Page 148 of This Life of Mine

She grins. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

I smile back, unable to help myself. “Trust me—it’s not.”

But as I return to the stove, her eyes never leave me.

And I know—without a doubt—that staying in bed all day would be hazardously easy with her.

Especially if she keeps watching me like that.

She drums her fingers lightly against her mug as we eat, eyes on me in that way that says she’s not only making conversation—she’s circling something.

“Can I ask you something kind of awkward?” Lina says.

I glance up, amused. “Those are usually the best questions.”

She exhales, clearly debating how to phrase it. “I feel like this is strange because normally…you’d already know this. Dating apps don’t leave room for mystery.” She pauses, then looks at me again, hopeful but trying not to be obvious about it. “How old are you?”

I don’t miss the way her shoulders tense, like she’s bracing for an answer she won’t love.

“Thirty-seven,” I say easily.

The relief on her face is immediate. Unfiltered. And for some reason, that lands deeper than I expect.

“Oh,” she says, smiling now. “Okay. Good.”

“Good?” I repeat, arching a brow.

She laughs quietly. “Yeah. You’re just—“ She gestures vaguely at me. “Very fit. You can never really tell how old someoneis. I was just curious where we stood with the age gap. Your background check said thirty-seven, but I wasn’t sure how accurate it really was.”

I lift an eyebrow.

“You ran a background check on me?”

“I absolutely did.” She grins. “What? Does that make me crazy for looking you up?”

She winks, like she’s daring me to call her out.

A laugh escapes before I can stop it. Smart. Cautious. Exactly what she should’ve done.

“Good genetics,” I say with a shrug. “Consistent habits.”

“I’m thirty-six, as I'm sure you know,” she states. “So, that works.”

She's not wrong. I did already know that from her file.

“It does,” I agree. “Same general phase of life.”

“Same emotional mileage,” she adds.

“Just different roads.” I smile.

She nods, satisfied—and something about the way the tension leaves her tells me this mattered more than she let on.

I’m guessing a certain immature gym-bro had something to do with her concern.

Chapter forty-five

Alex