“Well?” I ask. “How’s the fancy wine?”
Ely purses his lips as if he’s thinking seriously about something. He raises his glass in the air and gently sloshes the liquid from side to side, much like a professional at a wine-tasting convention. Then he looks at me and shrugs.
“Tastes like fruity booze,” he says seriously, and I cover my mouth to keep from laughing aloud.
“Not a wine fan, I take it?”
“I’m a beer guy myself, but I’m willing to stick with it for your sake.”
I laugh, then go to the fridge to pull out a bottle of Corona that has been sitting in there untouched for some time. I hand it to him and take the glass of wine from him, pouring it into my own cup.
“There. Now we’re both happy.”
Ely grins at me, pops the top off his drink, and takes a swig. “I don’t know about you, but I’m happy just being here ... with you.” His eyes are traveling over my body as he speaks, staring hungrily at me, but I don’t mind. I’ve been gawking openly at him all night long.
His words hit me hard in the best of ways, and I reach for his hand to lead him to the couch. We sit down together, and Ely grabs the throw from the back of the cushion and drapes it over us before settling down with the remote.
“Okay, so are we up for a horror or a romantic comedy?” Ely grins, flipping between two different movies on the TV in front of us. I put a finger to my lips and pretended to ponder this.
“Horror, definitely.”
“Ah, a horror lover. My kind of girl.” Ely presses play on the movie, and I hunker down next to him, careful not to come off as too desperate but comfortable enough to share the blanket with him. The truth is, I want to be as close as possible to him.
“Thank you for coming,” I say, hyper-aware of how good he smells, how warm his skin is against my own. “I really enjoy your company.”
“The feeling is mutual,” Ely murmurs, scooting closer to me. “I was afraid to call so soon. I didn’t want to scare you away.”
“I’m glad you did,” I assure him. “I don’t have time for flakiness.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Because neither do I.” Ely’s hand finds my own, and his fingers tangle with mine, squeezing. “I’m far too old a man to play any more games.” He’s still smiling, a genuine, kind smile that makes my fingers quake and my heart pitter-patter against my chest. As I lay there against him, barely paying attention to the movie in front of us, Renee’s words echo in my head.
You don’t know.
Don’t know what?
About Ely. About his family.
“Are you okay?” Ely asks, his fingers pulling my chin around to face him. “You’re frowning.”
It’s not my story to tell. You’d be better off asking Ely yourself.
“I’m fine. I just have a lot on my mind.” I force a smile back on my face for his benefit, but Ely doesn’t let up.
“Tell me what you’re thinking,” he insists, and one finger touches my lip. A shiver curls up my spine, and I take a deep breath.
“When Renee and I were speaking earlier at the barbeque … She mentioned something about your family. But she didn’t tell me anything. She said I should ask you myself. Is there something I need to know? I don’t want to be nosy, Ely, but if this is ever going to be something real, I should probably know.”
Ely sighs, sitting back against the couch. He doesn’t stop touching me, not really, but the intimate moment has been wiped away. I watch as he rubs his face with his hands, distraught, and for a second, I think he’s not going to tell me anything and instead get angry that I asked at all.
“Hey,” I murmur, reaching for his hand. “You’re under no obligation to tell me anything. You barely know me. It just … it sounded serious.”
“You’re allowed to know about me,” Ely says. “It would have come up eventually.” He grips my hand in his again and turns to face me. There’s a hollowness behind his eyes now, something that hadn’t been there a moment ago. Dark shadows, ghostly memories. I almost regret asking because I’m not sure I can even handle it.
“Six years ago, my wife, Gin, was killed in a hit.”
“Jesus.” My free hand flutters to my mouth. “I’m so sorry, Ely. I had no idea.”
“Yeah,” Ely sighs and rubs at his face again, then leans forward to rest his elbows on his knees, head low. “I was undercover, and the bust went almost flawlessly. I got the head honcho behind bars, but the rest of the gang didn’t take it well. Somehow they received my information and put a hit out on my family.”
