“Don’t make me regret this, Pitz.” I hand it back to him.
“You won’t. I just want to talk.” He drops it back in his pocket.
We just stand there, staring at each other for a minute, until voices from the hallway startle me.
“Shit. We can’t go out together. It’ll look weird.”
“Why weird? For all they know, we’re talking business.” He starts to move toward me again, but I hold out my hand before he can get too close.
“Nope. Stay there. I’ll go first, and then you can leave five minutes after.”
“Are you serious?” He smirks.
“Deadly.” I turn and walk toward the door.
Before I can turn the handle, he calls out to me, “I’ll be waiting for your text, Alie.”
“Give me an hour, and I’ll tell you where and when.” I look over my shoulder to see him standing with his hands on his hips.
He just nods with that stupid, sexy smile of his.
I gotta get out of here before I lose control and climb him like a tree. But also … I need to make dinner plans, and … find a babysitter.
What the fuck am I doing? This is a really bad idea.
CHAPTER
SIXTEEN
Liam
Alie sent me an address for Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar in Columbus Circle and a time to meet after I saw her downstairs near the gym. I still don’t know where I’m going, so I hired a car to take me to the restaurant.
She’s not here yet, but she made a reservation under her name, of course, and the hostess showed me to a table in a private area in the back, which makes sense, being that I’m recognizable.
Minutes go by, and I wonder if she’s gonna stand me up or if she’ll actually show up tonight. I feel like there’s something she’s not telling me, similar to the strange reactions I get from her sister, and I’m gonna get to the bottom of it tonight.
The waitress comes over and offers, “Would you like to try one of our sakes, or perhaps a cocktail?”
I lean back in my chair. “Let me hold on that until my date gets here, but can you grab me a bottle of water, please?”
“Of course, sir. Would you like sparkling or still?”
“Still is fine. Can you make sure there’s plenty of ice?”
“Yes, sir.” She walks away to get my drink.
I take my phone out of my pocket and check for the tenth time to make sure she hasn’t canceled on me, but there are no messages. I set the phone on the table in front of me just so I don’t miss a message coming through. Not that I want to jinx it, but I also don’t want to sit here alone all night.
The waitress brings the water to me, and just as she’s setting the bottle down, I hear Alie before I see her. When I look up, I see Alie dressed casually in a short-sleeved sweater, a pair of jeans, and some heeled boots, with a small Louis Vuitton crossbody hanging across her chest. Her hair is tied back into one of those messy buns, and she’s never looked more beautiful to me.
I stand to greet her. And as she approaches, I walk around the table to take both of her hands in mine, bringing her closer to me, and kissing her on the cheek.
“Hi, Alie.”
“Hi,” she says, smiling shyly.
I don’t want her to be shy. I want her to be comfortable with me, like she was the night we met.
