We share a moment of hesitation before she says, “Would you like a slice?”
I grin. “You didn’t think you were just gonna eat that in front of me, did you?”
She laughs, turning to grab some plates because Chelsea doesn’t eat pizza out of a box, oh no. “I didn’t think men like you ate junk food.”
I chuckle, leaning on the kitchen counter. “Men like me?”
“Gym junkies.”
“I’m not a gym junkie,” I scoff. “And trust me, I eat plenty of junk food.”
“Right, but you work it off.”
Has she noticed?I fucking hope so…
“I’m not quite the saint you paint me as, Baby Girl.”
She hands me the plate and our fingers brush. Our fingers have brushed several times over the years, but all of a sudden, I’m astonished to see that she’s looking back at me the same way I’m looking at her. Her breath hitches in her chest, enough for me to notice, anyway.
“Um, one slice or two?” she asks, breaking the reverie.
“One.” I pat my stomach. “Watching my weight.”
She rolls her eyes, flipping the lid on the box. “Mmm, pepperoni and cheese, you know your way around a woman’s favorite pie.”
She says it and the meaning is all wrong, even though I know she means fucking pizza. And why does my cock jerk in my pants? It’s because I went out tonight — a week night — and Ididn’t pick up. I didn’t go out intending to pick up; I went to hang out with my friends since they’re always calling me a pill. But now I’m thinking about sex — and her — and how fucking good she smells.
“The one thing I can do is order a mean takeout.” I grin, taking a bite and hope to god her eyes don’t travel south.
Chapter Eight
CHELSEA
“Mmm,” I say, my eyes rolling into the back of my head. I haven’t had my favorite pizza in forever, and it’s just what the doctor ordered. “So good.”
He watches me, his slice already gone, and I try to not let the heat rise in my cheeks.
Our fingers brushed.
There was a moment.
A slight one, maybe not a huge one, but it was still there, nonetheless.
“Sometimes you just need to give in,” he says. Why does my mind whirl somewhere else? Why does my brain immediately picture him shirtless, with his hands reaching for me like he did the other day in his office?
Yes, that memory is enough to quash any feelings I had of Brad taking me seriously. I didn’t mean to break down. It had just been such a crazy week, and I was excited for half a second before I saw the bank. For the first time in a long time, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. All the late nights, crazy hours, missed school events and weekends working, it was all going to be for something. But that dream was exterminated pretty quickly.
“Sometimes you just have to take the leap into the unknown.”
He watches me carefully. Just like he was in the office that day, when his eyes somehow darkened and he told me he didn’t like me being upset. Oh, I fully believed him, but that was Brad in full alpha mode, and my lady bits liked it.
“Seize the day?” He smirks.
“Carpe diem.”
“Touché.”
Are we still talking about the bakery?
