That One Moment (Lost in London #2)(25)
Theo adds, “We can find you more boxes, I’m sure.” He and Hayden exchange a look like they are having a silent conversation, making me feel more confused than ever.
Leslie eventually ushers me into the kitchen area to make us some tea. Hayden and Theo respectfully retreat to the living room and turn on the telly. We chat for over an hour about work drama, China nonsense, and all things baby. We have a good laugh at Benji’s expense I’m afraid. When you get pissed out of your mind like that and kiss Hayden on the lips, you’re setting yourself up to be laughed at. Beyond all that, I give her the little outfit I picked up for Marisa from a street vendor near our office. It’s very colourful, just like Leslie. I miss having that colour with me at work every day.
By the time I get ready to leave, my arms feel like they are about to fall off. I can’t believe how holding a tiny baby can feel like such a workout. Leslie grabs Marisa from me and hands me the keepsake box. As she begins to show me out, Hayden hops up from the couch and jogs over. “I’ll walk you home,” he says and Leslie eyes him with a frown.
“Do just help yourself, Hayden,” she states sarcastically. “Maybe ask Vi if she’d like to be walked home by you first, you cocky bugger.”
“May I walk you home?” He flashes me a sheepish half smile and stuffs his hands into his jean pockets.
This is a different man than the one I saw last night. He’s not moody and defensive. He’s not sexual and prowling. He’s…shy. I arch a curious brow. “By all means.”
I giggle at Leslie’s goofy expression and give her and Marisa a big hug goodbye. Then I wave to Theo before I follow Hayden down the steps. Now holding my prized box, I know just how perfect it will be for what I have in mind.
We make our way out into the unseasonably warm summer day. We walk wordlessly for a couple of blocks and I force myself not to be the first to break our silence. It’s hard because he’s even hotter in his casual Saturday wear. A pair of perfectly fitted jeans with a big brown belt and a short sleeved, black, V-neck T-shirt. Coupled with his leather cuffs, his layered watch, and leather sandals, he’s got me reliving the kiss we shared in distinct detail…despite his multiple personalities.
“You’re quiet today,” he finally says after we’ve walked for a couple quiet minutes. “That’s…different.”
“I’m just unsure what to think right now,” I state.
He nods thoughtfully. “I’m sorry. I just…got spooked. That kiss was—”
“Intense?” I blurt out and turn to watch his reaction.
His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows hard and licks his lips in agreement. His fiery grey eyes are showing me prowling Hayden again. But it’s as if he’s holding back. Like he’s putting that lion in its cage. “I just…I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea.”
“What wrong idea do you mean?”
“I’m not in a good enough place to be with anyone right now. I’ve worked my arse off to get here and can’t have anything messing about my recovery.” He pauses as his eyes cloud over for a moment. “But also, I have a very nasty track record of friends with benefits. I won’t go down that road again, Vi.”
The friends with benefits line feels like a jab right to my stomach. That’s not once what I ever hoped for between us. To be frank, I’m not sure what I hoped for. And after the look in his eyes after our kiss, when he said “thank you” and took off, I suspected he simply didn’t feel the kiss the same way I did.
“So I would be a distraction?” I ask, still trying to figure him out. He smiles and runs his hands over his messy hazel blond hair. It’s disheveled in that perfect way that my hands itch to tangle through.
“Yes, Vi. That is exactly what you’d be. A beautiful, bright, bubbly, blonde distraction.”
“That’s a lot of B’s.” I grimace at his characterisation of me. Is that really all he sees in me? My heart continues to sink further and further.
“I know I asked you to help me with my countdown challenge, but I think it’s a bad idea,” he says before I have more time to consider what he said about me.
“What do you mean?” I stop walking and cross my arms over my chest to look him in the eyes.
He gazes at me like it’s harder to speak now than it was before. “After last night…I just…I can’t go through with it. Not with you. I’ll find someone else.”
“No!” I exclaim, feeling a bit brassed off over his description of me. I’m determined to change it. I’m a great deal more than those B words he used to describe me. “I don’t want you to find anybody else. I want to be the person.”
He shakes his head and looks away. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”
“Let me be the judge of that.” I reach out for his arm so he looks at me. “Hayden, I’m not some meek little ditz. I may look like it, but I’m not. I was raised by my father and am surrounded by four football-playing brothers. They are all bossy, obnoxious men who like to butt their noses in my life whenever the mood strikes them. Believe me when I tell you, if I’m strong enough to handle the lot of them, I’m strong enough to handle this.”
He looks somewhat intrigued. “Should I be afraid these brothers are going to hunt me down?”