Page 52 of The Flirty Forward

“So you haven’t softened towards him at all?” Brielle asks.

“No. Sebastian is—” I pause.Kind. Funny. Gentle.I don’t say any of those words out loud. “Obnoxious,” is the one I finally settle on.

Bri grins. “He is that. I just thought—” She doesn’t finish her statement, and I’m curious.

“You just thought what?”

“I don’t know. You seem different.”

My eyebrows rise. “Different?”

“Yeah, you seem a little more relaxed and at ease or something. I don’t even really know.”

I laugh. “Bri, I’ve been incredibly stressed out with all this. The stuff online, the people showing up here at school. I had to take a few days off because of him!”

“Yeah, that part was dumb. I can’t believe they made you take a few days off. I told Principal Goodman that he was overreacting.”

I shake my head. “You’ve spent too much time with Aiden; he’s starting to rub off on you.” She just grins, not denying my accusation. The eight o’clock bell rings, signifying the start of school in a few minutes.

Brielle stands. “I need to get back to my classroom. I’m really glad you’re back; I’ll see you at lunch.” She leaves just as my students start filing in. I take a mental breath and prepare for the day ahead.

The day passes slowly, even though it’s a Friday. I check my phone periodically throughout the day before I realize what I’m doing and put it down. I tell myself I’m just checking to make sure he hasn’t texted because I’m worried about him, his healththat is. When the day finally ends, I’m ready for it. Then I feel badly because I only worked one day this week.

I sit down in my chair with a sigh. I wonder if I’m burned out on teaching. “Hey, I’m leaving soon. I just wanted to check in,” Brielle says as she enters my classroom.

“Do you ever feel burned out from teaching?” I ask.

She stops. I can tell I’ve surprised her. “I love teaching.” She frowns at me. “Areyouburned out?”

“No, I just...” I don’t really know how to finish that thought. “Are you heading to the game?” I ask, attempting to change the subject.

“Yes and because I’m riding in with Aiden, I need to get going but don’t think I’m forgetting about this conversation.”

“I wouldn’t dare,” I say with a smirk. She gives me a look, like she’s thinking something but she doesn’t say it out loud.

“I’ve gotta run. Tell Sebastian we’ll miss him playing tonight. Or maybe not, if that will make him cranky. See you, Friend. Love you!”

“Love you too,” I call out after her. I check my phone again and see there’s no missed calls or texts. I decide to pack up my work and take it home. On the way, I stop at the store for food for dinner. After overthinking it a million times, I finally grab chicken meatballs, red sauce, corn, and the ingredients for Caesar salad. When I get home, the house is quiet. I take my grocery bags to the kitchen and drop them off and drop my bag on the chair. I walk quietly down the hallway and stop outside the closed door. When I don’t hear anything, I figure he’s sleeping. Feeling something that isnotdisappointment, I head back to the kitchen. I dig a granola bar out of the cabinet and settle in at the kitchen table to get some work done. I’m obviously behind after being out of the classroom all week. Soon, I’m fully consumed with all the work I need to complete. I don’t sense Sebastian’s presence at first. In fact, I’m not sure how longhe’s been standing there. I notice his hair is wet, like he just showered. “Hey, how are you feeling?” I keep my voice soft in case he still has a headache. He stares at me for a moment that feels really long. “Are you okay?”

He finally nods. “Yeah.”

“Are you hungry?”

He nods. “Yeah, but you don’t need to cook for me. I can do it.”

“It’s fine,” I tell him as I stand from the table and escape over to the refrigerator. I need the space between us.

Chapter 19

Sebastian

I watch Stephanie put space between us. I didn’t mean to stare at her, but she makes it so hard not to. I remember telling Brielle once that I had a type; I’m not sure if she believed me. But it’s true. I’ve always loved the “sexy librarian” look; call me an idiot but it’s always had an appeal to me. Stephanie is the embodiment of that fantasy. She always wears the most professional work outfits. She probably doesn’t mean them to be, but they are sexy as all get-out on her gorgeous body. She’s tall, not nearly as tall as me, but tall for a woman with legs that are a mile long. And I personally love it. Add her long black waves and her dark glasses and the way she stands up to me and spars with me...I nearly groan out loud. The woman was made to be my perfect form of kryptonite. I shake my head, frowning when it hurts my head. I need to focus my attention somewhere else. She bends over to look in the fridge, and I look away. Yeah, I need to get a grip.

“Are meatballs okay?” she asks, oblivious to the internal war that’s waging in my mind.

“Yeah.” My voice is huskier than usual; thankfully, she doesn’t seem to notice. I feel so off, and it bothers me. I’m not used to being down. A shower helped me feel human, but I still feel out of sorts. It doesn’t help that I’m staying in the home of the one woman I want but who can’t stand me. It makes me feel all sorts of crazy. “Let me help.”

“I’ve got it,” she says, waving me away.

---