Chapter 32
THIRTY-TWO
My head is in the clouds. Cloud nine, to be precise.
I almost burn the eggs as I prepare breakfast for Chiara and me. I am in a constant state of squealing internally while I repeat our date over and over again in my head.
He brought chocolate fondue to work for me. He was so sweet, considerate, and even flirty. And I was just myself, like Howie told me to be—no mask, no need to hide.
As soon as he told me he wanted me, and not a nice version of me, I was a goner. I think I might be in love. I don’t know what that feels like, but if it’s not like this, what could top that?
Chiara comes into the kitchen and sits in her usual place. “Morning.” She yawns.
“Buongiorno, piccola,” I greet, placing a plate in front of her. “How are you?”
“Good.” She shrugs, starting to eat her eggs.
“Do you already have plans for this Sunday?” I inquire.
She looks up from her plate, curious. “Why?”
“Well, some friends from work and I are going ice-skating in Central Park, and I remember you always wanted to do that. So, I thought I’d ask if you wanted to come along?”
“You have friends?” she asks, sounding surprised.
Ouch.
“Yeah, it’s kinda new, but they’re my friends, I guess,” I say, trying not to feel hurt.
“And is one of those ‘friends’ going to be your date?” She grins, and my cheeks heat up. “Wait, really? Oh my God, I need to see that.”
“Chiara,” I warn.
“I’ll bring Leo, and it’ll be like a double date,” she says excitedly.
“Okay, sure, but can you tell him that he’ll need to pay for himself? I’m sorry, but—” I start.
“He’s going to pay for both of us, dummy. He’s my boyfriend, and that’s what they do.” She shrugs nonchalantly.
“Well, that’s not—” I want to lecture her, but then I think I’ll save that for another time. I can be a bit selfish too.
Chiara takes out her phone to text Leo about the new plans. “I’m so excited! This is going to be so much fun.”
Even now, as I’m walking into the lab, I still have no idea what my classes were about because I’m still not totally back to Earth. I smile to myself, and when I look up to say hello, Sophia smiles at me.
“And?” she asks eagerly.
“And what?” I counter, putting my backpack behind my desk and taking a seat.
She takes a sip from her mug, which reads Mo-tea-vation. “How was it? I think he outdid himself. That was so fucking cute.”
I cringe a little. “Should I really talk to you about a date with your brother?”
She sits up straight, looking a bit surprised. “Of course, you should! I thought I was your friend, not just your boss?”
“You are?” I ask.
“Yes, I am! Now spill,” she demands.
“It was… nice,” I admit, smiling down at my lap.
“Just nice?” Sophia asks, a little unease in her tone.
“It was so nice, I can’t stop thinking about it,” I whisper, and Sophia jumps up from her chair, pumping her fist into the air, nearly spilling her tea.
“Fuck yes!” she shouts.
“Use your inside voice, woman,” I say, lifting my shoulders to my ears.
She chuckles and settles back in her seat. “Sorry, but this is so freaking cute. He told me he’s going to bring you to our ice-skating thing on Sunday?”
“If it’s okay? And I would bring my little sister and her boyfriend too, since she always wanted to do that, and I just couldn’t go without her,” I say.
“Of course! The more, the merrier.” She smiles, her face glowing with excitement. “Oh, and we got the okay for your parents’ case.”
I sit up straight, my heart pounding. “Really?”
“Really.” Her tone turns serious. “We can start working on it on Monday. But today and tomorrow, we have some urgent cases to handle ”
“Sure,” I say, but deep down, my anxiety rises.
I hope this feeling won’t ruin the weekend.
Arms wrap around my waist, pulling me into a firm chest as I sort stuff into our lab storeroom. “Hey, you,” Josh whispers into my ear, and I lean back slightly.
“Hey,” I whisper back.
He kisses my temple and murmurs softly, “I missed you. I need your phone number.”
I turn my head to look up at him, teasingly saying, “You could have asked Clay or Sophia.”
“No, I wanted to get it from you,” he clarifies, releasing me and taking out his phone. He unlocks it and opens his contacts before handing it to me, flashing me a cheeky grin. “Can I get your number, please?”
I blush a little but take his phone, seeing that he has already created a new contact named ‘My Carolina.’ The butterflies in my stomach flutter as I enter my number and hand the phone back to him.
He taps at his screen, and a red heart emoji pops up when I check my phone.
Josh takes my hand, leading me to the door. “Let’s go eat. Clay and Sophia are already waiting for us.”
We head to the cafeteria, and Josh holds my hand the entire time. It might seem silly, but it means a lot to me. He doesn’t let go even as we walk in, not seeming embarrassed to be with me.
“Hey, lovebirds.” Sophia smiles as we sit down on the other side of the table. I glance over at Clay, but he’s focused on his plate, paying no attention to us.
“What do you want? I’ll go get us something,” Josh offers, squeezing my forearm, and I have to suppress a hiss when pain shoots toward my shoulder.
I start to say it’s fine, but then Del Moro and his partner show up, standing behind Sophia and Clay with a smug expression.
“Why bother looking at the food when you know you’ll never have enough money to get some, Costa?” Del Moro taunts.
“The same reason you watch porn,” I say in a monotone.
Clay almost chokes on his food, bursting into laughter.
“Shut up, Cooper! I’ll bet you’ve never even seen a pussy,” Del Moro snaps angrily.
Clay glares back at him.
“He’s staring at one right now,” I note.
“You fucking bitch,” Del Moro snaps, leaning over to reach for me, but Josh and Clay stand.
Josh pushes Del Moro away to create some more distance between us. “Don’t you dare touch her,” he warns in a tone I’ve never heard from him before.
“Yeah, rookie, fuck off. Or do we need to file a complaint with HR and make your cop career a very short one? I bet they always need security guards at supermarkets. What do you think, Josh?” Clay adds.
“I think he would make an awesome security guard.” Josh grins back.
“Oh look, Lee is into fat, poor, emo girls. Did you know that, Taylor?” Del Moro mocks. Then he leans down to me, telling me in a softer tone, “They are not going to be there all the time, Costa. I can’t wait for the next time your uncle is letting a bit loose.” He winks at me before storming off.
“The same reason you watch porn.” Clay snickers, sitting back down.
“You okay?” Josh asks, cupping my face with concern in his eyes.
“Sure,” I say, but there’s an uneasy feeling in my stomach.