of you look so good together! Did you know that we’ve all been noticing how close you’ve grown after you’ve forgiven each other? Why don’t you try dating? You never know. You might like it.”

I hold my breath for Brax’s response. What does he think of that?

Then he utters the words that drop my heart to the ground with a thud. “Datinganyonehere won’t work, Mum. In case you’ve forgotten, Ollie and I are going back to Manhattan in a week and a half.”

Elsa waves a hand in the air as if to erase Brax’s words. “Ugh, don’t remind me. It’s breaking my heart.”

Mine, too, Elsa. Mine, too.

I keep a smile plastered on my face even as the truth of the situation dawns on me.

All I wanted in the beginning was just a no-commitment, sex-only experience with Brax. Now, I’m falling in love with him.

He sounded disparaging of a long-distance relationship which means that it’ll never be a consideration even if it’s something I might be open to.

My heart retreats and shuts the door.

“Don’t mind me,” Elsa says with an apologetic smile. “I’m just too pushy. Anyway, where’s my grandchild?” She goes inside the cabin.

“Grandma!” Ollie cries. Then I hear him tell Elsa about how we made his Angel Mama new again.

“Mum has bad timing, doesn’t she?” Brax whispers next to me.

“I suppose so. But…” I press my lips together. “There’s a benefit to her coming here.”

“Benefit?” His face lights up. “You think she might take Ollie for a while and leave us alone to…talk about art schools?”

I shake my head. “We’re becoming too obvious, Brax. We’re not being as mindful of our actions around each other as we should be. It’s a reminder to keep our distance and not complicate things.”

Brax stares at me. “What are you saying?”

I shrug. “Well, you and Ollie will be gone soon. I’m still keen to have fun with you, but maybe we shouldn’t try too hard to find a way. If it happens, then great. If it doesn’t, then it’s probably not meant to be. Heaven knows we’ve been interrupted too often already. They might have been signs.”

“I don’t think so,” he says with a frown. “All it means is we haven’t found the right place and time.”

I smile even though I want to mope in a corner. “I guess we’ll see if we ever do.”

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