"Really?"
"Really." He kisses me lightly. "I should warn you, though—I make a terrible first impression on parents. I'm too intense."
"My dad will love you," I assure him. "Especially when he finds out you made the bread."
Brian smiles, but there's a hint of nervousness in his eyes now. "What time should I pick you up?"
"Six? I'll close the shop a little early."
"Perfect." He glances at his watch. "I should get going. I have a few calls to make, and I need to check on the office space."
"Will your car be okay this time?" I ask, only half-joking. "I'd hate for another battery incident."
He laughs, the sound rich and genuine. "Actually, the lease includes the parking lot out back. I'm having a charging station installed this week."
"You're really doing this," I say, the reality sinking in. "Setting up a permanent office here."
"I am." His gaze is steady. "I'm all in, Noa."
The declaration should terrify me. Instead, a warm certainty spreads through my chest—the same feeling I had three years ago when I decided to buy this bookshop, when I knew in my bones it was the right choice despite all logical arguments against it. He’s changing his life for me, for us.
"I'll see you at six," I tell him as he heads for the door.
He pauses, turns back with a smile that crinkles the corners of his eyes. "I'll be the one with the fully charged car."
After he leaves, I lean against the counter, trying to make sense of everything. Brian Klein is opening an office two doors down from my shop. He's meeting my family tonight. He's "all in."
And somehow, impossibly, I'm ready to be all in, too.
Mrs. Goldstein approaches the register with her book and a knowing smile. "Nice-looking man, your friend. Jewish?"
I laugh, scanning her purchase. "Yes, Mrs. Goldstein. He's a nice Jewish boy."
"Hmm, that man had Jaddy vibes." She nods approvingly.
My eyes fly wide. "Jaddy?"
My elderly customer wags a finger at me. "You know what I mean, dear. Your man is a Jewish zaddy. Very sexy."
I sputter and clutch a stack of books to my chest. "Mrs. Goldstein…I…"
She pats my arm. "Hold onto that one. Men who look at women the way he looks at you are rare."
As she leaves, I glance out the window to see Brian on the sidewalk, phone to his ear, gesturing emphatically as he talks. Mrs. Goldstein is right about his Jaddy status…I bite my lip.
Tonight, he'll meet my family. Tomorrow, who knows?
Chapter 18
Brian
My palms sweat as we approach Carol's front door, a phenomenon I haven't experienced since pitching my first multi-million-dollar endorsement deal over twenty years ago. Noa squeezes my hand reassuringly, the simple gesture somehow both calming and exhilarating.
"They're going to love you," she whispers, reaching for the doorknob.
Before her finger touches it, the door swings open, revealing a man in his sixties with Noa's eyes and curly hair gone mostly gray.
"You're late again," he says to Noa, then his gaze shifts to me. "And you brought a friend."
