To Sir, with Love

by Lauren Layne

“Let me see it.” “What? No! Here,” I say, trying to maneuver Matteo into her arms. “Let’s trade. Your baby for my privacy.” Her jaw drops. “You never want privacy! You have a secret!” “I do not have a secret!” I do. I totally have a secret, and it’s delicious and also a tiny bit embarrassing to admit, even to someone who’s held my hair back over the toilet of a Coney Island bathroom after too much blue cotton candy.

Keva and her boss, Grady, have an intense I-hate-you-so-much-but-I-secretly-want-you vibe going on, and the rom-com lover in me is not-so-patiently waiting for them to get to the good stuff already.

“Think of it more as a newly discovered virus that goes by the name of Sebastian Andrews. Symptoms include nausea, extreme annoyance, and random surges of anger.”

If this isnt the best way to foreshadow enemies to lovers than what is

I like even less that when he notices me shiver and drops his coat over my shoulders, I stop thinking about Sir altogether.

“Because you said you loved him. Because you deserve your fairy-tale ending. And because I’d do anything for you, Gracie Cooper. Even if it means letting you go.”

“It’s you,” I say softly. “It’s always been you.” “Yes.” He whispers it, his hand lifting toward my face, hesitating. Then, very gently, he sets his fingers to my cheek, his thumb catching a tear I didn’t realize had fallen. “Yes.”

“I’m not the easiest guy to love. Not by a long shot, and I wanted—” He takes a deep breath. “I wanted you to love both Sebastian and Sir. Because I’m a selfish ass, and I wanted you to love both sides of me, as much as I love both sides of you. And because of what I said before—you deserve the fairy-tale ending, and I can only hope you’ll give me a chance to be yours, Gracie.”