But she just looks at me with a little smirk playing on her lips. “I’m just a tech CEO with unlimited resources.”
“Shut up. Take the compliment.”
She grins. “Thank you.”
“Come on. Let me give you a tour.”
She looks around and spots the plant I’ve been keeping alive for half a year now. “Impressive. Oh! You kept the red ottoman from the flea market. Aww.”
The moment I’ve been dreading comes faster than I was ready for.
She freezes near the stone fireplace mantle.
I’ve been losing sleep over that painting. Whether to take it down or not before she came.
“You kept it?” Her words are strangled, barely pushing out from her parted lips.
I’d already moved away when Mom called to tell me old Muffin died. That cat hated my guts, but I adored it. And what did Jackie do? Painted the ugliest cat portrait imaginable, based on a picture my mom sent her.
And I loved that atrocity as much as I did her.
The way her gaze is searching for an answer unnerves me.
I rub the back of my neck. “Maybe the style will be worth millions someday.”
“Adam.”
“You want to know why I kept it?”
She nods.
I could lie. Brush it off with another joke. But instead, I tell her the truth.
“Because it reminds me that you once loved me.” And because I never stopped wishing she still did.
Jackie tears up, and she swallows hard. “I’m sorry.”
“No more apologies. We’re here now, OK?” I stop by her side and cup her cheek. “Nobody’s rushing us.”
She clears her throat, and I swipe my thumbs under her eyes.
“Having sex on every flat surface when we’re alone in the same room doesn’t seem verytaking it slowly.”
We laugh, even as we both feel the undercurrent. We’re both still scared.
“That’s entirely on you. You’re irresistible.”
“Try to keep it together, if you want dinner ready before your parents are at the door.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“Did you get everything on the list?”
“Yeah. It’s all in the kitchen.”
“Come on,” she says with a half smile. “You’re helping.”
“I thought I’d be the eye candy, watching the master at work.”
