I took a bite and nearly moaned. It was incredible. Buttery and sweet with just a hint of salt and honey. "This is amazing."
"Made with your honey." Patrick winked, looking pleased. "It's the secret ingredient."
Something warm bloomed in my chest. He trusted my honey in his delicious cookies. It felt significant somehow, like we were already connected in ways I hadn't realized.
“Glad you like it.” Patrick grabbed a bakery box and started filling it with more cookies. "Here’s a little something to remember me by."
"Don’t worry. I’m not gonna forget you."Ever.
6
ALLEN
“Call me when you get back.” Jeff spent the last half-hour giving me gobs of advice about my date tonight that I neither wanted or needed. “And that call better be tomorrow, not tonight.”
“Jeff, find your own date and quit messing with mine.”
“Nope, not gonna happen. Living vicariously through you is much more entertaining.”
“I’m gonna go now.” I was glad he called, despite the topic, because it kept me from worrying too much about my date. But I needed to focus. Patrick was gonna be here soon.
“Not till you send me a selfie.”
I rolled my eyes. “I am not sending you a selfie.”
“Then you’re not going, and I’m gonna stay on this phone the entire time you’re on your date.”
I didn’t bother to go through all the ways that wasn’t gonna happen and instead snapped the selfie, just like I always did, and sent it to him.
“I like the hair.” That was how he always started when he didn’t like something I was wearing. We didn’t have the same sense of fashion, so I didn’t know why he thought I cared about his opinion, except sometimes I kinda did. “Undo one more button on that shirt.”
It was an easy enough request, and the second I did, I realized how tight it had been. “Good call.”
“I know. What would you do without me?”
“I’m about to find out because my date’s gonna be here soon, and I don’t wanna be on the phone with you when he shows up. I don’t need the hot Daddy to think I’m gossiping about him.” Even though I totally was.
“Thehot Daddy oryourhot Daddy?” Jeff teased.
“He’s not mine.”Yet.
“Not sure I believe that, but fine. I’ll play your game.”
“I don’t even have to look at you to know you’re giving side-eye. So maybe, I don’t know, wipe that smug look off your face.”
“Guilty as charged. Call me though. Promise?”
“I promise.” I’d told him a lot about Patrick including the whole honey mix-up and his delicious cookies. One thing I didn’t tell Jeff about was the milk, not because there was anything weird with it or because I thought Jeff would judge. But that wasn’t my secret to tell. Until I knew if Patrick was okay with people knowing, it was best to leave that private.
Patrick knocked on my door exactly on time, and I half-wondered if he had been waiting there and watching his phone. Maybe he didn’t want to show up early, or maybe he was just thekind of guy who was always punctual. I hoped to find out, and not by asking but by experience.
“You look handsome tonight, sweet boy.” He raked his eyes up and down my body.
I liked that.
“You do too.” He was wearing jeans that were begging for me to remove them. They hung on his hips just right. Damn, if we didn’t get out of there soon, we weren’t gonna get out at all.
“Where’re we going?”
