Page 10 of Rush

“Stop saying that,” I hiss, cheeks burning as I try to gather the scraps of my composure.

But it’s useless.

Because as much as I wanted to deny whatever it was that passed between Broderick and me, Riley saw it—felt it, probably—from across the room.

Yet I couldn’t deny the reason he was here was because Alex left a gaping hole where he should have been, and even for a short moment, it was nice to forget what he’d done, the damage he’d left.

And now that the bubble had burst, I’m left standing here, with nowhere to hide.

“So...are we gonna talk about this?” Riley asks, lookingwaytoo pleased with herself as she perches onto the stool, leaning on her hands like she’s settling in for a show. “Or should I start picking out my bridesmaid’s dress now?”

Broderick chuckles, but when I glance at him, there’s something softer in his eyes—instead of answering her, he pushes off the counter and reaches for another plate.

“Eat,” he says, glancing at me with a knowing look. “You’re gonna need your strength.”

“For what?”

He stifles a smile, and Riley raises a brow in unison, as if they both know something I don’t.

“To surviveherinterrogation,” Broderick says, jerking his chin towards Riley.

Clearly unfazed by her wide-eyed, disheveled appearance—or by the absolute mess of tension still clinging to the room.

“You want something to eat before I head out?” he offers Riley, already reaching for another plate as if this were justanotherlazy Sunday morning with friends.

Riley blinks at him, thrown off for all of two seconds. “Wait,youmade breakfast?”

“Don’t sound so surprised.”

Riley’s eyes narrow suspiciously, but when her stomach lets out a loud growl, she caves, throwing her hands up. “Fine. But only because I’m starving, not because I’m endorsing...whateverthisis.”

I shoot her a glare. “There is no‘this’.”

She gives me a slow, devilish smile. “Sure. Keep telling yourself that.”

I try to laugh with her, to let her pull me back into the normal. But it feels like wearing someone else’s skin—too tight, too wrong.

Broderick chuckles as he hands her a plate, then checks his watch and sighs. “Unfortunately, I’ve got to head out. Flight back to London.”

My stomach dips in a way I don’t want to examine.

“Okay.”

His eyes flick to mine, holding them for a long moment. “I’ll be back in New York in a week.”

Something in the way he says it—heavy with an unspoken wish to stay—presses the breath from my ribs.

But before I could say anything else, he was moving towards the door.

“You two enjoy breakfast,” he says, glancing over his shoulder with a grin that is far too smug for my liking. “Try not to gossip about me too much.”

“Not making any promises,” Riley quips back, her mouth already full of food.

Broderick laughs and turns to me, his gaze softens for a second. “See you soon?”

I nod, swallowing thickly. “Yeah. Safe flight.”

And with that, he was gone, the door clicking softly behind him and I’m left standing in the kitchen with breakfast in hand and one very nosy best friend.