“I never leave the toilet seat up or leave dishes in the sink overnight, so the answer will always be you.” A small smile graced Olivia’s lips when Sammy glared at her. “Fine, we can be adults about this. Truce.”
She grasped his hand, and a bolt of electricity almost knocked him on his ass. Judging by the shock that flared in her eyes, he wasn’t the only one affected.
Olivia’s smile faded, and Sammy’s heart crashed against his chest. They’d seen each other multiple times over the years, but this was their first skin-to-skin contact since she walked out of their apartment that fateful summer in New York. The chemistry was as devastating now as when they’d first started dating.
Fuck.This threw a wrench in Sammy’s plans. He’d thought he had better control over his hormones, but suddenly, all he could think about was how soft Olivia’s lips looked and how good she smelled—like freshly washed linens with a hint of jasmine.
Other than the sound of their breathing, it was silent. So silent he could hear his pulse thrumming in his ears.
Olivia stared up at him, the wariness in her eyes replaced by a heat that stirred him to life. If he leaned forward a few inches—
The loud, harsh ring of the doorbell shattered the spell that had kept them suspended in a state of tense anticipation.
They yanked their hands—still entwined in an unmoving handshake—apart and leapt back at the same time.
“I’ll get that—”
“I’ll unpack again—”
Their words overlapped and jumbled together.
Sammy ducked his head and got out of there like the hounds of hell were on his heels. Adrenaline pumped in his veins.
If someone hadn’t rung the bell...
He shook his head. He wouldn’t think about that now. He had bigger things to worry about—like the person on his front step.
There was only one person he knew who’d pop in unannounced on a Saturday afternoon.
Sure enough, his mother beamed when he opened the door. “Sammy!” She looked him over and clucked. “Have you been eating enough? You look thinner. I hope you haven’t been working too hard,” she said in rapid-fire Mandarin. “That’s what you hired employees for. You need rest.”
She said the same thing every time she saw him. If Sammy really had lost as much weight as she said he had, he’d be invisible.
“Hi, Mom.” He stepped aside so she could come in. “Let me take that for you.”
Amy Yu’s arms were laden with shopping bags from Wing Fa, a popular Asian supermarket near his parents’ house.
“No, no. I got it.”
She slipped off her shoes before winding her way to the kitchen. In her pale pink polo shirt, white cropped pants, white sneakers, and pink-and-white tennis visor, his mother looked as young and spry as someone in her thirties, even though she was pushing fifty-six.
“I was already at Wing Fa and thought I’d buy you some groceries.” Amy unloaded boxes of silken tofu, bunches of bok choy, and bags of frozen dumplings onto the marble counter. “When was the last time you had soup? You look tired. I’ll make you lotus root and pork soup,” she decided. “Good for energy.”
Sammy leaned against the kitchen island and folded his arms over his chest. “Okay, who is it?”
His mother blinked, innocent as a doe. “Who is who?”
“The girl. Who’s the girl you want to set me up with this time?”
Sammy was twenty-nine, hardly old or decrepit, but his mom had been on his case about getting married for years. She wanted grandchildren, and she wanted themnow.
Once she realized Sammy was nowhere as pressed about his marital status as she was, his mom took it upon herself to set him up with every eligible woman she knew. He’d indulged her in the beginning, but after more than a dozen blind dates—some okay, some downright horrible, none earth-shattering—his patience was wearing thin.
His mother knew it, too, which was why she always showed up with food whenever she wanted him to go on another matchmaking date. Food was his weakness.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Amy opened the freezer door and started stuffing the dumplings and shrink-wrapped foam trays of oxtail, pork, and beef inside. She’d bought enough groceries to feed a small army for a month. “By the way, are you going to dim sum tomorrow?” Her tone was casual. Too casual. “We haven’t seen you in weeks, and your grandparents miss you.”
Yep, she was definitely going to spring Mystery Woman on him at dim sum.