33
Vivien
“So, is Dillon still in the doghouse?” Audrey asks, smothering a grin as she peers at me through the screen of my laptop.
“You’d better believe it.” It’s been two weeks since Dillon went behind my back and spoke to my parents, and I’m still livid. “I can’t believe he went to Mom and Dad or that they actually sided with him.”
“Is that what you really think?” Audrey arches a brow while leaning back in her chair.
I sigh. “No.” I drum my fingers on the top of my desk. “I know they were right, and I know Dillon acted out of concern for E.” It’s why I canceled all the tutor interviews and Easton is still in kindergarten. I can’t let my insecurities mess up my son’s life.
“And concern for you,” she reminds me.
“I’m working through my fears with Meryl, but it’s hard. East is all I have left and I’m terrified of anything happening to him.”
“Easton isn’t all you have left, babe.” Audrey looks up, lifting one finger. Her head lowers again, and she moves in closer to the screen. “You have Alex and me. You have your parents. You have Ash and Jamie and Ro.” She pauses for dramatic effect. “And you have Dillon.”
“He’s irritating the fuck out of me. He’s always on my ass about something, and he’s being…all flirty and shit. When I say stuff to annoy him, it only seems to amuse him.” She grins, and I narrow my eyes at her. “Don’t tell me you’ve moved to the dark side.”
She barks out a laugh. “He’s being typical Dillon. I wondered how long he could keep the nice guy routine up.”
“Hey, he’s still one of the good guys,” I blurt, instantly feeling the need to defend him, even if I’m still seething at his interference.
Her grin expands, and I flip her the bird. “I know he’s a good guy, Viv. He has far exceeded my expectations. From what you’ve said, he’s great with Easton and pretty skilled with his tongue.”
I roll my eyes. “I should never have told you or Ash about that.”
“Aren’t you tempted to go back for round two?” She waggles her brows.
“No,” I lie. Truth is, I can’t stop thinking about it or the way it felt to have Dillon’s hands and mouth on me again. Now that he’s on a mission to piss me the hell off, he’s seriously getting under my skin and raising old memories to the surface.
“Liar.” Rey calls me out on my bullshit.
I sigh again. “I can’t stop thinking about him, but then I feel guilty. It’s only been four months since Reeve died. How can I be thinking about another man already?”
“Babe, we’ve been over this. You’ve really got to stop doing this to yourself,” she says as there’s a knock on my office door. “And it’s not like Dillon is just any other man. There is history there and a shit ton of love.”
“It’s the way I’m programmed,” I tell my bestie, getting up to answer the door.
It’s Charlotte. “Dillon is here to see you. He’s waiting in the sunroom.”
I glance at my watch, frowning. School hasn’t let out yet, so I have no idea why he is here already. “Okay. I’ll be there in a sec.” I return to my desk. “Speak of the devil. Dillon is here early. He’s probably come to torture me some more.”
“I’ve got to go anyway. Tell Dillon I said hi, and call me this weekend, yeah?”
“I will. Love you.”
“Right back at ya.”
We disconnect, and I go out to see what he wants.
“Is something wrong?” I ask the second I step foot in my sunroom.
Dillon is standing, with his back to me, looking out at the garden. You can see the memorial we built from here. “Nothing is wrong,” he says, turning around to face me.
Fuck me. How does he make a plain white T-shirt and normal jeans look so freaking hot? His hungry gaze roams the length of my body, making me feel self-conscious. I cross my arms over my chest in an instinctive protective gesture.
“Don’t do that,” he says.