Silence filled the car, until the Uber driver broke it with a low whistle. “Wow,” he said.
“Yeah,” Thad said, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Ridley means well,” Ashanti said. “She’s just a bit… blunt.”
“A bit?” Thad asked. “Hey, my man,” he called up to the Uber driver. “Any chance they sell charisma at Macy’s?”
“I think you have more than enough,” Ashanti said with a light laugh. “You just need to learn how to use it.”
He turned that grin on her, the one that made her heart do a two-step. “Guess I know what I’ll be doing tonight. Maybe I can find some videos on YouTube that’ll teach me how to be charismatic.”
“You can learn everything else on there,” the driver said.
23
Thad leaned against a door in the hallway opposite Ashanti’s room, which shared a wall withhisroom. Lord, help him.
He’d planned to get Thai food delivered for his dinner—a ritual whenever he visited New York—then fall to sleep watching season three ofThe Wire. But when Ashanti shared that this was her first time in New York, and that she had her heart set on seeing some of the city, his plans changed.
Thad pitched his head back against the door and pulled in a steadying breath. There was no need for him to feel this on edge. He had been with her all day, from their visit to his grandmother’s, which felt like a lifetime ago, to their appearance on that podcast. Why did it suddenly feel different—more significant—now that they would be together after the sun had gone down?
Maybe because he now knew this attraction wasn’t as one-sided as he’d first thought.
Whether what she felt was purely physical or something deeper didn’t matter. Knowing she wasn’t indifferent tohim—that she feltsomething—made him ache to push this thing between them in another direction. A non-platonic direction.
Was he even ready for that?
Things were finally starting to fall into place with The PX, but it felt as if, when it came to the rest of his life, he was still trying to find steady ground. He wanted the kind of relationship his grandparents shared. A bond built on trust and respect and an unbreakable commitment. But Thad knew that didn’t just happen; it required work. Was he prepared to put in that kind of effort?
He ran a hand down his face.
He was gettingwayahead of himself. He’d offered to show Ashanti around town so that she could get a little taste of New York, and that’s all that would be happening tonight. Period.
The door to Ashanti’s room opened, and Thad stood up straight.
“Sorry,” she said. “I know we said eight o’clock, but Duchess is being a bit fussy. She’s a creature of habit and this is a strange place.”
“Should I bring Puddin’ over? Would it be better if they kept each other company while we’re out?”
She tilted her head to the side and tapped her finger against her chin.
“Those two together? Unsupervised? I’m not sure about that.” She laughed that laugh that Thad felt on his skin. Every single time. “She’ll be fine. I leftSpongeBobplaying on the TV. He always calms her.”
Thad huffed out a laugh, shaking his head. “The way you all spoil these dogs.”
They started for the elevator, but then he stopped. “One minute. I forgot my wallet,” he lied, patting his pockets for emphasis.
He used his phone to unlock the door, and found Puddin’ curled up on the bed, his head on the pillow Thad had planned to sleep with. It was a good thing there were four. He picked up the remote, turned on the TV, and searched until he found ESPN.
“For the record, I am not spoiling you,” Thad said. “I just don’t want you disturbing the people in the next room with your barking when you get bored.”
Puddin’ released one of his whimpering sighs and turned so he faced the television.
Thad shook his head as he grabbed a chicken-flavored homemade biscuit from the container Ashanti had given him and threw it on the pillow. Two weeks ago he would have ordered this poodle into the bathroom and left him there with a bowl of water until he returned. When in the hell had he turned into one ofthosepeople? A dog person.
“I am not a dog person,” he told Puddin’. “I’ll see you when I get back.”
And now he was talking to the damn dog as if he understood a word he said. Just like a dog person.
