Discover Top Posts Tagged with #cyfabh

can you fix a broken heart

Synopsis: Paige’s “date that isn’t a date” gets cancelled and she spends the night pretending everything is fine while the universe takes turns repeatedly ruining her plans.

warnings: none, i think? maybe some angst and sadness...

wc: 13k

chapter 12:

Paige was nervous.

Like really fucking nervous.

Her hands ached to be busy even when there was literally nothing left to do. She’d vacuumed. She’d tidied the entire house, and dusted, and wiped down the counters until they gleamed. She’d even scrubbed the baseboards in the hallway, and then gotten paint to do a few touchups on some scuffs, which was objectively insane behavior.

Paige knew that. She really really did. She thought about how crazy it was as she shoved the paint can back in the garage, before squinting at the windows wondering if she should get the squeegee out and clean those quickly too.

Despite deciding against cleaning the windows, only, admittedly, because she didn’t have time to do it right, Paige made another lap around the living room. She stopped in front of the couch. The throw pillows were arranged neatly, but not too neatly, because too neat would make it look like she was trying too hard. And she definitely didn’t want that. But she fluffed one anyway, then the other, finally stepping back and assessing the arrangement with the intensity of Bill, the formidable home inspector she absolutely despised.

She decided the couch was passable, then moved back to the frames hanging above the console table, scanning them one by one.

There was a shot of her and her and Drew and their dad at a summer cookout, the three of them grinning after a game of pickup. A picture of her and Nika on a hike, both of them squinting at the sun, merely an hour before a torrential downpour caught them. A group picture of her friends at a Storm game from a few years ago, Paige wearing her Fudd jersey with no idea of what was to come. Then, finally, one of Theo as a toddler, covered in spaghetti sauce, a goofy smile etched on his face. That one was crooked, or at least she thought it was. So Paige nudged the frame into a straighter line, even though no sane person would have noticed the difference.

Paige noticed.

Then again, Paige noticed everything right now.

And okay, maybe Paige was actively spiraling. But Azzi Fudd was coming over to her house. So.

She dragged a hand through her hair and let out a deep breath, casting another look around. Paige liked her house, loved it most days. Her house was nice. That’s why she bought it five years ago. Tucked away on a cul de sac just outside the city, it was warm and inviting. She spent a lot of time and money fixing it up, though there were still a few half-finished projects she never got around to. Things that the untrained eye wouldn’t even notice, but to Paige, felt as obvious as holes blown into the wall.

And, oh my God, Azzi was coming over. To her house. The thought just kept circling.

Azzi, who lived in a stunning, historic home in the city where everything matched, and the pillows looked like they’d been bought from a high-end store, and the kitchen was a scene straight out of Architecture Digest. Azzi who had an interior designer on speed dial, and, if Paige was being honest with herself, probably a whole staff of people whose job was to make sure Azzi’s house looked great. Azzi, who had money and fame and a life Paige still didn’t fully understand, even after weeks of late-night texts and photos and calls started shifting into something else. Not that Paige knew how to define what that ‘something else’ actually was.

Paige had told herself she didn’t care. She wasn’t the type of person who got insecure about square footage and furniture and whether her kitchen towels matched. The reality was, her brain was acting like Azzi would walk in, see a crooked pillow or scuffed baseboards, and file Paige into the category of ‘Women Who Are Not Worth Loving.’ It was wildly unreasonable. She was well aware. It was also just how Paige’s mind worked sometimes.

And okay, maybe she was fully losing it because Azzi wasn’t the kind of person who would judge a house. Paige knew Azzi had never once given off “snobby rich girl” or “I’m better than you” energy. Quite the opposite actually, she seemed to treat everyone with genuine care, which is part of what Paige found so endearing.

And if Paige really let herself think about it, she wasn’t nervous because her house wasn’t nice enough, even though it was a little intimidating compared to Azzi’s. She was nervous because Azzi was coming over at all, and that felt like a really big deal. Especially since it was the first girl she had invited over, during the daylight hours at least, since… Elle.

Paige wandered into the kitchen like she had a purpose. She didn’t. She opened the pantry, stared at the shelves of organized chaos, and shut it again. Then she opened a drawer, rearranged a stack of dish towels that didn’t need rearranging just because, and shut it with a thud.

Finally, she blew out an exhale and leaned both hands on the sparkling clean counter. The house was eerily quiet. She’d put an Olivia Dean playlist on earlier just to fill the space, but the music had ended and she hadn’t even noticed during her panic-induced cleaning spiral.

Needing something to do with her fidgety hands, Paige tugged open the fridge. The steaks from the butcher down the street were on the second shelf, wrapped and waiting. They were expensive enough that Paige had made a face at the price but bought them anyway because she wanted tonight to feel special, not just a thrown-together meal.

She pulled the package out and set it on the counter to rest, then glanced at the clock on the microwave. Azzi would be here in… thirty minutes. Although, probably more since she was notoriously late.

Thirty minutes, give or take, until Azzi was standing in Paige’s kitchen, looking around, taking her in. Taking her house in.

God, Paige was nervous.

She’d done dates before, wasn’t a stranger to romance. She’d been in love, hell, she was about to propose to Elle before that all went to shit. This felt different, though. It was the anticipation, sure. And the fact that their chemistry and sex had been incredible, honestly. Paige still wasn’t sure how it was possible for one person to be that sexy and also laugh at Paige’s dumb jokes like they were actually funny, but life was unfair and God had favorites, apparently.

Still, it wasn’t only about sex.

It would be easy if it was only about sex. Paige understood sex. Paige excelled at sex. Loved sex, especially with Azzi. Paige could keep sex in a neat little box and set it on a shelf and pretend she was in control of it.

But Azzi didn’t fit in a neat little box, and Paige didn’t want her to.

A few weeks ago, Paige would have said this was a fling. A convenient accident that started with a repair job and somehow turned into Paige learning the exact cadence of Azzi’s moans right before she came, the way she tasted on Paige’s tongue, the quiet, involuntary sounds she tried to swallow down indignantly when Paige pinned her somewhere.

Paige had tried to keep it in that box, tried to convince herself it was mostly physical because that was safer. That was manageable.

But then something shifted the night after the Storm lost to Connecticut. The night Azzi had asked Paige to tell her about her day, and they had an interaction that didn’t center on flirting or teasing photos or getting each other off. And after that night? Things had hovered in a vague gray area. Azzi had started texting her about the stupidest things, like the bad coffee in the hotel or Sarah saying something completely unhinged on the bus. Paige had caught herself smiling at her phone in the middle of Home Depot, on job sites, while sitting at her kitchen table. And she’d started saving memes to send to Azzi or texting her little jokes throughout the day just to let her know she was thinking about her. Because… Paige usually was.

Now, Paige found herself standing in her kitchen, thinking about what WNBA-star Azzi Fudd would say when she walked in for the first time. The thought made her stomach flip in a way that had nothing to do with sex.

And okay, it still had something to do with sex. Paige wasn’t going to pretend it didn’t.

She’d been fantasizing about Azzi in her bed since the moment they’d scheduled this dinner. She’d been imagining the way Azzi would sound when Paige kissed her slow, the way she’d melt when they finally had nowhere to be and no reason to rush. Some of the texts they’d exchanged over the last two days had been borderline criminal, and Paige had spent more than one afternoon trying to work with a perfectly straight face while her boxers were wet and her phone continually buzzed in her pocket.

But it wasn’t just that.

She’d also been imagining Azzi sitting at her table, drinking wine or beer or whatever it was that Azzi preferred, and laughing at her dumb jokes. She thought about Azzi kicking her shoes off by the door, and curling up on the couch under the throw blankets she definitely hadn’t washed and then put through the dryer with lavender essential oils twice. Mostly, Paige had been imagining spending time together that didn’t end with one of them slipping out, rushing off to one commitment or another.

She ran a thumb along the edge of the counter, scratching off a stray fleck of food she’d missed earlier in her cleaning spree, then forced herself to move.

One more lap, she told herself. Just one more.

After a quick peruse of the living room, Paige tried to distract herself by getting changed, which was a hilarious plan considering she’d already changed twice. Once into something that felt too casual, and then again into something that felt like too much. Now she stood in her bedroom staring at her closet, weighing the pros and cons of every shirt she owned as if the wrong choice would fundamentally alter her future. And who knows, maybe it would.

Her phone buzzed on the bed.

Paige glanced at it, expecting Azzi, and instead saw Marta’s name flashing across the screen.

She hesitated. Marta never called for no reason. On the other hand, Marta had the kind of uncontrolled energy that could turn a simple question into a full-blown hour-long conversation if given enough runway. Paige wasn’t in the mood nor did she have the time to be emotionally kidnapped tonight, so she let it ring.

She would call Marta back tomorrow. Tonight she had a date to focus on.

Maybe. Probably? Paige still wasn’t entirely sure what they were calling tonight. Dinner at her house, with just the two of them, planned in advance and anticipated for days. If it looked like a date and smelled like a date—which Paige lit her ‘cozy summer night’ candle so it definitely did smell like one—it was probably a date. Paige just didn’t want to be the only one calling it that.

She was reaching for the hem of her shirt to change for the second time when the phone rang again.

She froze, hand still gripping her shirt. The second ring wasn’t Marta being annoying. The second ring was Marta being serious.

Paige snatched the phone off the bed and answered. “Hey, Marta.”

“Paige.” Marta sounded like she’d been running and was out of breath. Her voice carried none of the usual sarcasm or charm. “It’s Stewie’s mom. She had a heart attack.”

Her voice cracked on the last word and Paige went completely still. Her brain tried to reject the sentence like it was just a bad joke. Maybe Marta was about to follow it up with, got you, and laugh into the phone. She could hope for that, at least. But the silence that followed was too heavy.

“Oh my god.” Paige sat down on the edge of the bed with a sigh. “Is she… is she okay?”

“I don’t know,” Marta said, and Paige could hear Stewie in the background saying something she couldn’t make out, the sound muffled. “The ambulance already took her. We have to go. Theo’s here and we can’t take him, and my mom’s out of town, and everyone else is—” She took another shaky breath. “Please, P. I’m sorry. I know this is last minute, but can you come watch him?”

Paige’s mouth opened.

Her first thought was absolutely awful. Immediate and selfish and so out of character it almost made her puke.

I can’t. Azzi’s coming over.

A reflexive flash of disappointment rose in her chest, so hot it almost bordered on anger. Not at Marta or at Stewie’s mom, just at the timing, at the universe for finally giving her something good and then snatching at it with both hands. But then again, Paige was used to it. Basketball. Her dad. Elle.

And then the guilt hit her hard enough to make her regret even the millisecond of hesitation.

Stewie and Marta were family. They were the people who always showed up, who had handed her Theo and told him, this is Aunt Paige. Paige loved them. She loved Stewie’s mom too, for opening her home and arms to Paige so many times over the years.

More than that, Paige could hear the fear and desperation in Marta’s voice. Saying no wasn’t an option at all.

Paige exhaled and forced her thoughts back into place. “Yeah,” she said, voice calmer than she felt with the nerves and bile fighting to claw their way out. “Yeah, no problem. I’ll leave right now.”

Marta’s breath hitched. “Are you sure? I know you had—”

“I’m sure,” Paige cut in, gentle but firm, trying to hold Marta together through the phone with sheer confidence. “It’s not a problem.”

“Thank you,” Marta whispered, and Paige could hear tears creeping into her voice. “Thank you, P.”

“I’m leaving now. Be there in twenty.”

She hung up before Marta could say anything else, because if she stayed on the line long enough to hear her break, Paige might break too, and right now there wasn’t time for that.

Paige stood in her bedroom for a few seconds, phone still in her hand, staring through the skylight like the wispy clouds might offer some divine wisdom, or better yet, an alternate option. Maybe this was something she could negotiate with the universe, keeping her dinner plans with Azzi and also being the person Marta needed.

Unfortunately she couldn’t, and Paige knew that.

She made her way down the hallway, into the living room, and blew out the candle flickering on the coffee table. The smoke curled upwards like a sad little funeral for the date that wasn’t meant to be.

Then she turned toward the kitchen where the steaks sat on the counter, preparing for a night that suddenly didn’t exist anymore. Paige grabbed the dish, shoved it back into the fridge without bothering to cover it properly, and slammed the door harder than she meant to. The sound echoed through the quiet house.

For a moment she stood there, hand still on the fridge handle, staring at the blank stainless steel and letting the anger pass.

Then she was moving again, grabbing what she needed and tossing it into her backpack. She slipped her Nikes on, not even bothering to lace them up, then yanked the door open, and jogged down the front steps to her truck.

Five minutes ago, Paige had been worried about throw pillows and dust and getting the perfect sear on some ribeyes. Now she was backing out of her driveway too fast, her heart in her throat, worry seeping into her bloodstream. And somewhere in the back of her mind was the thought of Azzi, and how their plans would have to be canceled.

The road flew past her windshield in soft streaks of streetlights and taillights, and Paige kept her hands at a very disciplined ten and two, trying to focus and keep her head from spinning.

But the guilt sat high in Paige’s throat, like she’d swallowed glass. She couldn’t wait any longer, because like it or not, there was no way to salvage this. She hit the call button on the steering wheel.

“Hey, Paige!” Azzi answered so cheerily that Paige could actually feel her smiling through the phone. Great. “I’m running a few minutes behind, but do you need me to grab anything on my way over?”

Paige’s grip tightened on the wheel.

The excitement in Azzi’s tone made the longing surge so hard, Paige had to fight to swallow it down. She let out a breath that apparently sounded too much like a sigh.

Azzi’s voice shifted immediately, the cheer fading into alertness. “Are you okay?”

Paige absolutely hated the universe, with a passion, for denying them this night.

“No…” she said quickly, tripping over her words. “I’m so sorry, but I'm going to have to cancel tonight.”

“Okay,” Azzi said. She didn’t seem mad, but the confusion in her tone was enough to rattle Paige even more. “What’s going on?”

Paige licked her lips, and tried to keep her voice from cracking. “Marta just called me,” she explained, the words tumbling out fast. “Stewie’s mom had a heart attack. They’re going to the hospital right now and they need someone to watch Theo. I’m on my way over there.”

“Oh…”

Paige could hear the disappointment anyway, subtle but there. It made her feel even worse, which she hadn’t thought was even possible.

“I feel awful,” Paige rushed on, hoping if she said it enough times could change reality that she was cancelling on Azzi. Even if it was for a good reason. “I know we’ve both been looking forward to tonight and I…I had everything set up and then they called and—”

She cut herself off, because she didn’t want to sound like she was comparing the two things. She wasn’t. But she was still human, and she still wanted Azzi, and she still hated that she had to cancel.

“Hey. Don’t apologize, Paige,” Azzi said firmly. “Your friends need you. I absolutely understand.”

Paige blew out a shaky breath, some—but not all—of the tension easing from her shoulders. “Thank you,” she murmured, eyes flicking to the speedometer and back to the road as she pressed harder on the gas.

“Can we please rain check?” Paige asked, the hopeful part of her pushing through the panic. “Maybe tomorrow night? I’ll make it up to you.”

There was a longer pause on the line than Paige wanted, followed by a long drawn out sigh.

“I’m pretty tied up with team stuff the next few days,” Azzi admitted.

There was an apology tucked into her voice, even though Azzi didn’t need to apologize for having a life, a job. Paige’s heart sank anyway.

“Right,” she said, trying not to sound crushed.

She clearly failed, because Azzi followed up immediately with, “Are you okay? I’m sure it’s not easy to hear about Stewie’s mom.”

“Yeah,” Paige said, because it was easier to lie. “I’m just worried about her,” she sighed.

She stared at the stretch of road ahead, her throat tightening again. She could have left it there. She should have left it there, because now they were getting into uncharted territory. But something in her chest felt putrid, like if she didn’t say it, didn’t let it out, it would sit there and rot.

“And I miss you,” she added, quieter. “I’ve really been looking forward to tonight.”

There was a moment of silence that followed. Then Azzi’s voice came back. “I know,” she breathed out. “Me too, P. So much.”

Paige blinked again. She didn’t trust herself to say anything else, so she just filled her lungs with air, letting the quiet hang between them. It wasn’t awkward, but it felt loaded.

A few seconds passed, and then Azzi spoke again. “Can I…” She paused, clearly weighing the words carefully. “Can I maybe come help you with Theo?”

Paige let out a startled laugh, half disbelief and half something else. Because yes. The answer in her head was an immediate yes, absolutely, please, I want you here, but she also felt the urge to protect Azzi from the chaos she was about to walk into.

“Az,” Paige said like she was warning her, laughing softly as she shook her head. “Watching Theo is about the most stressful, least romantic thing on the planet. He’s like a rabid raccoon with no impulse control. That’s not how you want to spend your first night back. I know you just wanted a lowkey hang.”

Azzi’s laugh was immediate, because apparently Paige had handed her an opening she couldn’t resist. “Is what we were planning to do to each other after dinner considered lowkey?”

Paige snorted, the sound surprising her. No. Not even remotely. Their texts over the last few days had made it very clear that “lowkey” was not on the menu, especially with Paige’s recent purchase. She could practically feel Azzi’s grin through the phone, that knowing lilt in her voice that always made Paige feel like she was being dared.

“Well, no,” Paige conceded, trying not to smile too hard. “But still. Are you sure?”

Azzi made a thoughtful humming sound. “I’m sure,” she said. Then she added, smug and infuriating, “And you need the help.”

Paige narrowed her eyes even though she was alone in the car. “I most certainly do not.”

“You absolutely do,” Azzi said, like she was reciting a simple fact. “Didn’t you lock yourself in his room one time?”

“That was the first time I ever watched him,” Paige argued instantly, because she would defend her honor even if it killed her. Her delusion truly knew no bounds. “And it was Nika’s fault. I’ve gotten better.”

Azzi laughed again. “Right. I’m so sure.”

Paige rolled her eyes and turned onto Stewie and Marta’s street, her pulse evening out a little, knowing she was close. “Okay,” she said, the word softening. “If you really want to, I’m not going to stop you. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“I want to.”

“I’ll text you the address,” Paige managed, as she pulled into the driveway.

“See you soon,” Azzi said, and ended the call.

Paige barely had the car in park before she was out, slamming the door and jogging up the walkway, keys still in her hand.

The front door swung open before she could knock.

Stewie stood there in sweatpants and a crewneck, hair pulled back messily, her face pale in a way Paige had only ever seen once—Paige's freshman year, when Stewie found out at practice her dad had gotten into a serious car accident. Behind her, Marta was moving through the living room like a tornado, phone pressed to her ear, one arm already shoving a hoodie over her head as she walked.

“Thank God,” Stewie said, and it came out like a breath she’d been holding too long. Stewie’s eyes were shiny. Not crying yet, but close. She looked frazzled, which was rare for her.

“I’m here,” Paige replied, reaching for her immediately.

Stewie walked right into her outstretched arms, wrapping around Paige in a tight, desperate hug.

Paige held on, squeezing back, letting the brunette draw on her strength. “You guys just go,” she mumbled into Stewie’s mess of curls. “Don’t worry about anything. I’ve got Theo. I’ll handle dinner.”

Stewie pulled back just enough to look at her. Her hands stayed on Paige’s arms, not quite ready to let go. “Okay,” she said, and her voice wobbled. Then she drew in a deep breath, trying to shove the emotion back down where it belonged. “Okay. Remember, there’s no sweets after dinner.”

Paige nodded. “Got it.”

Stewie’s expression tightened with something that was almost a laugh but not quite. “And please don’t let him tie you to a chair again.”

Paige’s eyebrows shot up. “It was a joke.”

Stewie’s mouth twitched, but she shook her head. “Yeah, well. Nika won’t be here to bail you out this time.”

Paige opened her mouth to argue again, mostly out of habit, and then stopped. She rubbed the back of her neck, her toe digging into the ground. “Actually… um.”

“What?”

Marta appeared in the hallway again, hair messy, face pinched with worry. She shoved her phone into her pocket and started patting down the counter for her keys like they evaporated.

Paige hesitated, because she hated feeling like she was making anything about her right now. But she also didn’t want to just bring Azzi into their house and around Theo without saying something.

“Well,” Paige started, clearing her throat again. “I was supposed to have Azzi over for dinner tonight.” The words felt strange in her mouth, admitting to something more serious than she meant to. “And when I called her on my way over to cancel, she… volunteered to come help… with Theo.”

Stewie stared at her blankly for a second. Marta, who had just found her keys and was shoving them into the pocket of her hoodie, stopped mid-motion and slowly turned her head like she couldn’t believe the words she just heard.

The pause was brief, but Paige felt it like a hot spotlight.

“Is that… okay with you guys?” Paige asked, desperate for one of them to say something. “I can tell her no if you’re not comfortable. It’s totally fine.”

Marta stared at her like Paige had just said something wildly obvious and somehow still missed the point. “Girl,” she said, voice disbelieving, “she’s offering to help babysit now?”

Paige nodded.

Marta’s eyes widened, and then she made a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a scoff. “Oh, she’s down bad.”

Paige felt heat crawl up her neck. “No, it’s not like that.”

Stewie, to her credit, didn’t laugh. Although, to be fair, she was exhausted and probably didn't have the energy to care about Paige’s romantic life at the moment. Which…Paige selfishly appreciated.

Marta, unfortunately, did not have that same restraint. She stepped forward, hands coming up to Paige’s shoulders like she was physically trying to shake the truth into her. “Paige,” she said, dead serious, “she likes you.”

Paige’s stomach flipped. “Marta—”

“No,” Marta cut her off. “Listen to me. You don’t offer to help watch a feral toddler for someone you’re just fucking.”

Stewie snapped her head up, eyes wide, scandalized. “Marta!” she hissed, gesturing to the living room.

Marta waved a hand without looking away from Paige. “He can’t hear me,” she said. “He’s locked in on the TV.”

Stewie’s eyes flicked in Theo’s direction, then back to Marta. “Still,” she said, clinging to the last shred of parental dignity she had left.

Paige swallowed, fingers tightening around her keys. She didn’t really know what to do with the words Marta was saying, and she certainly didn’t have time to unpack it. She barely had time to breathe right now.

“So,” Paige said quickly, “you guys are cool with it?”

Marta’s gaze sharpened. “Of course it’s fine,” she said, like Paige was ridiculous for even asking. Then her mouth curved. “Just remember Breanna installed nanny cams in like every room in this house.”

Paige let out a laugh, wishing she had something to throw something at her. “Bro,” she said, shaking her head, “you are so unserious. Chill.”

Marta smirked as Stewie stepped forward again and pulled Paige into another hug, tighter this time. Paige felt her friend tremble on the exhale. “Thank you,” Stewie murmured. “Seriously.”

Paige squeezed back. “Of course. Now go.”

Marta leaned over the back of the couch and pressed a kiss to Theo’s hair, her voice turning soft for the first time. “Be good, baby,” she told him, even though he didn’t look away from the TV. “Aunt Paige is in charge.”

Theo hummed something that might have been agreement as Stewie crossed the room and knelt in front of him, hands cupping his cheeks. “I love you, bud,” she said, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

Theo finally glanced at her, brows furrowing as he tried to understand why her eyes looked weird. “Okay,” he said, quiet.

Stewie stood up quickly after that, and Paige knew she was worried about not falling apart in front of him. Marta grabbed her hand and they headed for the door in a rush, shoes untied, keys jangling, fear propelling them.

Paige followed them to the entryway, one hand already on the doorframe. “Take whatever time you need,” she told them. “Seriously. I’ve got it covered.”

Marta paused just long enough to look back, eyes glossy. “Text me if you need anything,” she said, voice cracking for the first time all night as she gave Paige a quick hug. Then she pointed at Paige and winked. “And if I see you on any nanny cam footage doing something questionable, I’ll delete it before Stewie sees.”

Paige laughed again, because it was either that or cry. “Go,” she said, waving them out. “Just go.”

Stewie squeezed Paige’s shoulder one last time, then they were gone, the door closing behind them with a final, heavy click.

Paige stood there for a second in the sudden quiet, listening to the muffled TV noise from the living room. Then she turned toward Theo, inhaled slowly, and prepared for battle.

She walked into the living room and lowered herself onto the couch beside Theo. He didn’t look at her.

Paige leaned her elbow on the armrest and studied the side of his face, the soft curve of his cheek, the way his lips were parted slightly in concentration. Her stomach twisted again, because even if he didn’t fully understand what was happening, he was still a tiny human who could probably feel the tension hanging in the air.

“Hey, buddy,” Paige said softly.

Theo’s eyes flicked toward her and then back to the screen, barely acknowledging her presence. Paige nudged his socked foot lightly with her own.

“You can finish the episode,” she told him, keeping her voice casual. “But then it’s dinner. Deal?”

Theo let out a dramatic sigh, like the kind Paige made when she had to pay her business taxes at the end of the year. It sounded overly dramatic coming from someone who still needed help wiping his butt. “Fine,” he muttered.

Paige nodded, somewhat satisfied. “Great. Thank you for that very enthusiastic cooperation.”

Theo didn’t laugh, but the corner of his mouth curved up, which Paige counted as a win. Small victories tonight.

She stood up and wandered into the kitchen, rubbing her palms down the front of her jeans, trying to wipe the nerves off. The kitchen was spotless, but it was Tuesday, so their cleaner had been there. Paige opened the cabinets, knowing exactly what she could feed Theo that wouldn’t result in a full-blown revolt.

She didn’t have to look far to find the bright blue box of Kraft mac and cheese. Paige grabbed it, then opened the freezer, cold air spilling out. She immediately spotted the bag of chicken nuggets tucked beside a box of frozen waffles.

Paige put the nuggets on the counter as she got to work making dinner. She kept one ear tuned to the living room, listening in case Theo decided to launch a counteroffensive. This wasn’t her first rodeo. Thankfully, he stayed on the couch, locked in on Paw Patrol.

Paige tried not to think about how worried Stewie had looked. She tried not to picture them sitting in a hospital waiting room, Marta tapping her foot too fast, pretending she wasn’t terrified. It was coming up on the anniversary of losing her dad, and she couldn’t imagine Stewie going through that.

The air fryer beeped, tugging her back to reality, and Paige shook the basket before putting them back in. She was just finishing the mac and cheese when there was a knock at the door.

Paige went still.

She’d been so caught up in worrying about Stewie’s mom and making dinner that she forgot Azzi was coming. Her brain rerouted her back to her own house; back to the candles and the steaks and Azzi showing up for dinner. Back to the version of tonight that made Paige’s pulse race for completely different reasons—the ones that involved wine and laughter and breaking the simmering sexual tension.

Paige’s heart kicked hard in her chest, rattling against her rib cage, and she wiped her hands quickly on a dish towel, even though they were already clean. She walked to the front door with her stomach fluttering in a way that felt inappropriate considering the circumstances. She just couldn’t help it.

When she opened the door, Azzi was standing on the porch with a small bag slung over her shoulder. Her hair was pulled back, cheeks flushed like she had rushed over. Still, Azzi somehow managed to look put together. Paige supposed she just never had to try.

When their eyes met, Azzi’s soft pink lips curved into a smile. It wasn’t the teasing one Paige was used to from their previous encounters, though. Azzi looked worried too.

“Hey,” Azzi said quietly.

Paige’s throat went dry, and for a second, the awkwardness hit her all at once. Admittedly, this was a little weird. They’d been sexting and sending each other filth that would’ve made Paige’s teenage brain self short-circuit, and they’d been hooking up in stolen pockets of time, with not a whole lot of words. But now Azzi was here to help babysit a feral toddler in the middle of a family emergency. Maybe Marta was right, because this felt like what people did when they were… something.

Paige didn’t let herself hesitate long enough to overthink it. She stepped forward and pulled Azzi into her arms. Azzi went still for a fraction of a second, then melted into it, her arms sliding around Paige’s back and clinging just as tightly.

The contact hit Paige like a deep breath after being underwater. She closed her eyes and let herself revel in the warmth, in the feeling of Azzi being here, with her, regardless of the circumstances.

“I missed you,” Paige murmured, the words slipping out.

Azzi’s answer was muffled against Paige’s shoulder, but it was there. “Me too.”

Paige’s hands tightened slightly as if she could imprint the feeling into her skin.

Then, from the kitchen came the shrill beep of the air fryer.

Paige jerked back, blinking like she’d forgotten where she was. “Shit,” she said, half laughing, half panicked. “The nuggets.”

Before she could second-guess herself, she leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to Azzi’s cheek. It was brief, but felt loaded anyway. Then, before Azzi could catch the flush creeping up her cheeks, she turned and hurried down the hall.

Azzi stepped inside behind her, closing the door gently as Paige whisked into the kitchen.

After she spent about five minutes getting the mac and cheese dished into a bowl and the nuggets carefully arranged on a plate, Paige wiped her hands on the dish towel and called out, “Dinner’s ready!”

Nothing.

Paige frowned, then turned down the music playing on the kitchen speaker. With it lowered, she heard something else—laughter. The full body kind.

It was Theo’s familiar laugh, high-pitched and breathless, but underneath it, a deeper laugh that Paige had come to know.

She set the dish towel down and walked toward the sound, stopping when she reached the living room. Paw Patrol was still on the TV, but Theo wasn’t paying attention to it at all. He was in the middle of the room, feet planted wide, clutching a tiny basketball. His little plastic hoop stood near the couch, one of those mini sets that came with a flimsy net and backboard.

Azzi was crouched in front of him like she was guarding him in a real game, knees bent, hands out, body loose. Theo tried to dribble, he feinted left, then right, then took off toward the hoop with the confidence of someone whose mom let him win more often than not. Azzi allowed Theo to get two steps past her, then she slid in front of him, quick and smooth, and Theo shrieked with laughter like he’d been personally betrayed.

“No!” he yelled, giggling. “You can’t do that!”

Azzi grinned. “I can,” she said, voice playful. “I’m literally Azzi Fudd. Basketball superstar, remember?”

Theo gasped and Azzi took the opportunity to poke the ball away gently with an exaggerated flourish. He chased her, arms flailing, laughing so hard he could barely breathe.

Paige stood there watching as butterflies erupted in her stomach. Azzi could have sat on the couch and checked her phone while Paige handled everything like Elle always used to do. Instead, Azzi was in the middle of the living room, eyes bright, letting a toddler think he had a shot at beating her one-on-one.

After Azzi slammed it down into the mini hoop with the kind of dramatic force that made the entire plastic thing wobble before toppling to the ground, Paige cleared her throat and stepped into the room.

“Alright, you two,” she called, leaning her hip against the doorway. “It’s time to eat some dinner.”

Theo jerked his head toward her, face flushed from laughing or the extreme workout he just went through. His eyes narrowed. “You didn’t tell me you were friends with Azzi Fudd, Aunt Paige!” he blurted, genuine outrage in his tone.

Paige was caught off guard for many reasons, mainly the emphasis on friends. “Oh, I didn’t?” she said, tone dry, because she was incapable of not being herself even when her internal organs were doing gymnastics.

Theo scrambled to his feet and pointed at Azzi. “She said she’ll get me an autographed jersey!”

Paige turned her gaze slowly to Azzi, one eyebrow lifting. “Did she now.”

Azzi’s cheeks turned a shade of light pink, but she didn’t look embarrassed. She just smiled at Paige and shrugged.

“I said if he beats me,” Azzi said, and her eyes flicked down to Theo with mock seriousness.

Theo didn’t wait for further discussion. The word dinner had finally registered and he bolted past them toward the kitchen, yelling, “Mac and cheese!” like a rallying cry.

Paige watched him disappear down the hall, then turned back to Azzi. The brunette started to follow, but Paige reached out, fingers around Azzi’s wrist, stopping her mid-step.

Azzi turned, brows lifting slightly, questions shimmering in her warm brown eyes. Paige tugged her closer, just enough to steal a quick kiss. It was soft and sweet and somehow more intimate, or at least more domestic, than anything they’d done with their clothes off.

When she pulled back, Paige kept her hand wrapped around Azzi’s wrist and leaned in just enough to murmur, “Thank you for this.”

Azzi’s gaze held hers, her smile turning faintly smug. She squeezed Paige’s hand once, before leaning back in for another kiss.

“What are friends for?” Azzi said, voice light, but her eyes and the lingering kiss still tingling on Paige’s lips said something else entirely.

Snorting under her breath, Paige shook her head, lacing her fingers with Azzi’s as she led them toward the kitchen, filling her in on everything.

Dinner went about as smoothly as Paige expected dinner with Theo to go. Which meant it didn’t go smoothly at all.

The mac and cheese was apparently “too cheesy,” and the nuggets were “not the right shape,” as if Paige had personally molded them by hand herself and they weren’t in the usual dino shapes. He ate three bites, said he was full, then immediately tried to slide off his chair and sprint back to the living room to resume Paw Patrol.

Paige put her forearm out in front of him and shook her head. “Nope. You’re not done, mister.”

Theo’s eyes narrowed, a glower spreading across his face. “I’m not hungry.”

“You were hungry ten minutes ago.”

“Okay and now I’m full,” Theo shot back, dead serious.

Azzi, seated across from him, pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh. Her elbow was on the table, her chin resting in her hand, watching the standoff unfold.

Paige shot her a look that said don’t encourage him. Azzi’s eyes danced with mischief, but she stayed quiet.

Theo folded his arms dramatically. “I’m done.”

Paige inhaled slowly through her nose. Stewie’s voice echoed in her head—no sweets after dinner— but Paige stared at Theo’s stubborn face and made an executive decision.

“Okay,” she said, tone casual, pretending she wasn’t about to betray her best friend’s one rule. “If you eat five more bites, you can have a little ice cream.”

Azzi’s head whipped toward her.

Theo’s eyes lit up like he’d just won the lottery. “Ice cream?”

Paige nodded, holding her hand up, fingers extended for emphasis. “Five bites.”

Theo immediately started shoveling mac and cheese into his mouth with renewed purpose, chewing like his life depended on it, eyes locked on Paige like she might change her mind.

Azzi leaned back in her chair, eyebrows raised. “No sweets after dinner,” she murmured, just loud enough for Paige to hear.

Paige kept her face neutral and shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Azzi’s mouth twitched. “I seem to remember Stewie and Marta saying it was their one rule...”

Paige shrugged, the picture of innocence. “And yet here we are.”

Azzi’s laugh was quiet, and fond in a way Paige refused to read too closely.

Theo finished his five bites with theatrical flair, slammed his fork down, and announced, “I did it.”

“You sure did,” Paige said, getting up to hold up her end of the bargain.

She spooned a small scoop of ice cream into a bowl and set it in front of him, throwing a sheepish look at Azzi who just shook her head in response. But fuck it, what Marta and Stewie didn’t know, couldn’t hurt them.

Theo dug in, and by the time he was done ten bites later, he had a little smear of chocolate at the corner of his mouth and the satisfied glow of a toddler that knew they successfully manipulated two adults.

Paige wiped his face with a napkin. “Okay, bud,” she said. “Now you can play.”

Theo slid off his chair and immediately pivoted to Azzi, grabbing her hand. “Hide and seek,” he demanded.

Azzi looked at Paige as Theo dragged her toward the living room, like she was asking permission to be kidnapped, or maybe to be saved. Paige wasn’t sure, but waved them off all the same.

“Sure,” she said. “Let’s burn off the sugar I definitely didn’t give him.”

Azzi smirked. “Bribery is a bold parenting choice.”

“I’m not parenting,” Paige shot back, following them. “I’m surviving.”

Azzi just laughed as Theo launched into a tirade of his very specific hide and seek rules. After a few rounds of Theo finding Paige and Azzi, Theo planted his hands on his hips and announced, “Now Paige has to look for us.”

Paige nodded. “Fine. Go hide.”

Theo grabbed Azzi’s hand again and started pulling her away. Azzi stumbled half a step, laughing. As Paige watched them disappear down the hall together, for a split second, her brain offered up an absurd thought that made her want to laugh—he’s trying to steal my girl.

Paige followed them toward the hallway, smirk playing on her lips, and Azzi glanced back at her over her shoulder like she’d heard the thought. The smug grin that crossed her face made Paige’s stomach flip, but Azzi just lifted one shoulder in a helpless shrug as she let herself be dragged away.

Traitor.

Still, they had a game to play. Paige turned toward the wall, pressed her palms over her eyes, and started counting loudly. “One… two… three…”

Theo’s giggling echoed faintly as they ran.

By the time Paige hit twenty, the house had gone quiet. She turned around, scanning quickly, and started her exaggerated hunt, the way Theo liked it. She checked behind the couch, then behind the curtains.

“I’m gonna find you,” she called out, making her voice spooky. “I’m gonna find you so fast.”

A small snort came from the hallway closet, and sure enough, when she tugged it open she found Theo and Azzi were crammed inside. Theo burst out laughing the second Paige opened the door.

Paige made a dramatic gasp. “I gotchu little one.”

Theo screamed and Azzi just peered up at Paige with that same amused look, eyes crinkled at the corners as Paige extended her hand and helped her out.

They played a few more rounds before Paige’s eyes flicked to the clock and she realized it was getting late.

“Last game, Theo,” she warned, having learned he needed ample time to accept that the fun was ending.

He pouted, but nodded as he grabbed Azzi’s hand and dragged her away to hide.

Paige stood facing the wall again, hands over her eyes, counting. When she hit twenty, she turned around and started looking.

She found Azzi almost immediately, tucked under the dining room table, knees drawn up, her face half-hidden behind the edge of the chair. She held one finger to her lips in a playful shush, but Paige pointed at her and laughed. “Really? Under the table? What is it, amateur hour?”

Azzi shook her head. “I was letting you win.”

Paige laughed under her breath and then looked around the dining room. “Okay,” she said. “Where’s Theo?”

Azzi shrugged and they walked back into the living room together, scanning the area.

“Theo?” she called out.

Still nothing.

Her heart started to beat faster, her brain immediately running down every worst-case scenario. Theo was small. Theo was fast. Theo could get into literally anything if given a thirty-second window.

Paige moved back into the hallway, checking the bathroom, the laundry room, the coat closet. Her voice rose without her meaning it to.

“Theo, come on,” she said, forcing brightness into her tone even though inside she was kind of panicking while tearing through the house. “Game’s over. Come out.”

The panic hit her in a rush, even if slightly irrational. She pictured him slipping out the back door, climbing something, getting into cleaning supplies even though she knew those were kept locked away. Still, Paige’s mind painted horrors in vivid, unnecessary detail.

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Azzi said.

Paige shook her head, already moving again. “What if he got into something?” she said, voice tight. “What if he—”

“Paige,” Azzi interrupted, stepping into her path without blocking her completely. “He can’t leave the house. The doors are locked.”

Paige swallowed hard. “You don’t know him,” she muttered. “He’s… he’s inventive.”

Azzi’s expression softened, but she didn’t panic with Paige. She stayed level, which Paige clearly needed. Then again, Azzi was used to keeping her composure in high pressure situations, in front of thousands of people. “Relax,” she said, nodding once. “We’ll find him together.”

Paige took a shaky breath. Azzi reached for her hand briefly, squeezing once, and Paige felt a rush of calm wash over her.

“Theo,” Paige called, trying to keep her voice calm as they moved through the house. “This isn’t funny.”

When that was again met with silence from the usually giggly boy, Paige’s heart rose to her throat. She moved toward the pantry, yanking one cabinet open, then another. Azzi glanced toward the lower kitchen cabinets, where one was slightly ajar. She crouched, tapping the cupboard door lightly.

“Theo,” she said, voice suddenly gentle and coaxing. “If you’re in there, you’re really gonna freak Aunt Paige out.”

For a second, nothing happened. Then the cupboard door creaked and Theo’s face appeared in the narrow opening, eyes wide and mischievous.

Paige made a sound that was half sob, half laugh, and dropped to her knees so fast she knew there’d be a bruise on them come morning.

“Oh my God,” she breathed, and before Theo could even fully crawl out, she was pulling him into her arms.

Theo giggled, wrapped his small arms around her neck like he hadn’t just shaved a literal year off her life. “You found me,” he said proudly.

Paige squeezed him tight, eyes closed, relief flooding her veins. “Yeah,” she murmured into his hair. “I found you, but you scared me, bud. Quit being so good at hiding, okay?”

Theo pulled back just enough to look at her, still smiling. “Okay.”

Paige wasn’t sure she believed him. Actually, she was sure she didn’t, but that was a problem for another day.

She finally lifted her gaze over Theo’s shoulder and found Azzi watching them. Her expression had softened, a small smile on her mouth that wasn’t smug this time.

Paige held Theo a bit longer than necessary and tried not to think too hard about the way Azzi’s smile made her feel. She already had too many thoughts swirling in her head, she didn’t need to add this to the mix.

As Paige stood and announced it was bedtime, Theo reacted like she’d told him the world was ending.

“I’m not tired,” he whined, throwing himself to the ground.

Azzi shot Paige a look, clearly assessing how she would handle yet another showdown.

Paige just sighed, then softened her voice. “Sorry dude,” she said, crouching down so she was closer to his level. “You can stay up late for your moms tomorrow night but right now you gotta go brush your teeth.”

Theo’s eyes narrowed, but Paige held her ground. After a long beat, he sat up with exaggerated slowness, and finally dragged himself to his feet.

After at least double the amount of time required to brush teeth, Theo finally finished and spit in the sink dramatically.

Paige nodded in approval, then pointed down the hall to his bedroom. “Time for jammies.”

Theo inched himself into his bedroom and immediately went limp again, collapsing onto the floor near his dresser like he had no bones. “I’m not going to bed,” he repeated, as if saying it another time would suddenly convince Paige.

Paige stepped into the doorway and surveyed the room while Azzi hovered behind her. She smiled as an idea flashed through her head.

“Okay,” Paige said with a chipper tone. “Game time.”

Theo’s head lifted off the carpet a fraction. Paige knew him too well. He always was a sucker for games. “What kinda game?”

Paige pointed at his dresser. “The game where you try to get dressed in your pajamas before Azzi does ten pushups.”

Theo sat up completely now, interest sparking at the thought of a race. Then his eyes narrowed mischievously. He looked at Azzi, then back at Paige. “Fifty pushups.”

Paige didn’t even hesitate. “Deal.”

Azzi made a sound of immediate protest, sighing from the doorway. “Paige,” she groaned.

Paige shrugged like she was helpless, and really, they were at the mercy of a tiny dictator so what choice did she actually have. “He set the terms.”

Azzi shot her a glare, but she dropped down onto the floor nonetheless. Despite having a cross-country flight in her bones that day, coming off a three game stretch on the road.

“You’re ridiculous,” Azzi muttered.

Paige just half lifted a shoulder and smiled. “Gotta be creative sometimes.”

Azzi rolled her eyes and started banging out pushups like it was part of her nightly routine.

Theo shrieked with joy, scrambled to his feet, and yanked his pajamas out of the dresser. He pulled his shirt over his head so aggressively it got stuck around his elbows. Paige watched him fight with it, biting back a laugh, while Azzi kept going, counting reps, her hoodie bunching at her waist as she moved.

By the time she hit twenty-something, Azzi paused, blew out a breath, and tugged the hoodie up and over her head. The motion revealed the hard lines of her abs under the soft bedroom light, and Paige’s mouth went completely dry. Azzi tossed the hoodie aside and dropped back down in a short-sleeve shirt, and now there was nothing to hide the muscle in her arms as she kept going, triceps and shoulders working with each rep.

Paige had to press her tongue to the inside of her cheek to keep her face neutral. She bit her lip again, because apparently her body didn’t care that they were in a kid’s bedroom and she was technically supervising bedtime. Azzi looked hot and it had been a week since Paige had her hands on her.

Theo finally freed his arms, his gleeful shout pulling Paige’s brain out of the gutter. He shoved his arms through the sleeves of his pajamas, then hopped awkwardly as he tried to pull his pants on without sitting down.

Paige leaned against the dresser and watched Azzi, her chest doing that strange warm squeeze again. Azzi didn’t even look strained. She just looked fucking hot and Paige really wished Theo would just go to bed so she could find the two square feet of this house that there wasn’t a nanny cam on.

Finally, he yanked his pants up and thrust his arms in the air. “I win!”

Azzi dropped her knees to the floor and sat back on her heels, breathing a little heavier now. She glared at Paige but there wasn’t real anger behind it. “You are never allowed to set terms again.”

Paige grinned. “It worked,” she shrugged. “He’s dressed, isn’t he?”

Azzi pointed a finger at her in warning, but there was laughter dancing in her warm brown eyes.

Theo scrambled into bed with a satisfied huff, burrowing into the dinosaur sheets. Paige pulled the blanket up to his chest and smoothed it down, but he didn’t even look at Paige. He turned his head toward Azzi instead.

“I want Azzi to read my book.”

Paige pressed a hand to her chest, feigning offense as she sank onto the bed. “Wow,” she said dramatically. “I see how it is.”

Theo giggled, then leaned closer to Paige, whispering, “She’s a literal superstar Aunt Paige.”

Not that Paige needed the reminder, nor could she litigate the point because he was one hundred percent correct. Plus, the sight of Theo lighting up around Azzi was doing something to her that felt too vulnerable to examine.

“You got that right,” Paige said, ruffling his hair as she watched Azzi pick a book from the shelf and climb onto the edge of the bed.

Theo immediately scooted closer, snuggling into her side like he usually did with Paige. Paige rolled her eyes as Azzi opened the book and began reading in the dim glow of the bedside lamp.

Halfway through, Theo glanced toward Paige with a serious expression. “Aunt Paige,” he whispered.

Paige raised her eyebrows. “Yeah?”

“There’s not a lot of room,” Theo informed her, like Paige hadn’t noticed. “Can you sit on the floor?”

Paige stared at him, then mumbled under her breath. “Oh, can I?”

Theo nodded loosely, his head bobbling, already snuggling back into Azzi like the matter was settled.

Paige shook her head, amused, but lowered herself to the floor beside the bed all the same. The carpet was soft under her legs, so at least that was one thing going for her as she watched Theo get cozier with her girl. And from down here she could see the curve of Azzi’s profile as she read, the way her eyes tracked the words, the subtle curve of her perfect lips.

Paige suddenly didn’t mind the floor. Not really.

She sat with her back against the wall, listening, letting the sound of Azzi’s soft voice fill the room. It was different than hearing it over the phone. Different than the low, breathless way it sounded when Azzi was in Paige’s ear, when Paige’s hands were on her and Azzi was trying not to make too much noise.

Azzi finished the book after a minute and closed it gently. Theo yawned, a big one, and Paige felt relief roll through her like a wave. They were almost there. Almost at the part where Theo went to sleep and Paige could exhale, but more importantly, finally get a minute alone with Azzi.

Paige stood up and smoothed down her hoodie. “Okay,” she said, keeping her voice gentle. “You can listen to two songs. Then it’s time to sleep.”

Theo held up three fingers immediately. “Three.”

Paige shook her head. “Two.”

Theo looked at Azzi like she would negotiate for him. The corner of her mouth curled, but she stayed quiet, seemingly content to let Paige and Theo battle it out themselves.

Theo sighed dramatically. “Fine,” he grumbled as Paige queued up his bedtime playlist.

As the first notes bled from the speaker, Azzi slid off the bed and gave Theo’s hair a gentle ruffle. “Goodnight,” she whispered.

Theo smiled sleepily. “Night, Azzi.”

Paige slipped onto the bed, settling in next to Theo. “I’ll be right out,” she murmured to Azzi who nodded, gaze lingering on Paige’s face like she wanted to say something but didn’t.

Paige watched her go, and two songs turned into three, because Theo somehow had the power to extend bedtime by sheer force of will. And then there was a request for the potty and then another for water. By the time Paige finally tucked him in for real, the room was dim and quiet and Theo’s eyes were heavy.

Paige leaned down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Goodnight, buddy,” she whispered. “Love you.”

Theo mumbled something sleepy in response, his small hand reaching for her for a second, before dropping back to the blanket.

Paige tucked the sheets around him carefully, turned on his sound machine, and stood there for a moment, watching his chest rise and fall until she was sure he was drifting.

Then she turned off the lamp, stepped out of the room and pulled the door shut. She tiptoed down the hallway quietly because she didn’t want to tempt fate after finally getting Theo to sleep. Thankfully, socked feet muted her steps as she plodded down the hall.

When she wandered back into the main area, Paige expected to find Azzi on the couch, maybe scrolling her phone or half asleep with her head tipped back after an exhausting day of travel.

Instead, Paige followed the faint sound of running water and found her in the kitchen.

Azzi stood at the sink with her sleeves pushed up, shoulders relaxed, hands submerged in soapy water as she scrubbed the pot Paige had used. The soft overhead light cast a warm glow over the counter, over the mess Paige had left behind in the scramble of bedtime.

Paige stopped in the doorway, just watching for a moment.

It hit her in a strange way, the sight of Azzi in the kitchen doing something so ordinary. Paige had spent the last few weeks holding Azzi in her head as something bright and untouchable, the kind of person who existed on televisions and magazine covers and arena jumbotrons and in her phone.

But here Azzi was, standing barefoot in a hoodie, washing dishes.

A weirdly domestic feeling settled into Paige’s chest, a complex mix of emotions coursing through her veins because her mind drifted to Azzi in her kitchen, and Azzi washing dishes after them eating together. Not that Paige would actually let her but she could certainly try. Paige didn’t want to read too much into it though, so she crossed the kitchen in a few silent steps and slipped in behind Azzi.

Azzi didn’t startle or stiffen. She just hummed softly as Paige wrapped her arms around her waist and pressed her forward gently into the counter, enough to make her intentions clear. Paige lowered her face to the side of Azzi’s neck and kissed her slowly, letting her mouth linger and her breath warm Azzi’s skin.

Azzi’s hum deepened, a sigh of content slipping from her mouth as she tipped her head to the side in invitation, giving Paige more room. Paige smiled against her neck as Azzi rocked back into her, just enough to make Paige’s grip tighten.

“Mm,” Paige murmured, kissing the curve beneath Azzi’s ear. “You’re trouble.”

Azzi’s hands kept moving in the water, but her body melded into Paige’s. “Says you,” she replied, voice low.

Paige slid her hands down to Azzi’s wrists, fingers closing over them gently. She guided the pot and sponge out of Azzi’s grip, lifting them free like she was disarming her, then set them in the sink. Pressing her mouth back to Azzi’s neck, her voice turned soft. “You don’t need to do that, baby.”

The word slipped out and Azzi went still for half a beat, before letting out a quiet breath and leaning back into Paige again. “I’m just trying to be helpful. I know you had a long day at work.”

And my God this was so domestic. Paige wanted to punch herself.

Instead, she snorted softly against Azzi’s skin. “Coming from the woman who had a cross-country flight after a week-long road trip.”

Azzi’s laugh was soft as she dropped her head back against Paige’s chest. “It wasn’t that bad.”

Paige kissed Azzi once more, then loosened her arms, letting her go with reluctance, and trying to nudge her out of the way. She turned toward the sink to finish the dishes herself, but Azzi caught her hands before she could.

“No,” Azzi said simply, slapping her hands gently and grabbing the sponge. “Grab a towel,” she instructed, her tone leaving absolutely no room for argument. “You can dry.”

Paige stared at her for a second, then laughed under her breath. “Yes, ma’am,” she threw out with a mock salute.

Azzi’s smirk grew. “Love a woman that can take directions.”

Paige’s heart seized at the words, her mind glitching for a second because they both knew she would absolutely take directions from Azzi. Any and all.

Now wasn’t the time to get into that though, so Paige just rolled her eyes and reached for a dish towel. She stood beside Azzi at the counter, close enough that their shoulders brushed. Every time Azzi handed her a dish, the feeling came rushing back. That unsettling warmth. Paige’s body was cataloging this as something it wanted, despite trying to keep it in check because she wasn’t sure it was something she could actually have.

She tried to treat it like what it was: a weird night, a one-off, a moment.

But honestly, it didn’t feel like a one-off thing. Or maybe Paige just didn’t want it to be.

Azzi scrubbed, Paige dried, and the whole thing felt intimate in a different way. More intimate than the heavy kisses and wandering hands, even more intimate than the way Azzi had sounded when Paige had her pinned to a wall.

When they were done washing the dishes, Paige loaded and shut the dishwasher, leaning against the counter. Then she cleared her throat and opened the fridge, mostly to give herself something to do with her hands. “You want a drink?” she asked, keeping her tone casual.

Azzi glanced over her shoulder. “Sure,” she said. “A beer sounds good.”

Paige nodded, grabbing two IPAs from the top shelf. She popped the caps with ease and handed one to Azzi, gesturing toward the living room. “C’mon,” she said.

Azzi followed her, walking side by side, both of them moving slowly like their bodies had finally remembered exhaustion existed.

Paige sank into the couch first, letting her shoulders hit the soft cushions and her head fall back for a second. The beer was cold in her hand, the living room dim except for the lamp in the corner. She let out a deep sigh that felt like it came from her bones.

Then she turned her head toward Azzi, who had curled into the far end of the couch with her legs tucked up, hoodie sleeves pulled over her hands. She looked tired in a way that made her seem even more human, although Paige hated that she was so far away.

Paige exhaled softly, a laugh catching at the end. “I love Theo,” she said, shaking her head like she couldn’t believe she’d ever volunteered for this job, “but I always forget how much work it is.”

Azzi’s smile broke across her face immediately. She lifted her beer in a small toast. “Yeah,” she agreed with a chuckle. “I feel the same when I watch Julien.”

“Before or after the shooting clinic that you put him through?” Paige said with a smirk.

“Fuck you,” Azzi laughed, palyfully nudging Paige’s knee with her foot.

And Paige certainly had been trying to do just that before the universe intervened and kidnapped their night.

Instead of responding to the loaded statement, Paige took a sip of her beer and let the bitter bite settle on her tongue. Azzi shifted beside her, adjusting her position on the couch. The movement was small, but Paige tracked it anyway, hyperaware of the way she subconsciously shifted closer.

Azzi stared at the floor for a second, then lifted her gaze and asked, almost casually, “Do you want kids one day?”

The question landed like a stone in still water, sending ripples through Paige’s brain. She blinked, caught completely off guard. It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about it. Paige had thought about everything, usually at three in the morning when her brain turned into a disaster machine and she couldn’t shut it off. But it was the way Azzi said it that was most unsettling.

She swallowed, trying to keep her face neutral even as her mind scrambled. “Uh… Yeah. I definitely do.”

Azzi’s eyes stayed on her, steady and attentive. Then she nodded in understanding.

Paige shrugged, rolling her beer bottle between her palms. “I always pictured having kids. Maybe two or three,” she admitted. “I don’t know about right now,” she added dryly, “but… yeah. Definitely one day.”

Azzi nodded again and Paige tried really hard not to think about what it meant that Azzi wanted to know.

Paige glanced at her. “What about you?”

Azzi didn’t answer right away.

She brought her beer to her mouth, took a sip, and stared at the bottle. The quiet stretched, heavy with something unspoken.

“Yeah,” Azzi said finally. Her voice sounded a little different now, less playful. “I do.”

Paige’s stomach tightened at the way Azzi’s eyebrows knitted together like she was in deep thought.

Azzi took another sip. “A couple years ago, Mark and I were actually trying.”

Paige hated the name Mark the way she hated nails on a chalkboard and a last minute shot rimming out. Most of all, she hated the thought of someone who didn’t deserve Azzi having that kind of history with her. Paige kept her face calm anyway, because she wasn’t going to make this about her jealousy when Azzi was opening up.

Still, the bitterness hit the back of Paige’s throat like a second swallow of IPA.

Azzi’s fingers tightened around the bottle. “But it just wasn’t in the cards for us,” she continued, voice tight, almost measured. “And then… he stopped really trying… in all facets of our marriage.” Her mouth twisted slightly as she chewed the inside of her cheek. “So I took that as a sign and just put it on the back burner.”

Paige watched her, gut churning, wanting to reach across the couch, pull Azzi into her lap, and tell her she deserved so much better than someone who made her feel like that.

Azzi exhaled, shaking her head. “In hindsight, I’m glad it never happened,” she added quietly. “Because I wouldn’t want to be saddled with him for the rest of my life.”

Paige nodded slowly. Her jaw ached from how hard she was clenching it, trying to keep her true thoughts on the matter in.

“How is that all going?” Paige asked after a beat, carefully, like she was stepping onto thin ice. “The divorce and all.”

She tried to keep her voice neutral, but was pretty sure she failed. There was an edge in it that Paige couldn’t fully sand down. She wanted Azzi free. She wanted her untethered from a man who didn’t appreciate her or deserve her. She wanted her available in a way Paige didn’t even know how to ask for yet.

Azzi shrugged one shoulder like the whole thing was annoying rather than life-altering. “No new developments,” she said. “Just Mark being an asshole still.”

Paige’s lips pressed together. She wanted to ask more; what that meant, what it looked like, what Azzi needed, how Paige could help. But she also knew there were lines she didn’t have the right to cross yet. They were still figuring out the shape of each other and what this really was. Paige didn’t want to push too hard and make Azzi retreat.

So she swallowed the questions and instead said the truest thing she could think of.

“I’m glad you didn’t…” Paige murmured, voice low.

“Didn’t what?” Azzi hummed, eyes on the label of her bottle.

“Have a kid with him.”

Azzi’s gaze snapped to Paige’s, and Paige held it, even though her chest was pounding, and didn’t pull the words back. Because she was glad. She was selfishly, fiercely glad Azzi wasn’t tied to Mark forever. Paige didn’t want to share Azzi with him in any capacity. She didn’t want him to be a permanent thread through Azzi’s life.

She wanted Azzi tied to her.

The thought came unbidden, loud in Paige’s head, vivid enough that it made her stomach do a few sommersalts. A house. A family. A kitchen where they washed dishes together after bedtime, where Paige kissed Azzi’s neck and Azzi laughed and swatted her away after a long day of work. Paige could see it so clearly it scared her, a redo of tonight a thousand times over but with the life they built together.

Paige didn’t know how to ask for that, though. So she didn’t.

She just held Azzi’s gaze and tried to read what was in her eyes, tried to figure out if Azzi was thinking anything even remotely similar or if Paige was alone in her delusion.

Finally, Paige cleared her throat, the moment stretching too long as she fumbled for a way out of this seriousness. “Thank you again,” she said, forcing her voice lighter, like she hadn’t just imagined a future between them that Azzi was not even remotely aware of. “For tonight. I’m sorry things got derailed. I know it wasn’t exactly what either of us were planning.”

A small smile curled onto Azzi’s lips. “Don’t apologize,” she said immediately, waving her off.

Paige opened her mouth to argue out of habit, but Azzi kept going.

“I know how much they mean to you,” Azzi said, her tone steady and sure. “And it says a lot about you that you always show up for the people you love.”

Paige’s heart stuttered.

The people you love.

She tried to tell herself it was a normal phrase. But truthfully, the way Azzi said it felt weighted. Paige didn’t get a chance to respond, which she was honestly grateful for, not sure that anything that slipped from her lips would be anywhere near coherent.

Azzi reached over, took Paige’s half-empty beer right out of her hand, and drank the rest of it in one easy chug. Then, she set their bottles on the coffee table with a soft clink, and shifted her body toward Paige.

Before Paige could even process what was happening, Azzi climbed onto her lap, knees bracketing Paige’s hips, straddling her with undeniably sexy confidence. Paige’s hands lifted automatically, finding Azzi’s waist easily.

Azzi looked down at her, eyes dark and searching, smirk tugging at her lips as her thumb traced Paige’s bottom lip. “If you really want to thank me, though, I can think of a few ways…”

The playful note was gone now, replaced by something edgier. All she could do was swallow down the dry knot in her throat, fingers tightening at Azzi’s sides.

The night had been nothing like they planned, but Azzi didn’t give Paige time to overthink anything.

Azzi leaned in first, closing the space between them with a kiss that felt like she’d decided they’d spent enough time talking. Paige’s hands pressed into Azzi’s waist, and the soft pressure of Azzi’s body molded to hers made Paige’s brain short-circuit in the exact way it always did around Azzi. It didn’t matter how tender the conversation had just been. It didn’t matter that they’d been talking about kids and divorce and futures Paige wasn’t ready to name.

Azzi kissed like she was desperate for it.

Paige groaned quietly into it, tugging Azzi closer. Azzi shifted on her lap and Paige’s palms slid down, finding the curve of Azzi’s ass through the soft cotton of the sweats, squeezing. Azzi made a soft sound against Paige’s mouth and rocked forward just enough to make Paige’s pulse spike.

Paige’s thoughts scattered, messy and hungry, but one stupid practical thought cut through the haze like a neon warning sign.

Nanny cams.

Marta’s voice echoed in her head about the nanny cams she knew were scattered throughout the house.

Paige half laughed into Azzi’s mouth, breathless, as if the absurdity might save her from the fact that she was about to become blackmail material in her best friend’s living room. She tried to pull back just enough to say something, but Azzi chased her, kissing her harder, hands sliding up Paige’s neck, fingers tangling lightly at the base of her hair.

Paige gave up, not that she really tried to fight the urge or that she physically could when Azzi was sitting in her lap like that, and kissed her back like she intended to make good on the promises they’d made to each other over text the last few days.

It got sloppy fast, the kisses turning frantic and messy enough to make Paige forget there was a world outside this couch and this girl straddling her. Azzi’s mouth was warm and insistent, and Paige couldn’t stop her hands from roaming, one palm sliding beneath the hem of Azzi’s hoodie, skin hot under her fingertips.

Azzi pulled back just enough to breathe, their foreheads touching.

Paige’s eyes flicked to Azzi’s mouth, swollen and shiny. Her own heartbeat was a loud, ridiculous thing in her ears.

“You’re going to get us arrested,” Paige murmured, and it came out rough, half a joke and half a plea.

Azzi smiled like she liked the idea. “For what?”

“For indecent exposure,” Paige shot back, fingers slipping under the back of Azzi’s sweatpants to meet lace. “They got nanny cams.”

Azzi laughed softly, shrugged, then kissed her again, deeper, and Paige lost her train of thought entirely.

For a few perfect seconds, it felt like they might actually get away with it. Like Theo would stay asleep and the night would finally tilt back into what it was supposed to be—Paige and Azzi, alone in the quiet. Her mind raced ahead to all of the obscene things she could do to Azzi to make up for the week they lost. Things she’d trade a week of babysitting for if Marta promised to delete the nanny came footage before Stewie found it.

Then, because the universe literally could not get the fuck out of her way tonight, the hallway door creaked open.

The sound was quiet, but Paige heard it like a gunshot.

She froze so fast her body went rigid under Azzi. Azzi seemed to sense the shift instantly, pausing mid-kiss, brows drawing together in confusion.

And then… little feet, barefoot on the hardwood, running down the hall.

Paige’s eyes went wide. Azzi barely had time to blink before Paige’s hands were guiding her off her lap with urgent, frantic speed, all but tossing her sideways onto the couch cushions in a not-gentle, extremely unromantic, heave. Azzi landed with a surprised huff, eyes still wild.

Paige wiped her mouth hard with the back of her hand trying to erase the evidence. She sat up straight in record time, smoothing down her clothes just as Theo appeared in the doorway, pajamas rumpled and very awake, clutching his blanket in one fist.

“I can’t sleep,” he whined.

Paige’s heart was pounding so hard she could barely hear him over it. She forced her face into something calm, something normal, even though her lips were still tingling and Azzi was right beside her, breathing a little too fast.

“You can’t?” Paige repeated, like this was not the most predictable outcome in the history of babysitting.

Theo shook his head solemnly. “No. I tried.”

Paige glanced at Azzi, who was still slightly wide-eyed, hoodie crooked, cheeks flushed, hair messy in a way Paige would’ve liked to appreciate under different circumstances. Azzi’s mouth curved like she was fighting a laugh.

Paige narrowed her eyes at her, a silent warning of do not encourage this.

Theo trudged over to the couch, climbing up without waiting for permission. Paige knew immediately it was a losing battle. Theo had tasted victory tonight. He had eaten ice cream after dinner. He had made Azzi Fudd do pushups. He was not going to be easily defeated and there really wasn’t any point in trying.

Paige exhaled, resigned. “Okay,” she sighed, scooching over. “Come here.”

Theo crawled between them without hesitation and Paige reached for the throw blanket draped over the armrest and pulled it around him, tucking it at his sides. Azzi shifted closer too as Paige grabbed the remote and scrolled until she found his favorite movie.

She hit play and Moana filled the screen. Theo immediately settled, his body relaxing as the opening music started. He scooted closer until his head ended up in Paige’s lap and Paige’s hand found his hair automatically, fingers combing through it in slow, soothing strokes.

Her other arm lifted and draped around Azzi’s shoulders, pulling her in just slightly.

Azzi smiled and leaned into the contact, her head tipping toward Paige, her body pressing close as she pulled Theo’s legs onto her lap.

Paige stared at the TV for a moment before pulling her gaze away. She looked down at Theo’s face, soft and sleepy now, lashes already drooping. Then she glanced at Azzi, tucked against her side, eyes on the screen but expression distant.

It was such a strange picture. Paige, in her best friends’ living room, a child that wasn’t hers sprawled in her lap, a woman she was trying not to fall for tucked into her side, Moana playing in the background.

Her throat went dry again. She kept stroking Theo’s hair, kept her arm around Azzi, and let herself sit in the moment without trying to ruin it with questions or fear or what-ifs.

Those were problems for another day.

Because as Theo’s breathing evened out and Azzi’s head dropped onto her shoulder, Paige realized—quietly, almost reluctantly—that this might be the happiest she’d ever been.

Read Chapter 13

#cyfabh

Trending Tags

Recently Viewed Tags

#cyfabh