Page 34 of This Broken Heart

I thought his aunt was a bit pushy, but I don’t mind being put on cleanup duty. Beats the heck out of being bored.

But Josh had to go and make it athingand now we’re stuck in here together, playing some sort of game of chicken that I don’t fully understand the rules to.

And I swear he keeps sneaking glances at me, which is nuts, because a man likethatisn’t looking at a woman like me.

Whether he is or isn’t, I still feel outgunned when I stand next to him.

He’s like the big bad wolf and I’m a shivering bunny.

But that just reminds me of the time I saw him in just his sweats. And I saw something else that was also big.

“Are you blushing?” Josh asks, breaking into my thoughts.

I glance up at him, wishing I could wipe the smirk from his face.

Actually, I’d like to kiss it off, but that would be inappropriate.

“No.” I hand him a dish. “Rinse.”

He chuckles. “You are. What’s going on in that head of yours?”

“You don’t want to know.” I mutter.

“Oh, but I think I do.” He replies, his voice smokey and low. It sends a thrill down my spine.

I’m so startled I momentarily forget how to wash a dish. He nudges me and I commence scrubbing dishes that don’t need to be scrubbed. He’s distracting me. I didn’t know it was possible to make rinsing dishes look sexy, but he is accomplishing this with flying colors.

“I think that one is clean.” He laughs, plunging his hand into the soapy side of the sink. Our fingers connect, and he slides his thumb over the back of my hand before pulling the plate out of the water.

My cheeks are completely on fire. Glowing.

“Now you really are blushing.”

“I am not.”

How is it this asshole looks completely cool and collected while I feel like a glowing top, spinning out of control?

I want to be pissed at him, but he’s too damn cute to stay mad for long. I don’t understand what this man wants from me.

On an intellectual level, I am all too aware that it’s a mistake to flirt with this guy. He’s my boss. And if we screw things up, make them too awkward, then that means I can’t keep looking after Trace and Maven.

It’s only been a few weeks, but I’m already getting pretty attached to those little cuties.

Josh reaches into the sink again, obviously thinking I’m moving too slowly, and extracts another dish, sliding his pinky finger along mine. I jerk my gaze up to his, but he’s looking away, all innocence and ease.

These touches might be accidental. Or he might be fucking with me.

Either way, it’s sending me into a lust spiral, and I feel my resolve slipping.

We’ve washed all the dishes, but I keep my hands submerged. He reaches in, feeling around. When he realizes the sink is empty, his hand slides alongside mine. When I don’t pull away, he laces his fingers through mine.

For a brief, glorious moment, I just let the feeling wash over me. His touch sends sparks jumping and jittering across my body. There’s no question now, no misinterpreting things.

Josh is holding my hand.

Under soapy water, yes. Which is a little weird. But also, kind of cute.

If I could just turn off my thoughts, I might be able to enjoy it. But questions batter around my head. What does it mean? What does he want?