“Want to tell me about it?”
“It’s not something I can easily talk about. You and I going out... I don’t know if it’s a good idea.”
“It definitely isn’t.” The conviction in his voice had me laughing out loud.
“Why do it then?”
“Because I can’t stop thinking about you. And you haven’t admitted it, but I have a feeling that you’re thinking about me more than you’re letting on.”
“Is that so? Presumptuous of you, don’t you think?” I teased.
“I can prove it.”
I bet he could. My toes curled at the promise in his voice.
“Besides, you’d be doing everyone a favor,” he went on.
“What do you mean?”
“Let’s see. Most of my team is avoiding me or scared of me. My business partner is playing referee because I’ve apparently been on an asshole spree since I’ve been back from Rome. He was so desperate that he actually asked my sister to find out what was up with me. We only do that under extreme circumstances.”
“I sort of figured that out.” I was smiling from ear to ear now. Cole had surprised me from the evening I met him, but this was on an entirely different level. I put a hand on my belly, where I felt a strange rumble. Were these butterflies? I hadn’t felt those in years. Cole was waking up this side of me that had been dormant.
“I need to see you again. Kiss you. Explore you...”
I gasped, straightening up. A hot current shot through me, straight between my thighs.
“Cole...”
“Just tell me when you have time for a drink or dinner.”
“Let’s see... I’m working four twelve-hour shifts this week... and I’m working one night this weekend.”
“Sounds like you’d benefit from someone taking your mind off things.”
“Well, yes, but after a shift, I usually just grab something on the go and crash as soon as I’m home.”
“I’m very good at taking care of you.”
His voice was deliciously raw. Just like that, I was on fire. And I did want to see him. He’d awoken so many things inside me in the two days we spent together that I couldn’t help wondering what would happen if I saw him again. I had to stop being afraid. I wanted to.
“Fine, Mr. Winchester. Meet me at the back entrance of the hospital tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. I might be late, but hopefully I’ll manage to message you if that’s the case. And then we can do whatever you want.”
“My pleasure.”
Now that I’d taken this leap, I couldn’t wait to see him. Tomorrow was going to be crazy at the hospital, but I didn’t want to give myself too much time—I might chicken out.
After hanging up, I was even more giddy, but I didn’t have time to daydream about tomorrow, because I was already late to Isabelle’s.
The Uber driver gave me the side eye because I insisted on keeping the espresso machine next to me instead of putting it in the trunk. I couldn’t wait to see my best friend, tell her everything. I’d told her about my day with Cole in Rome, but this was different. I needed all the advice I could get.
Isabelle’s apartment was in the Parkchester neighborhood in the Bronx, a forty-minute ride from my apartment. It was really pretty. The buildings were mostly red brick, and they only had between six and ten stories. The walkways connecting the buildings were full of bushes and trees that were starting to turn green now that spring was here.
I clutched the espresso machine with both hands, pressing the doorbell with my elbow.
When she opened the door, her eyes widened as she took in the box.
“Oh my God. You brought that with you from Italy?”