Page 27 of Falling Back to You

“Why’d you get hit, Cy?”

He huffed out a breath. “You and Ozzie must share a fucking brain. Because every time I talk to him, he’s bitching at me to make shit right with you.”

“Oz said that?” Warmth crept through me at the thought of Ozzie defending my honor.

“He’s pissed at me, because if someone hurts Dial then they have to die.”

“Then why are you still breathing?”

“Because I’m a beloved political figure.”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Ozzie is right. Keeping that secret was an asshole move.”

“Dial, I knew if I told you, you’d object.”

“So you decided to ask for forgiveness instead of permission?”

“We need Ozzie. His cash, his muscle, and his construction skills. I know you and he… Shit, are you currently on or off?”

“You know good and damn well we have been and will continue to be off.”

Cyrus removed his glasses and scrubbed his face. That man had twenty-twenty vision; he only wore the glasses to make himself look smarter. “You two are so fucking weird.”

“No, I’m moving on. It’s your bro who’s weird. The other night he came up to my table at the Melting Mozz while I was on a date.”

“A date with whom?”

“Shelton.”

Cyrus cringed.

“He’s nice. Don’t do that.”

“Shelton’s great for a sweet, timid woman, which you are not.”

I grabbed his pencil holder and dumped the contents onto the floor. “It was a first date.”

“So did Ozzie make shit uncomfortable?”

“Yes, his very presence makes for awkward moments. And now, because of my big brother, I have to see him at the renovation. I feel like everywhere I turn, there he is. At Edison’s, at our folks’ house, at Mozz.”

“Welcome to life in a small town.”

“I can’t stand the sight of his face.” This was a gross exaggeration. An Ozzie spotting often left me with flutters in my stomach, but I couldn’t yet determine if they were from excitement or dread.

“You know why that is, right?”

I shook my head.

“High school sweethearts. Your first love. The father of your child. You two are forever connected. Shit, you two were together longer than some couples stay married.”

“Off and on.”

“Every time I thought you two were through, you always found your way back to one another.”

“Well, we’re dunzo now.”

“Something being done doesn’t mean it’s over.”