I lift an eyebrow at him as I turn to face him.
“I know that was anything but a compliment.”
He shakes his head with a soft smile at his lips as his hand lifts, running his fingers through my hair.
“Just as long as you never turn that talent on me, we’re good.”
“I could ask the same,” I quip.
Nico looks at me seriously, his fingers pausing momentarily.
“I’m not sure it would be possible to lie to you. There is something about you that just…”
His words trail off and instead of searching for the right ones, he shakes his head and drops his hand from my hair. I’m still sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting for him to finish his thought before I realize he won’t be doing any such thing.
Damn.
My phone buzzes with a notification and I cringe when I see who is texting me.
Alec: Hey. I haven’t heard from you in a little. Is everything okay?
Fuck. I’m an asshole.
Me: Hey! I’m so sorry. I suck. I’m doing a girls weekend with Arianna and Naomi up north. Service is spotty out here. I’ll text you when I can!
Alec’s response comes quickly, and it sours my stomach instantly.
Alec: No worries. I was just worried about you. Selfishly, I’m disappointed I can’t see you but I get it. Be safe, I’ll be thinking about you. Love you, Cass.
Love you.
It’s innocent enough. A phrase that can be exchanged between close friends, family members, or in this case I guess, ex-boyfriends? It’s all about the intent of use, and unfortunately I know Alec well enough to know he is not saying or doing anything platonically. I can’t let this thing between us go on any further. I’ve let it go far enough. Did I seriously consider giving us another chance? Absolutely. That was when I was doing anything and everything to keep my mind off my sister’s boyfriend, though. Now that I have apparently decided to abandon all of my morals…well, I guess I can cut the safety net loose, which yes, I know how gross that is to refer to someone as wonderful as Alec like that.
I look up from my phone to see Nico deeply engrossed in his messages. Good. I have no doubt him reading Alec’s message would send him into a foul mood. For this being a casual forbidden fling, he’s most definitely the jealous type and I don’t feel like arguing the entire time I’m out here. Then again, if we hate fuck, I could end up tied up again as he takes his anger out on my body. Hold up, maybe this could work.
Before I can make a decision on poking the bear or not, the car stops and the driver gets out promptly, opening Nico’s door before I slide out through it. The driver grabs our bags and Nico slips him a few bills and nods.
“Thank you, George.”
“Always a pleasure, Mr. Sanders.”
I look around us, my eyes stopping on a large brownstone. With his bags in tow, Nico gently ushers me up the steps to the front door before taking out his key and unlocking it. It opens into a cozy foyer with a wooden hand railed staircase leading up to the second floor. The floors are a deep cherry oak and the trim throughout the home is a bright white, complimenting to the cream walls.
Slowly, I begin moving through the house, stepping through the formal living room with a huge fireplace before coming into the kitchen. It’s clean, crisp and open, though the entire place this far feels a little…empty. Like no one has lived here in a long time. There is minimal decorations and the house feels more like it’s staged to be sold than to be lived in.
“You live here?” I ask as I turn to Nico.
He shakes his head.
“I bought this place years ago. It was pretty run down at the time but a great deal. I fixed it up and planned to flip it but…I don’t know. I got attached, I guess,” he says as his hand runs along a carved door. The intricacy of the design make it very easy to believe it was hand carved, too. The entire place just oozes charm, but lacks occupancy.
“Come here,” he says as he guides me past the kitchen, deeper through the house. “This is my favorite part.”
He opens a pair of french doors that open to a private outdoor patio. Red brick cover the ground as well as the similar brick siding boxing us in. One side is slightly lower, allowing a beautiful view of a body of water. It’s breathtaking.
“I’ve been meaning to fix this up but I don’t really know what to do outside of what’s been done,” Nico shrugs as he points to the patio furniture that looks like it belongs on a balcony of a high rise penthouse, not a historical buildings patio.
“Maybe some lights? “I suggest. You could string them aboveand it would warm it up back here. And you don’t have any plants. We are outside and I don’t see a spec of green anywhere,” I tease.
