He looked startled by the question. “I... no. I’m not naming it. That makes it permanent.”
“What are you calling it in your head?”
“Cat.”
“Liar.”
His cheeks flushed. “Fine. I’ve been calling it Purrsephone. But only because it’s white and dramatic and showed up uninvited like some kind of underworld deity.”
I laughed—an actual laugh that made the deli woman glance over at us. “That’s perfect. Purrsephone. I love it.”
“Don’t get attached. To the name or the cat.”
“Too late. I’m already planning to visit Purrsephone. Regularly.” I held his gaze. “Very regularly, if you’ll let me.”
He swallowed hard. “That’s...”
“Too much?”
“No, it’s...” He took a breath. “I’m not good at this.”
“At what?”
“This. Flirting. Casual anything. I’m the guy who color-codes his sock drawer and makes lists for his lists. I don’tdo spontaneous or fun or—” He gestured vaguely between us. “Whatever this is.”
“You don’t have to be good at it.” I breathed. “You just have to be willing to try.”
“I just got out of a relationship. A bad one. Very recently.”
“Okay.”
“So, I’m not looking for anything serious.”
“Okay.”
“I’m a mess. Professionally and personally.”
“Okay.”
“And you’re going back to LA in a month, and I’m going back to New York, and this is temporary and probably a terrible idea.”
I smiled. “Okay.”
“That’s all you have to say? Okay?”
“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m also a mess. I’m here because I’m trying to figure out if I should blow up my entire career or stay trapped in a job that’s slowly killing my soul. I’m not looking for anything serious either. And I think temporary might be exactly what we both need.” I held his gaze. “No strings. No expectations. Just two guys who find each other attractive, spending a month in the mountains, keeping each other company.”
Farley’s throat worked as he swallowed. “That’s...”
“A terrible idea?”
“I was going to say ‘straightforward.’”
“I try to be honest about what I want.” Most of the time. “So what do you say? Want to come over to my cabin later? I’ll attempt to cook something that won’t give us food poisoning, we can see if my wood burns, and we can... hang out.”
The way I said “hang out” made it very clear what I was suggesting.
Farley’s cheeks were pink, but his eyes had darkened with interest. “That’s—”
