Neil was indeed perfection, but I was moved not just by the handsomeness of his face; I was also drawn to his innumerable expressions. I didn’t just appreciate his physical appearance, but also how he carried himself. He had charisma; his every move was masculine, dominating, and damned.
I never would have forgotten Neil; it would have been impossible. That was why I so often got afraid of what I felt for him.
“Is it far?” he asked, following my directions.
“Keep walking down this street and don’t be impatient,” I chided.
“So the best Coneys in Detroit come from a tiny local place? Do I have that right?” he asked in a superior tone.
“Yup, you can forgo your beloved pistachios for once,” I answered drily. “Besides, I like simple stuff,” I added, and I felt his guttural laughter.
“I’ve known that for a while, Babygirl.” He gave me an unreadable look, and we kept walking until we reached the corner.
“Is this it?” Neil smiled as he brought us to the door of the quaint restaurant.
“Yup,” I confirmed.
We went inside, ignoring the curious glances from the other customerswho had turned around to look at us. Neil was still carrying me piggyback until he set me down at a small table for two in the corner. “Trust me—you are about to taste the best Coney dogs in Detroit,” I promised him enthusiastically.
“You just can’t suppress your craving for wieners, can you, Tinkerbell? If you’re in need of a big one, you know who to ask, right?” he answered cheekily, making himself comfortable in the chair across from me.
“This sudden sense of humor you’ve developed is annoying,” I informed him.
“You like it better when I’m sullen?” He turned in profile, and I stared at his full lips, curved into a sensual smile. I liked him all the time, even when he was being a dick, but I wasn’t about to tell him that.
“What about when I’m passionate or bossy?” he added provocatively, and fire erupted in my chest. My heartbeat throbbed in the bottom of my stomach, and my cheeks flushed.
“Knock it off.” I cleared my throat, and fortunately Neil just chuckled, fully aware of the reaction he was producing in me.
Then we perused the giant menu; I looked for my beloved sriracha Coney with kimchi relish, and Neil cocked his head strangely.
“Let me order,” I said and raised my arm as Billy, a fortysomething with a full beard and a ponytail as long as my hair, came over to take our order. “Hey, Billy!” I smiled when I caught his eye. He frowned slightly, looking first at me and then at Neil, who was still carrying me on his back.
“Selene, honey. Nice to see you!” Billy smiled back.
“Two spicy Coney with mustard,” I ordered, and Billy wrote it down.
“Two Coney coming up for you and your boyfriend. Hey, what happened to Jared?” he asked curiously, not realizing he was touching a sore spot.
“Hey, Willy, can we get a fucking move on?” Neil cut in with his usual lack of tact. Billy gave him a hard look, then turned back to the kitchen.
“What’s your deal? You could have been a bit more polite to Billy,” I admonished him. Neil didn’t say anything. He just lifted one ankle to balance on the opposite knee and leaned back in his chair.
“Did you take me to a place you used to go to with Jareth?” he asked a few moments later, pointing his golden eyes right at me. What was I supposedto tell him? I considered lying for a moment, but in the end, I opted to tell the truth.
“Yes, I came here a few times with him,” I admitted, and he shook his head with a derisive smile. He didn’t say anything else.
“Are you planning to go back to school?” he asked abruptly. Changing the subject on a dime was another one of his special skills.
“Yeah. I’m trying to rearrange my schedule to get all my required courses in. Fortunately, Ivan’s in my major, and he’s been helpful,” I answered, deciding to continue on this topic he had brought up.
“Who is this Ivan?” he asked softly.
“Janel’s twin brother. She’s a good friend of mine,” I answered with a nonchalant shrug, but I noticed the stormy way he was looking at me.
“And? Who is he? Your classmate? Your friend?”
Why did he want to know all this detail about Ivan? Did he think that Ivan and I were in a relationship or something? I had never imagined that Neil could be jealous over me. In fact, I’d occasionally tried to elicit a little reaction like that from him in the past, but there had been nothing.
