Page 31 of Not You Again
“Get a room!” Patrick booms again.
I give him a sidelong glance as Andie steps away from me. The left side of my body is cold in her absence. She smooths her hand down her ponytail and shakes out her arms.
“That was a good spin,” the instructor tells us. Then to me, “Do it again. This time, lunge, señor, okay?” She claps her hands together and I flinch at the noise.
This time, when Andie presses against my side, I lunge and relish the pull in my thigh. While we’re suspended in the pose, Andie asks, “What are you thinking about?”
“Nothing.” My answer is impulsive and one hundred percent a lie.
“Bullshit.” Andie calls it like she sees it. “You’re doing that thing with your mouth.”
“What thing?”
“You know, the thing.” She presses her lips together, then pulls them to one side. “You’ve always done it when something’s on your mind. So come on, spill.”
I shake my head. “You don’t want to hear it.”
“I asked.” She gives me some of the strongest side-eye I’ve ever witnessed.
I sigh, pushing us both back to standing upright. I don’t let go of her hand and force myself to look her in the eyes. “I was thinking … you look beautiful. Like this.”
“Like … frustrated?”
“No.” I shift on my feet. “I mean, yes. When you’re focused, trying to get something right. You light up.”
She rolls her eyes. “Okay. Then I must look like a maglight from being around you twenty-four seven.”
I tilt my head and step closer. “Sweet potato, are you saying you’re trying to get this marriage right?”
“Oh my God.” She playfully shoves my chest. I let it be enough for now.
Our conversation stalls until we’re learning a dip. She waits until I’m fully supporting her weight in a lunge before she says, “Okay. I have a question.”
“And you think now is the time to ask it?” Honestly, I’m amazed that I haven’t dropped her since we couldn’t even manage stepping without making a mess of things.
“It’s relevant.”
“Okay.” I raise a brow, curious about what she could possibly think is relevant right now.
She blows a breath out, making the hair that’s fallen into her face flutter. “How in the hell do you get away with having thighs like this?”
I laugh, losing my grip on her. I pull us to standing, my hands still splayed across her back. “Are you offended by my legs?”
“It’s not fair.” She looks over my shoulder. The muscles in her throat work as she swallows.
“That’s a long way to go to say you’re attracted to me.”
Her eyes snap back to mine. “What? Where the hell did you get that from?”
She puts her hands on my chest and pushes.
I let her go. “And you’re pissed off about it.”
“Pissed off about you making assumptions, yes.”
“Why else would you ask about my thighs?”
“He’s got great thighs,” Jamie says as he hangs halfway upside down from Leslie’s arms. “It’s okay to be affected by those babies.”