“Of course, he knows.”
Rosalina sighed.
“Marco was never invited to family dinner. Like I said, no one outside the family had ever been allowed.”
Thankfully, our dessert arrived, and I watched Liam take his first bite of my favorite snack. I could tell he fell in love just by the expression on his face.
“Oh my God, this is heaven. I feel like I’m cheating on my Thai donuts.”
My face lit up with laughter.
“I told you!”
We kept the conversation light after that; I was grateful that Rosalina and Giovanni didn’t mention the weight that was just put on Liam’s shoulders. The weight he probably didn’t know he was now carrying. Instead, we laughed as they told him embarrassing stories of my childhood.
After my aunt came over to remind my cousin and brother that they had to get back to work, Liam and I realized the evening was coming to an end. Making sure to say good night to my father, we walked the short path home.
“So, can I pick you up around six tomorrow? I can bring you to another new and exciting restaurant before we hit the bonfire.”
“Sounds perfect.”
He stood for a moment. This would be where a normal couple would kiss, but tonight, we weren’t in fake dating mode. He settled for kissing my cheek and then waited for me to reach the front door. As I opened the door to our building, I sighed. No matter who he was before, Liam was truly a good person now. I hoped he would realize that soon.
Chapter 15
Week3–Saturday
Liam
Isabella looked prettier than I had ever seen her before. She surprised me by wearing a summery dress for the evening tonight. It clearly accentuated her best assets, which I was starting to realize, she had many of. We held hands as we headed toward the partiers on the beach, and I couldn’t believe how comfortable I was feeling.
“So, no rules tonight. We can be whatever we want to be.”
She smiled at me, and I raised an eyebrow.
“That’s not exactly true. You have family members at school. I think we need to be in couple mode today. You know, just in case there is gossip.”
Isabella’s long eyelashes fluttered at me.
“You just want to check on our spark level, I bet.”
Grinning, I pulled her closer.
“Always.”
We walked along the water as we searched the crowds for Josh. It actually didn’t take us long to find him. His shaggy dark blonde hair and his height made him stand out. When he noticed us approaching, he waved us over.
“I’m so glad you two made it. Liam, Isabella, this is Jenny.”
He introduced us to Jenny. She had short black hair and bright green eyes. They were piercing, and when mine locked with hers, it actually felt as if she could see into my soul. I’m not going to lie; Jenny scared me for multiple reasons. Mainly because, although she was physically not my type, I was instantly attracted to her. I could pass off an attraction to my typical skinny blonde girl type, but how could I explain this? If I could be attracted to Jenny, why hadn’t I been attracted to Isabella?
“It’s nice to meet you.”
Jenny looked away from me and toward Isabella. I could see my best friend had been a bit disturbed by the fact that Jenny and I couldn’t seem to look away from each other.
“Likewise.”
That was all Jenny said. She was a woman of few words, apparently. Josh had said she was shy.
