Page 30 of Accidental Wedding Crasher
“All right, all right.” He held up his hands in mock surrender. “Fine.”
They both stood, stretching, and Mia tried not to look at the ripple of muscles beneath his T-shirt. Inside, they took turns in the bathroom. When Mia came out, having showered and washed her hair, Evan was balanced on the couch with one of the pillows and a spare blanket, apparently trying to decide which armrest to put his legs on.
“How’s that going?” Mia leaned against the door, hand on her hip. She was wearing the pajamas she’d brought: a pair of shorts and a tank top printed with a donut pattern. Evan had changed, too, into a pair of boxers and a white T-shirt.
“Great. I’m really enjoying myself.” Evan tried to lie down, but his feet were propped on one armrest and his head on the other. He looked like a grown man trying to fit in a bed made for a toddler. He looked up at her, grinning. “Are you going to take pity on me?”
“Fine.” Mia crossed the room and got into bed, then grabbed a few of the pillows and put them in the middle. “That’s your side.” She pointed to the far side of the makeshift wall.
“Thanks.” Evan climbed into bed. Even though they were separated by a wall of pillows, Mia was deeply aware of his every movement and breath. Despite herself, she remembered the last time they’d been in bed together — Evan kissing her as though she were the only person who mattered in the world, his five o’clock shadow brushing her cheek. Him whispering that she looked beautiful. Her hands tracing the outline of his back. Their night together was burned into her mind, ready to replay at a moment’s notice.
“Good night, Mia,” Evan said.
She blushed, hoping he hadn’t been able to see what she was thinking about on her face. “Good night, Evan.” She reached over and flipped off the light, plunging the room into darkness. Still, though, she lay awake, her heart racing and her stomach flipping as she remembered the last night they’d spent together. Each time Evan rolled over or shifted, she felt the movement. Only when his breath slowed into a deep, sleeping rhythm did she finally drift off herself.
CHAPTER 13
EVAN
Evan scrolled through the Q2 visualization Michael had sent him, pausing now and then to look at specific numbers. They’d had a good quarter, though it could have been better.
It could always have been better.
There had been a particular drop in sales among healthcare companies, Evan noticed. He sipped his coffee, his mind spinning through potential reasons for the drop. Could they add a new feature, perhaps, or offer a discount on?—
A knock on the door disrupted Evan’s train of thought. Annoyed, he called, “Just a minute!” then turned back to his screen, intending to work for much longer than a minute. Whoever it was would give up soon.
“Are you decent?” Mia’s familiar voice called through the door. Evan’s heart skipped when he heard it was her, but he was still too caught up in work.
“Yeah,” he called back as he scrolled again.
Behind him, he heard the door open and smelled Mia’s perfume, a mix of jasmine and something else that always made him remember their night together. Then he felt a hand on his arm and looked up to see her standing beside him, dressed in a pair of shorts and a T-shirt with her hair pulled into two braids.
“Enough work,” she said. “Come on, we’re going to be late.”
“I have something important to finish,” Evan protested, gesturing at his computer. “After this, I’ll come. I promise.”
“Sorry, but that’s not good enough.” Mia took his hand and tugged gently, grinning. “You agreed to try to enjoy this vacation, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
Evan grudgingly allowed himself to be pulled out of the chair, and Mia led him to his suitcase.
“We’re going cycling, so you may want to change.” She glanced at her phone and her eyes widened. “But hurry, because we were supposed to be downstairs five minutes ago.”
“Why did you wait so long to come get me, then?” Evan asked, grabbing a pair of shorts and a T-shirt and heading to the bathroom to change.
“Is that the point you really want to make here?” Mia asked. He turned and saw her standing with her hands on her hips and her eyebrows raised. Grinning, he shook his head and closed the door. He could hear her humming on the other side as he changed. How was she in such a good mood almost all the time?
Evan emerged a few minutes later, as ready for cycling as he was ever going to be. Still, he cast one more longing look back at his laptop before following Mia out the door.
“If you really must know,” she said as they hurried down the hallway, “I have a tendency to run late for things. I don’t know how it happens, honestly. It just does.”
“I guess that’s something I should know about you,” Evan said. “Although it was my fault this time that we’re late. You probably would have been on time if you hadn’t come to get me.”
“Nah. I have a knack for making myself late, even when everything is stacked in my favor.” She shrugged.
“So, this morning, I saw a drop in Reign’s sales among healthcare companies,” Evan said as they descended the stairs. “Do you have any idea of why that would be?”
“One, I’m sure you have people whose job it is to tell you that,” Mia said, holding up a finger. “And two, we’re on vacation. Even if you’re justthinkingabout work, it still counts as working. And you’re not supposed to be working.” She wiggled two fingers.
