“Yeah, when she’s not scolding me for existing.” But I say it with a smile on my lips. “Thank you for coming today. It meant a lot to Ingrid. She’s been dying to show off her new cooking skills, and you hiring me was the perfect excuse.”
Romilly shifts on her feet. “I should probably get going.”
I can’t deny how badly I want her to stay. Her leaving right now feels much too soon. I know I’m in trouble because it seems no matter how much time I spend with her, I only want more. I really need to get a hold on myself and remember all the reasons I should leave her alone. “Are you busy today?”
She shakes her head. “Nope. It’s my designated day of rest. I take one every week.”
“Let’s go do something fun.”
She arches an eyebrow. “What’s your definition of fun, Bash?”
“We could rob a bank. Set a hospital on fire.” When she laughs, I nudge her shoulder with mine. “See? I got you to smile. I can’t be that bad.”
She tries to stop smiling and completely fails, that adorable grin lighting up her entire face. “Nothing dangerous?”
“No promises.”
“Fine.” She shakes her head like she can’t believe she’s agreeing to this. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Fourteen
ROMILLY
“Areyou ever going to fix your car?” I ask, gesturing toward the warning lights on the dashboard as we get in.
“Too expensive, but that won’t be a problem soon, will it, sponsor?”
I laugh. “Not if my rating goes up, it won’t. But I wouldn’t hold your breath after what happened yesterday.”
Bash’s gaze softens, but he doesn’t say anything. He probably knows nothing he says could comfort me about that mess. And I’m too scared to look at my reviews to see if anyone mentioned me rescheduling them after their dogs had already been waiting at my salon for hours.
“Stop fretting,” he says. “You’re riding with Sebastian Black. Which means only fun and wildly irresponsible ideas are allowed from here on out.”
I snort. “Right.”
I’m probably going to regret this later. Letting Bash surprise me with a “good time” can’t be a wise idea. I should probably make him pull over and let me out now while we’re still downtown. That way I could get a maple lavender latte and text Addison to come meet me. We could sit outside Old Joe’s andsip our drinks, watching orange and yellow leaves fall and get crunched under the feet of those walking by. It sounds like the perfect autumn afternoon. I know I should do it.
But deep inside…I want to keep spending time with Bash. And that scares me.
“At least give me a hint about where we’re going,” I say.
“Not a chance, pumpkin.”
“Are we going to be indoors or outdoors? What if I’m not dressed nice enough?”
He glances at me before turning back to the road but just laughs to himself.
“Give me a hint, Sebastian.”
He grins. “No.”
My mouth falls open. “Why not? I mean, this romperisan Iris Lily, so it’s one of a kind, but still. What if it’s not right for what we’re doing?”
“I have no idea what an Iris Lily is.”
“It’s my favorite boutique.”
He chuckles. And then after a semi-long pause, says, “You always look nice, Romilly. No…niceisn’t the right word. Beautiful might be, but even that seems insignificant.”
