At the sight of Hayden, my traitorous heart skips a beat. Dressed in a well-tailored charcoal suit and black shirt, he slides his hands into his pockets. The jacket fits snuggly across his broad shoulders. Two buttons of his shirt are undone, exposing his tan neck. I wonder if he wears a tie to work. If he does, would he take it off to tie my hands together above my head, shrug out of his jacket, and—
“Nothing’s wrong, babe.” Finn places a reassuring kiss on Harper’s lips, breaking me out of my fantasy. God, is it getting hot in here? “Hayden insisted he needed to see Avery.” Mirth shines from Finn’s eyes.
Harper gives him a dubious expression.
Hayden adjusts the cuffs of his sleeves. “Lily is bugging me to bring her here for a visit.”
Harper looks behind Hayden. “Where is she?”
He clears his throat. “At school. I’ll pick her up when she’s done.”
Finn takes a seat and drops an ankle on top of his knee. “Hayden didn’t want to wait at the office for school to finish.”
Hayden throws Finn a dark, dirty look, like he wants him to keep his mouth shut. What is going on?
“Oh…well…You and Lily are welcome to come over whenever you like.” Harper sounds just as confused as I am as to why the Alessi brothers are all in her living room in the middle of the day.
Hayden and Lucas are yet to make themselves comfortable, choosing to stand rigid by the doorway. Lucas is usually so laid-back and jovial, it’s so strange to see him this way. Something weird is happening.
“Hayden and Lucas, you know Penny Aldin,” Harper says. I glance at Penny; she’s sitting on the edge of her seat like she wants to bolt for the door. Things are getting weirder and weirder.
“Nice to see you again,” Hayden says with a smile.
“Hello, Penny,” Lucas says stiffly.
“Hello, Hayden…Lucas.” She returns her gaze to Harper and says, “We have everything ready and confirmed for the naming day. Call me if you have any questions or concerns.” She rises, tucks the folder under her arm, and picks up her purse from the coffee table.
“Will we be seeing you on Sunday?” Harper asks.
“Don’t you have fancier parties to attend to?” Lucas says with a sharp tone to his voice.
Everyone swings their heads toward him. What is the matter with him? I don’t know him well, only met him a couple of times,yet I’ve never seen this side of him. Do all the Alessi brothers have a dark edge to them? Even Finn had some demons to clear out before he could commit himself fully to Harper.
Penny narrows her gaze at Lucas. “Beyonce’s album release party isn’t until next weekend, so I’m free.” She turns to Harper. “I’d love to join you. See you Sunday. I’ll see myself out. Goodbye, everyone.” She struts from the room, not giving Lucas a glance as she brushes past him. His eyes, however, dropped to her swinging ass. What in the world is going on there?
“Are you ever going to tell us why you have a stick up your ass whenever you see Penny?” Finn asks.
“I don’t have—”
“Don’t deny it,” Finn cuts in. “She’s been a bug in your butt ever since high school.”
Lucas strolls further into the room and drops into an armchair. “By the way you’re gossiping, you sound likeyou’rein high school.”
Hayden stands by the doorway, not saying a word. When I look at him, he turns his head like he’s engaged in Finn and Lucas’ conversation.
I’m not going to let him ignore me. “Hayden, how’s Lily? She seems happier in class, and it appears she’s getting along with the kids. I hope whatever was bothering her has been resolved.”
Barely giving me eye contact, he answers, “She’s good, thanks.”
“Is her studio at your house set up?”
He crosses his arms. “Finished it a couple of days ago.”
“I bet she loves it.”
“Yep.”
Oh, he’s freaking unbelievable. Why am I even bothering trying to have a conversation with him? That’s it. I’m done playing nice. He can suck on a fat squirrel’s nut for all I care.