Page 39
With that, we fell into the easy small talk. He was pleasant, if a little bland, but I told myself I was being unfair. So I concentrated on his conversation, and participating, and laughing at his jokes and telling my own. I could do this. I could have a normal, adult relationship, like a normal, comfortable person.
Then Abe arrived.
When I opened the door, he grinned down at me with the full intensity of his personality, which made me feel enveloped in warmth. “Hey, you. ”
He’d brought chocolate babka, which seemed like a brutally underhanded thing to do. I loved babka, the sweet strands of dough woven with dark chocolate and butter and cinnamon. It was a heavy, dense, decadent dessert when prepared correctly, and Abe had learned from the best—my dad.
I took it from Abe with a sense of wonder. “You made this?” With some sadness, I placed it on the table to be consumed by all.
He grinned. “Don’t worry. I made a second one just for you. ”
He followed me into the living room. A mixed percentage seemed to recognize him, which made sense—Abe wasn’t as famous as some of his teammates, not like the tabloid darling Ryan Carter or the incredibly talented Malcolm Lindsey. He settled onto the floor, since none of the folding chairs were quite large enough to be comfortable.
Sabeen’s friends were all delighted to see him, and immediately nabbed his attention. He was happy to give it—but he also met my eyes every time my gaze lingered on him.
Which was more often than it should have.
Still, I thought I’d be able to juggle everyone. Except then Shoshi showed up.
I gaped at my cousin when I opened the door. “Hey. Um. . . ” She’d definitely responded no to my Facebook invite. “I didn’t know you could make it. ”
“Change of plans. ” She swept in, a picture of sophistication in her black silk top and dangling silver earrings. She peered about at the apartment. “Not bad. Pretty small. ”
I hurried after her, my nerves tangling up in my chest. “Um, Shoshi. . . ”
She stepped into the living room and came to a sudden stop.
I almost shoved my fingers through my hair, and restrained myself from messing up my curls just in time.
I saw the moment Abe saw her, because he slowly turned to face her and take in all the daggers her gaze threw at him. He smiled. “Hey, Shosh. ”
She narrowed her eyes even more, and then turned to me. Luckily, we were so close that no one else could overhear our words. “Are you kidding me?”
I offered a hesitant smile.
“What’s going on?”
“We’re friends?”
“You can’t be friends with him. Are you trying to make yourself miserable? To sabotage your chances at having healthy relationships? Is he why you cancelled on the speed-dating thing?”
Yes. “No. ”
She looked furtively back and forth between us, and caught the way Abe was watching. “You’re sleeping together. ”
I reddened. “We’re not! God, why is my private life not allowed to be private?”
“So he’s part of your private life?”
My teeth ground against each other. “He’s my friend. Leave us alone. ”
She crossed her arms.
For God’s sake. The only way I’d get her off my case was to distract her with something else. “Come meet my roommate Lucy. I think you’ll really like her. ”
I’d just managed to pawn Shoshi off when Neil came up to me. “So you’re a reporter?”
I nodded. “I am. What about you? You’re also in theater?”
“Yeah. I actually just got cast in Hamlet. ”
“That’s great!” Look at me, having a conversation with someone new. “What part?”
His smile widened. “Hamlet. ”
“Oh. Awesome. Congratulations. ”
“Thanks. So what do you cover?”
“Oh. Sports. ”
“Oh. ”
We nodded at each other.
Abe came over and dropped into the seat beside me, casually slinging his arm across the back of my chair. “Shoshi’s in a mood. ” He glanced at Neil. “Hey. ”
I rolled my eyes at his blatant proprietary tactic, but the meal had made me warm and fuzzy, and I let it go.
We worked our way through the wine everyone had brought, until I reached for a bottle and nothing came out. I wobbled to my feet. “Be right back, guys. ”
I headed into the kitchen to pull down a bottle of red from my shelf, and then discovered I was drunk and that meant corkscrews behaved incorrectly. I was staring at the cork in puzzlement when Abe entered the small space. “Need help?”
I did, desperately. I stepped back. “Yes, please. ”
He set to work, after a quick laugh at how badly I’d mangled the cork. “That Neil’s kind of a tool, huh?”
I leaned against the counter and grinned. “You’ve barely spoken to him. ”
“He wears argyle socks. ”
“I think argyle socks are cute. Besides. Why did you even notice that?”
He shrugged. “They were glaring. ”
“You were looking for a reason not to like him. ”
He left the wine and braced his hands against the counter on either side of me. He grinned wickedly, and my heart started fluttering at how stunning he looked, the light in his eyes, the line of his jaw, the perpetual thick messiness of his hair. “Maybe. ”
Part of me knew I should tell him to stop if I wanted him to take my request of leave me be seriously, but most of me yearned toward him. “I’m trying to meet a prospective boyfriend at this party!”
He offered an easy grin. “Good thing I’m here. ”
I snorted and rolled my eyes.
“Oh. ” His nostrils flared gleefully. “Is that a challenge?”
“I can’t take you seriously. ”
His brows flew up, and his voice lowered. “How’s this for serious?”
His hand eased around the back of my neck, and his mouth covered mine with intense dedication. His lips caressed mine until I parted them with a tiny moan, and his tongue stroked deeply against my own, teasing me with the deep mimicry until my entire body was on fire and I had flattened myself against him, draped shamelessly, aching for his hands to slip lower and set fire to the rest of me.
And at that realization, I somehow managed to draw back and whisper at him in outrage that didn’t quite reach genuine. “Stop! Anyone could walk in here. ”
“So what? They’re not going to be scandalized by a kiss. ” His brows winged up and his lips curled. “If you want them to be scandalized, I can arrange that. . . ”
I batted his hands away as they started to slip lower on my body and snaked away from him. “Behave. ”
“I don’t think so. ”
I didn’t want him to. “Friends, remember? And what if Shoshi saw us?”
“Shoshi needs to get rid of the stick up her ass. ”
“She’s just trying to look out for me. ”
Frustration hardened his jaw. “She doesn’t need to. I’m not going to hurt you. ”
Not on purpose. “Abe. . . ”
He silenced me with a hard, deep kiss that left me leaning against the counter, absolutely breathless.
And then Lucy poked her head around the corner, puppy-dog pathetic-ness on her face. “Wine? I need more wine. ”