Sadie #3
“Nope,” I interrupted, shaking my head. “I don’t think I can bring myself to say the words—come see for yourself.”
I grabbed her hand and started pulling her alongside me on the sidewalk. She squeaked out a giggle but stayed with me, and after about a block, I saw that thing parked in front of a meter and I stopped beside it.
Kill me now.
“Wait,” she said, a laugh in her voice as she grinned up at me. “This is what you drove to work?”
Fucking ridiculous. I said, “It’s not—”
“It’s so cute,” she said, giggling as she crossed her arms and looked at the mint-green Vespa. She pointed to the ridiculous green helmet (which perfectly matched the idiotic scooter) that was on the back of the machine. “Is that your helmet?”
I reached out, snagged it, and held it out to her. “It’s yours, actually.”
“Wait—we’re really taking this thing?” Her eyebrows went all the way up, and I wanted to laugh at the shock on her pretty face. “Seriously?”
“It’s our only option.” I pushed the helmet over her hair, then bent my knees so I could see the clip as I clicked the straps together. I felt fucking unsteady—mildly unraveled—when I looked down at her face, so soft and so close.
What flavor is that lip gloss?
I cleared my throat and straightened.
“In my wildest dreams, I never would’ve pictured you on a Vespa,” she said as she climbed onto the scooter. “How did this happen?”
“Well,” I said, going around to get the second helmet out of the lockbox on the back, “my sister had to borrow my car because of rain in the forecast and the curls in her hair, so I got to borrow this for a few hours.”
“Wow—nice brother,” she said.
“Normally, I’d be humble and crack a joke, but I’m driving a fucking Vespa, so yeah—I’m a damn saint.”
She laughed as I got on, and just when I was turning the key, she said, “I’ve never even been on a motorcycle.”
“Yeah, well, that will still be a true statement when we’re done, trust me,” I said, hitting the button and taking off. “This thing is nothing like a bike.”
I pulled out of the spot, gave the thing too much gas when her hands came around to rest on my sides, and then I turned at the corner.
Immediately, we went from city to residential, our drive to Sal’s turning into a leisurely ride through a quiet neighborhood.
Random dogs barking, crickets chirping, the faint rustling of leaves on the breeze.
The perfect summer soundtrack for our Wednesday-night drive.
“You good?” I asked.
I could feel her behind me, even though we were barely touching, and there was something about her presence that felt natural, like we did shit like this all the time.
“This is actually fun,” she said, surprising me with the laughter in her voice. “Makes me kind of want a Vespa.”
“If I kill my sister, I’ll give you this one.”
“Deal,” she said with a giggle, and I fucking loved her laugh.
She was one of those people who just should be laughing, all the time.
“But I’m a little disappointed this isn’t yours.
There’s something deliciously poetic about the dangerous freshman in the moto jacket growing up to be a Vespa enthusiast.”
“I get that,” I said, wishing Sal lived farther away. I was tempted to take another loop around the block because I was really enjoying the way Sadie was leaning into me and the sound of her voice in my ear, but I didn’t want to seem dodgy.
“Oh, shit,” I said when I drove up to Sal’s and saw the cars parked on the street. “It’s Wednesday.”
“Wednesdays are bad?” she asked as I pulled into the driveway. “You hate Wednesdays?”
“Wednesday is card night,” I said, putting the Vespa in park and lowering the kickstand. “So you’re going to have to smile really big if we’re going to convince Sal to remove the boot tonight.”
I climbed off and removed my helmet, then reached out a hand to undo Sadie’s strap after she got off the scooter.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” she asked, her eyes sliding all over my face. I swear to God, something hovered in the air between us as I looked down at her, and I had to push back the sudden urge to cut off her words with a kiss. “Bugging Sal on card night?”
I couldn’t explain it—she was basically a stranger to me—but there was this thrumming electricity between us that screamed for exploration.
“Um.” I swallowed and felt buzzed. “What was the question again?”
“What is this look on your face?” she asked quietly, her voice barely more than a breath.
“Honestly?” I take the helmet from her, wondering how to answer, how to be honest without sounding like a lunatic. “It’s the expression I wear when I’m trying to convince myself not to be a jackass and kiss you when you’re in the middle of a sentence. It’s rude to interrupt, but I was this close.”
“Oh.” She blinked a little faster, looking up at me like a thousand thoughts were going through her head.
Probably thinking you’re a douche for saying that a mere hour after running into her, asshole.
“Come on.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her with me toward the front door, hoping I hadn’t just destroyed any shot at getting to know her again. “Let’s go get that boot removed.”
She looked surprised when I walked in without knocking, but it was card night—no one was going to get up to grab the door, anyway. I went straight to the kitchen and yep—there they were.
In a haze of cigar smoke.
Uncle Sal (who was technically my mother’s second cousin and not my uncle at all) sat there at the head of the table with a stogie in his mouth, surrounded by six of his buddies, all of them with cards in their hands.
A stack of random dollar bills was in the center pot.
“Sal,” I said, keeping my voice low, because these guys got nuts when their card games got interrupted. “You booted my friend’s car. Any shot of you un-booting it tonight?”
“Maybe your friend should pay his fucking parking tickets,” he said, not looking up from his cards as he puffed.
“Yeah, I totally should have,” Sadie said, sounding apologetic, and I couldn’t hold in my smile as Sal slowly raised his eyes and got a look at her. He was a softie for all women, but her big green eyes were going to make him ridiculous.
He shot me an approving glance with an eyebrow raise.
Trust me, I know, Sal.
“Nah, it’s highway robbery, hon,” he said, shaking his head and totally changing his tune. “Who can blame you for sticking it to the man? I’m gonna have Ray—my night guy—remove the boot and tow your car over here this minute.”
“Seriously?” Her face lit up, and she was beaming at him, but I was a little stuck on the fact that she still hadn’t let go of my hand. “Oh my gosh, thank you so much! Can I pay you?”
“Sit down and play a few rounds while you wait for it,” he said. “Little J will get you a chair.”
She snorted and grinned at me. “Little J?”
“I’m the youngest of five and we all have J names. Shut it.”
“Aren’t you the cutest ever?” she teased, and the way her eyes squinted when she smiled made something in my chest pinch.
“I think I must be,” I said, mourning the warmth of her hand as I went over to the pantry to grab a couple folding chairs.
“Snap-snap on the chairs,” Sal barked.
“Yeah, Little J,” Sadie said with a giggle that made me want to tousle her hair. “Snap-snap.”
Sadie
I’d pretty much been in a steady stream of what-the-hell moments since I’d walked into the Rosebud.
And now I was standing in some guy named Sal’s kitchen, watching a card game that reminded me of something from one of the Godfather movies.
All six guys were staring at the cards in their hands, exchanging little one-word grunts with each other while looking slightly intimidating.
No one in the room was under fifty years old, yet no one in the room was anyone I’d want to piss off, either.
But even in this series of unusually bonkers events, the biggest thing that was freaking me out was Jess’s kiss comment.
Because—oh god—I’d felt crazy electricity when he looked down at me after helping with the helmet. It felt like we were supposed to kiss, like that moment existed in time for our mouths to find each other. When he said he stopped himself from cutting off my words with a kiss, I was disappointed.
Because that would’ve been just too romantic, too spontaneous, too everything that Dylan had never been with me.
And I wasn’t comparing them—that was actually the thing. Once Jess walked into the Rosebud, I forgot all about sophisticated demons who needed to be exorcised.
In a second, the past had passed away.
“Here you go,” Jess said, setting up a chair for me at the table, and I couldn’t really meet his eyes because I felt like my every thought surely showed on my face.
“I don’t actually know a lot of card games,” I said as Sal gathered everyone’s cards and started shuffling for the next round.
“Little J can help you,” Sal said, which made me snort again, because how adorable of a freaking nickname was that?
“You know you don’t have to call me that every time, Sal,” he said.
“Oh, but I do, kid.”
“You have no idea how much joy this is bringing me,” I said, giggling.
“Don’t encourage him.” Jess elbowed me.
After Sal dealt the cards and I flipped mine over, I was confused for a second. The backs of the cards looked like a regular deck, but I had a wild card, two green singles, one red, a reverse, and two skips.
These men were playing UNO.
“I don’t understand,” I whispered, leaning closer to Jess.
“They love this game, so they had special cards made to legitimize it. It’s now called Murder,” he murmured into my ear, his cologne finding its way to my nose and settling in.
Damn, but the boy smells good. “Same rules, only instead of yelling UNO when you’re down to a single, you say Calling it in. ”
“Sadie starts,” Sal said, and the game was on.
The men still didn’t smile and barely spoke, but they tossed around rainbow-colored UNO cards like bona fide Vegas sharks.
It was everything I’d never known I needed.
After three games, Sal said (without looking up from his hand), “Your car’s out front, kid.”
“What?” How does he know this? “It is?”