I nodded and made an effort not to talk about his home. Regardless of how much I liked it, he clearly wasn’t comfortable. What was he going to think when he came to my house? He’d have to come as soon as possible to just get it out of the way.
We actually went over a few more of our favorite things as we ate. It seemed strange to feel this comfortable with a person I had only met a week ago.
“Do you cook? You have some quality appliances.”
Liam burst out laughing.
“Sorry, you are the first person to ever compliment my appliances. You’re such a ray of sunshine, Isabella. And yes, I do… cook.”
I blushed at the compliment and smiled.
“I’ll make you dinner next week. You can help.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“What will we make?”
Rolling my eyes, I hit him playfully in his arm.
“Italian, duh. I’ll bring the ingredients. If you’re lucky I might even share some secret Italian recipes.”
Hopping on the counter, Liam looked at me, amused.
“Will you make me the infamous zeppoles you were cheating on the other day?”
Grinning, I shook my head.
“Papa would kill me, but I will bring some with me already made. For the sake of our friendship, of course. My family would never believe I would date someone who didn’t know what a zeppole was.”
Reaching out, he pulled me toward him. I looked up at him and rested my arms against his legs as he brushed a lock of my hair behind my ear. Why was I not madly in love with him? He was gorgeous and so sweet. If this was Marco, I would have been a puddle of mush on the ground already.
“What else should I know about your family? I don’t want to make a bad impression. Especially since I am planning on sticking around after this assignment. You’re already the closest friend I have in this school.”
I bit my lower lip and sighed.
“They are just a lot to handle, so the main thing you need to know is just to kind of go with the flow. My family is loud. So maybe wear earplugs.”
Liam laughed.
“I think I will like loud. Everything here is always so quiet. It will be a nice change.”
We stood there smiling at each other for a minute before he motioned to the next room.
“I think it is time you become familiar with the wonderful world that is Netflix.”
Laughing, we moved to his bedroom and settled on his super comfortable couch. I finally got to start watching theFormula One – Drive to Surviveseries. My father would love it. Liam knew way more about Formula One than I thought he did. Once we started bringing him into my world, he would have to come over and watch a race with my dad and I. He’d win major points, and Dad might forget about Marco and my broken heart. Maybe even I would too.
Liam
I couldn’t help but keep glancing at Isabella as she watched the show. Her face was filled with so many emotions and I don’t even think she realized it. As odd as it was, she clearly loved Formula One. Isabella turned her eyes toward me.
“I can’t wait to watch more of them. You can forget aboutThe Golden Girlsnow. This is my new favorite show.”
My smile was impossible to hide. Not only was it ridiculous that her favorite show had beenThe Golden Girls, but seriously, what teenage girl would replace it with a documentary series about Formula One racing? Just one. Isabella was one of a kind.
“Do you have any idea how adorable you are?”
She blushed at me again, which only added to my amusement. I was fairly certain I was going to make it my mission to make her smile and blush as often as possible.
