I grinned at him. “It’s going to be when the time’s right? Right?”
Hearing his words recited back to him, he looked away. Even in the dim light, I could tell Luca’s ears were red.
“Don’t tell anyone, but I think that’s sweet.”I squeezed his hand, wishing I was squeezing something else.
Gifting me a shy smile, he gave my nose a quick kiss before ushering me out of the car.
Carefully stepping around a chunk of missing asphalt and through the grass next to the sidewalk, I waved as the car pulled away.
“Wow.” Luca’s house was a classic three-story brick row house with a mirrored unit attached.
“You like it?”
“Uh. Yeah. This is real estate goals.” I turned and faced the park across the street. “I don’t think you could do much better.”
“It’s alright.” He chuckled as he unlocked the door to the duplex.
Staring at the trees and flowers, enjoying a rare cool summer breeze, I tried to check myself. Seeing his domestic as hell neighborhood made me comfortable. Pair that with how good Luca made me feel, and I was worried.
How mushy was I going to get?Sloshed Sashawasvery mushy. In my drunkenstate, I could finally be honest with myself.I loved how sweet he was. The fact he wanted our second first time to be special was beyond precious, even if it annoyed the hell out of me.
I loved how he seemed to like me, despite my pile of flaws. My family couldn’t even make that claim. Ashley was the only person to take on all this mess.
Scariest of all, I loved how easily I pictured myself with Luca. On paper, we didn’t make sense. Hell, in conversations we barely made sense, but there was something about him that was right. He felt like home.
Luca pulled from my spiraling thoughts, shouting my name from inside. “Sasha! You coming in or . . .”
Blushing like the foolish chump I was, I scurried inside. If I was going to successfully seduce one, Luca Moretti, I needed to get my head on straight.
Kicking off my stilettos, I dropped to my generous five-ten height. Luca slipped off his beautiful Italian leather dress shoes and continued to tower over me as few people did.
I followed him through the main floor as he pointed out rooms and things he thought I would find interesting. If pressed, I couldn’t have told you a damn thing about those rooms. All my focus was on the way his back flexed with each arm movement and how his long strides made his ass perfectly pinchable. My attention otherwise engaged, I ran into him when he stopped in a homey kitchen.
I spun around, taking in every detail. It was as if the design came from one of my notebooks. Butcher block countertops, white cabinetry, clean light fixtures,and top-of-the-line appliances all combined to form my idea of the perfect kitchen.
“Does it meet with your approval?” Luca’s hands skimmed my waist.
I leaned back into his embrace, his cologne enveloping me. “It does. It’s cozy, warm,and inviting. I expected granite and sleek lines, but this honestly feels more like you.”
He brushed my hair to one side and placed a kiss beneath my ear. “I’m glad you like it.”
Before I could turn and wrap myself around him, Luca let go and headed toward thestainless-steelfridge. “Now, do you want grilled cheese or pasta?”
The eternal battle raged in my body. Food or sex. Rarely did I have to choose. The champagne dancing through my body whispered sweet nothings of bubbly carnal pleasure, but my stomach complained of too fewhors d’oeuvresat the art gallery.
Luca started laughing. “You look like I asked you to decide which arm to cut off. Let’s go with grilled cheese. I want you to see just how variedmy skills are.”
I sat down at the kitchen island and watched Luca slice green apples.
“If you’re making me a grilled cheese, why are you cutting apples? Are you trying to make sure I get in a fruit serving?”
Luca smiled down at the apple he was cutting. “You really don’t cook, do you?”He finally looked up at me, his hair falling in his eyes. I shook my head and leaned over to brush it away. Like a good girl, I sat back in my seat and let him continue prepping our bougie, late-night snack. “It’s for the sandwich. I’m doing a green apple, bacon, gouda, andHavarti grilled cheese.”
My mouth hung open. “You can do that?”
He nodded.
“You are a god.”