Chapter 32
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Astrid
“Can I ask you something, Astrid?”
I glance up to find Berk taking a sip from our shared drink. “Are you going to ask me for forgiveness?”
He tries to control the budding smile coasting over his lips, but he fails. Hard. “Forgiveness? For what?”
I tilt my chin down and point an accusatory finger at him. “You liked that drink. You had more than half of it.”
His gaze darts to the almost empty tumbler that we’ve been sipping from.
We had a steady rhythm of each of us taking a drink in turn until I reached for the glass at the same time as he did.
His fingers lingered on mine, and we sat like that, touching hands and staring at each other without any words spoken.
The waitress broke the moment when she approached our table to ask how our food was.
“I was thirsty,” he says with a glint in his eye.
I gesture toward the full glass of water sitting next to his plate. “You haven’t touched that at all.”
He picks it up and swallows half of it in one gulp before he places it right back where he found it. “That was an oversight.”
“Admit it.” I sigh. “You kind of like lemonade and gin.”
“I kind of like you,” he counters. “I’m open to trying new things.”
Shaking my head, I chuckle. “Do you like it or not?”
“I’m undecided.” He picks up a fry. “I will admit that the food is amazing. I’m going to need to bring Stevie here. She likes grilled cheese sandwiches almost as much as she likes dessert.”
The urge to ask what else she likes is there, but I push past it.
Suddenly, he drags his chair back from the table. “I need to make a call. It’s coming up on my daughter’s bedtime.”
I nod silently and offer a smile.
“I won’t be long.” He moves to stand. “If you happen to order another drink, I might be inclined to share it with you too.”
I steal a fry from his plate and take a bite of it. “I should have had fries instead of a salad.”
He huffs out a laugh. “Help yourself to mine. I’m open to sharing everything with you.”
I watch him walk away so he can call his daughter from outside the restaurant.
We may never share every part of our lives with each other, but I know that I want to share my bed with him tonight.
An hour later, we’re on our way to my apartment hand-in-hand.
I glance up at Berk. “Earlier, you said you wanted to ask me something. What was it?”
He slows his pace, so I do as well.
“What’s your end goal, Astrid?”
My end goal? Is he asking me where I see my life going? Does he want to know how I envision my future?
It’s the last question I expected to pop out of his mouth, so I stick a sweet smile on and tilt my head. “My end goal for tonight?”
He rakes me from head-to-toe with a steely gaze as if he wants to strip me right here in the middle of this Manhattan sidewalk. “We can start with that.”
I steered us into this, so I take the wheel and inch closer to him. “You in my apartment.”
It’s clearly not my ultimate end goal for the evening.
I want to have an orgasm that isn’t born from my fingers and my overzealous imagination. Berk has been fodder for my fantasies lately, but I’m not going to confess that to him.
His eyes stay trained on mine as he parts his lips before he shuts them again. A moment passes before he smiles. “You’re not shy when it comes to sex, are you?”
I used to be.
I was a virgin until I was eighteen, and back then, I had to be in a darkened room with a guy I thought I was falling in love with.
Since I moved to Manhattan, I’ve had encounters with different men. Some needed direction. Others had more experience, but they were all fun in their own way.
They were all casual too, because that’s what fit into my life and theirs.
“Why would I be shy about sex?” I exhale. “I like sex. I like when the men I’m with like sex as much as I do.”
His jaw clenches. It’s enough to make me realize that I hit a nerve.
Is there a slim chance he’s slightly jealous hearing me talk about my past lovers?
“This man,” he begins as he moves to trail his lips over my cheek toward my ear. “This man loves sex.”
My breath shudders from the declaration and the promise that’s woven into it.
I pull back slightly. “You’re going to be a lot of fun, aren’t you?”
“You’re about to find out.”