9. Goldyn
An hour later, I eyed Sincere over the rim of my second drink and saw his first old-fashioned was still half-full. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked the bartender for his ‘best middle-shelf’ liquor on that first order?
“Don’t like the drink? I can get you another one…” I offered.
“No.” He shook his head and my brows fell. “I mean, the drink is fine. I’m just a lightweight and I don’t want to be drunk when I get the courage to say what I want to say.”
He sounded nervous and that made me nervous. Sweat pricked my palm and I try to play it off by collecting the cool condensation on my cocktail glass.
A few minutes ago, his knee started jumping under the table and I wrote it off as a natural reaction to sitting for a while. We’d been huddled in this booth for hours and he didn’t seem like a man who stayed idle for long. “Oh?”
Sincere met my eyes, the kindness in them striking me for the hundredth time since he walked into the bar. I’d never met another person with such a vulnerable gaze. His brown eyes said so much even though he’d revealed very little up until this point.
My nonstop chatter probably didn’t help. It was just that today hadn’t gone anywhere near the way I thought it would.
Showing up at Romeo’s shop earlier wasn’t very I’ll never see these three fine ass men again of me, but I couldn’t bear the thought of someone being mad at me. Even though Romeo and I had ended our exchange amicably two mornings ago, I couldn’t shake the way he’d looked at me. That look was missing in action when I popped up on him today, so I was counting it as a win. And now, here I was with Sincere.
I was failing the mission. Successfully. All I needed now was a Lorenzo sighting and I’d probably—definitely—lose my mind.
Sincere pulled his bottom lip into his mouth, and the dimple in his left cheek sent my stomach into a fit of flutters.
God, I would never get over that. I could see exactly what Lorenzo saw in this man. Too damn fine for words. Everybody in that house of theirs was just attractive beyond anything my brain could comprehend. In three uniquely different ways too.
And they’re taken .
The men in that house are off-limits, Goldyn. Stop being a bird because one of them gave you some attention.
“Are you dating anyone?”
The chirping in my head kicked up a notch at his question and I tossed back the rest of my drink before staring at him with a teasing smile.
“Why? You wanna set me up with somebody?”
He hedged, rubbing his fingers over his bottom lip as he looked at me.
Oh, god. I was joking but he looked serious.
“Well…no. Not really.” His eyes darted to mine before he quickly tore them away.
Goodness, he was killing me now. I could understand nerves, but the anxious energy rolling off of him was infecting me.
“I meant it when I said you’re the most fascinating person I ever met. You’re beautiful and your energy speaks for itself. I’m really glad we met. I’m interested in you, Goldyn.”
That had to be the most respectful way anyone had ever expressed their interest in me. It was direct. And yet, I was still confused.
This man was married. I’d heard him say it with my own two ears. I’d seen it at that breakfast. He and Enzo couldn’t keep their hands off each other.
So, what was happening?
“I’m sure that’s confusing for you to hear.”
I knew the smile on my face was awkward, but I couldn’t help it. “A bit.”
He adjusted against the booth, a little away from me so he could look me in my eyes directly. “Enzo and I are non-monogamous.”
I nodded. That much had been clear when I put the pieces together about the platonic romance he and Lorenzo shared with Rome. It was refreshing and intriguing and I loved that for them.
“Okay.” I sat up straighter, ignoring my bladder’s plea to break the seal. I couldn’t ruin this moment and get up just yet.
“As much as we love each other, we’re both still open to giving and receiving love from other people.”
I nodded again, my eyes trained on his as he peered into my soul.
Sincere paused to lick his lips and I couldn’t help but track the movement of his tongue.
“I’m gonna be honest with you, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since the night we met. I talked to Enzo about it and he told me to see what unfolded naturally. And then I randomly run into you after I took a drive to clear my mind. I can’t help but see that as a sign.”
He’d talked to his husband about his interest in me?
“You…” I didn’t know how to form the question I wanted to ask, so I let it go.
Thankfully, Sincere read my confusion and spoke up. “If I leave this bar without telling you, I may never see you again. Or it may be another two years before our paths cross again, and that possibility will never be okay with me. I want the chance to know you. And if you tell me you’re even a little bit interested, I’ll answer any question you have. But if you tell me this isn’t your thing and you couldn’t see yourself being loved and spoiled by two men who ar already in love, I wouldn’t blame you either.” He scrubbed his hand down the side of his boyishly handsome face. “I know it’s unusual because you’d be agreeing to the both of us. But I just want a chance and I have to put myself out there even if it means you never want to see me again. Shit. I’m nervous and fucking this up. If Enzo was here, I’m sure this would come out a lot smoother. But…”
“Sin, it’s okay. I hear exactly what you’re saying.” I placed my hand on his and my heart melted at the slight tremor in his fingers. Oh, my god. This sweetheart of a man wasn’t kidding about being nervous. “First of all, I want you to know that there is no timeline where I’d never want to see you again. I wouldn’t have spent the last however many hours talking to you about my dreams if that was the case.”
He smiled and the timid lift of his lips endeared me to him even more.
“You are one of the nicest people I’ve ever met, and I say that in a town like Bliss Peak where everybody is nice.”
Calmer now, Sincere slid his hand from under mine and started toying with the pearl button on the cuff of my sleeve. “Will you come home with me tonight? I’ll cook you dinner and me and Enzo can explain everything to you.” His unyielding eye contact was like being trapped in sinking sand, the longer I looked at him, the deeper I sank without realizing it. And the problem was I didn’t want anyone but him to save me.
“Goldy?”
Goldy .
I’d heard some variation of that nickname for years, but he breathed new life into it. Shivers erupted on my sensitive skin and I tried not to hyper-fixate on the way his fingers felt against my wrist while he continued to fidget with my button.
“Hmm?”
“Will you come home with me? You can sleep in the same room as before after dinner. We won’t touch you, but it would be easier for us to discuss everything if we’re all in one place.”
“I—”
My phone started buzzing on the table in front of us, shattering the moment as I snatched up the device at the sight of Ms. Ruby’s name on my screen.
Shit. Dinner . I forgot I said I would come by.
“Ms. Ruby,” I answered breathlessly. I had no reason to be out of breath, but it felt like I’d just sprinted up the mountain with a fifty-pound hiking sack on my back.
“Why you sound so winded, child? Did I catch you in the middle of something?” She sounded more amused than anything and I shook my head even though she couldn’t see me. Her voice took a mischievous dip. “Is he nice-looking?”
My face flushed at her question because while I wasn’t doing anything with Sincere, he was more than nice-looking. And he was still touching me. He’d moved on from the button on my cuff and was now mindlessly caressing the tattoo at my wrist that read Be Good.
I was seated, but still a little dizzy from the uninterrupted contact. If his touch alone could do this to me, then what the hell was I gonna do with Lorenzo in the equation?
“Pauly wants to know if you want hot sausage or franks for dinner. He grilled ribs, corn, and a few?—”
“Ms. Ruby, can I have a raincheck for dinner?”
“Aww sookie sookie , now! You are with somebody.”
Sincere’s laugh let me know her carrying on was loud enough for him to hear and my face flushed again. I didn’t want to know what I looked like right now.
“Why would your mind automatically go to male company?”
“It’s the best case scenario, honeybee. You know I gotta live vicariously through you.”
Sighing, I shook my head with a faint smile.
“Well, I’ll leave you to it. But I want to hear about it. Call me on What’s Up tomorrow so we can debrief.”
It didn’t matter how many times I told this woman it was WhatsApp, she called it whatever she felt like that day and it brought a giggle out of me every time.
When I hung up, I purposely avoided Sincere’s eyes, but I didn’t miss the smirk on his lips.
How did I explain that my best friend was a woman in her seventies who really wanted me to have a dating life? “Sorry about that.”
“Don’t be. Ms. Ruby is something else. I love that woman.”
Funny how she’d said the same thing about him but we’d never crossed paths before this week.
A silent beat passed before Sincere’s fingers stopped moving. “So…what do you say to dinner? No pressure. Just let us feed you again and have a conversation. After that, you’re free to do whatever you want, but I hope you still stay the night. We have all that extra space that no one ever uses.”
It would be nice to take another shower in that bathroom and actually remember it. Last time was a bit fuzzy. But I distinctly remembered a gigantic walk-in shower, the best smelling body wash and a towel warmer. It was tempting. Still…the unknown made me pause. He said no pressure, but how would things really go? Would I be able to resist him when Lorenzo was around? Did I want to?
“One dinner, love.” His voice was quiet, almost pleading in its rawness. The soft timbre sent tingles throughout my body and made me clench in places that hadn’t been touched in too long.
“Okay,” I breathed. “I’ll go home with you.”