Page 24 of Egotistical Jerk
I desperately wanted to know.
The smack Simon delivered to my shoulder blade was so sudden, my body jerked. Angling my head to the side, I glared at him.
"I'm going to check on Bridget, I'll be right back." Then he cleared his throat. "Girls, Sebastian is here."
Elizabeth and Eleanor's little heads snapped my way, toothy grins lighting up their faces.
"Sebastian!"
That was the only warning I got before they jumped up and barreled toward me. Dropping to my haunches, I spread my arms wide to accommodate the two bodies as they slammed into me.
With a twin clutched to either side of me, I pushed to my feet. "What are you girls up to?"
Eleanor's small hands framed my cheeks as she pulled my face in her direction. "We're having a tea party with Mia."
"Tea party, huh? Does this tea party have cake?"
Her little head bobbed up and down. "Mmm-hmm. Chocolate."
I widened my eyes. "Chocolate? But that's my favorite."
To my left, Elizabeth let out an excited little giggle. Angling my head her way, I asked, "Is there room for one more at this party?"
In answer, both girls furiously clapped their hands. It always freaked me out a bit when they were so in sync. Still carrying the twins, I walked over to the coffee table and allowed myself to look at Mia again. She was watching me with curious eyes. I couldn't help wondering what she was thinking about.
"Hi."
She returned my greeting with a soft, "Hey."
I'd barely set the twins on their feet when Eleanor grabbed my hand and pointed toward a spot on the floor. "You can sit there."
Doing as I was told, I plonked down on the pillow and crossed my legs. Eleanor sat to the left of me and Elizabeth to my right with Mia right in front of me.
She shifted on the spot before tucking a few of those fiery tendrils behind her ear. Her eyes flicked up, and our gazes collided again.
"This is Mia," Eleanor said.
I didn't look away. "I know."
"You do? How?"
"We work together." Mia's voice was soft.
"Ooh, like Mommy and Daddy."
Elizabeth's hand landed on top of mine; tapping me repeatedly. Severing the connection between Mia and me, I gave the little girl my attention. Her eyes were big when she leaned closer and whisper-shouted, "Did you take something out of Mia's bum too?"
Across from me, Mia's inhale was sharp. Too sharp because a second later she was coughing. "What now?"
My smile was wide when I looked at her again. Lifting one shoulder, I simply stated, "That's how Bridget and Simon met."
She cocked her head and drew her brows together. Her tasty looking lips pulled into a thin line before her mouth opened and closed. Obviously, she hadn't heard the story before. I was about to fill her in when Simon appeared and smacked his hands together.
"Who's ready to grill some meat?"
The twins jumped up, girly squeals following them as they rushed out of the family room with their dad on their heels. Mia and I straightened at the same time, and when she turned to follow the noise, I fell into step next to her.
I leaned closer and the smell of citrus smacked me in the face. It was almost impossible to avoid closing my eyes and taking a deep breath.
