Page 42 of The Grump Next Door
Stupid smile.
Stupid face.
I shouldn’t have had that glass of champagne.
I make it halfway across the lawn before I hear the door creak open behind me.
“Poppy,” Ivy calls.
I stop, square my shoulders, and turn with a polite smile. “Hey.”
She strolls over, champagne glass still in hand, her designer sandals somehow not sinking into the grass like mine did an hour ago.
When she reaches me, she loops her arm through mine as if we’re old friends, rather than people who’ve only had three Zoom meetings and an email chain 87 messages deep.
“Okay,” she says in a low, conspiratorial voice, glancing toward the house. “What’s the deal?”
“With what?” I ask, even though I already know.
“With my future brother-in-law…”
“Dean?”
She smirks. “He’s being weird.”
“He’s always weird.”
“Weirder than usual,” she replies. “Not in a bad way—just in ahas he always had that jawline and tensionkind of way.”
I pause. “Did you just say jawline and tension?”
“I’m just saying.” She raises her hands, mock-innocent. “If he weren’t already family—”
“Ivy.”
She winks. “What? I’m just saying, that man isnotindifferent to you.”
“No, he’s just…” I trail off, staring at nothing. “Stressed.”
“Uh-huh.” She sips her champagne. “And cute, apparently.”
“I never said that.”
“You didn’t have to.”
I groan, tug my arm from hers, and head for the tent. “I have things to do.”
“Don’t worry,” Ivy calls after me. “Your secret’s safe with me. For now.”
I don’t look back, but I can feel her grin chasing me all the way across the lawn.
Chapter Ten
Focus
Dean
The elevator doors close with a soft hiss, and I immediately regret not taking the stairs.
