Chapter 16 Sushi & Apple Pie
SIXTEEN
SUSHI & APPLE PIE
SARAH
What’s wrong with me?
I stared at myself in the tiny mirror over the sink in disbelief. Connor had turned me into someone who staked her claim on a guy that’s not even her boyfriend.
Someone tried the handle, and I said, “Just a minute.” Then they banged on the door. “What the fuck,” I mumbled, flipping the lock and coming face to face with Duncan.
“Shit. Sorry, Sarah.” He chuckled.
“Whatever,” I growled, pushing past him.
He caught my elbow. “Come on now. Just because Kat hates me doesn’t mean—”
“Let me stop you right there.” I yanked my arm free. “We all hate you. Not just Kat.” Glancing at the tables, I scoffed. “Real classy bringing Mal to Lotus when Kat’s working.”
I walked away, ignoring Duncan’s quiet defense of his usual bullshit. On the way back to the table, Kat passed me and winked, which was unsettling. Sitting down, I kept my eyes on her and asked, “What’s that all about?”
“Just your enforcer making sure I understood the consequences of screwing you over.” I was horrified, but he wasn’t too concerned if the smile on his face was anything to go by. “You came back in time for round two.”
And like that, Connor moved from what were probably Kat’s threats of bodily harm, on to the rainbow roll he’d ordered. With every bite he took, he looked delightfully surprised. “Good?”
“Delicious. I haven’t eaten much sushi, so this is new for me.” He licked sauce off his lip, and my mouth went dry.
I was used to being around handsome guys, but Connor exuded a sexiness that broke my brain. Grabbing my water, I took a big gulp.
“I’m guessing you have a lot more options in St. Louis.”
“We do. It doesn’t hurt that my parents are total foodies and had us eating all kinds of stuff from the time we were toddlers. I can’t remember a time without sushi.” I snagged a roll and tried to wedge it between my lips without making a mess. So far, I’d kept myself clean.
“What about wild game?”
I shook my head, covering my mouth to keep him from seeing the asparagus hanging between my lips. That piece was bigger than a bite.
“Jamie and I go deer hunting every year with my uncle. We make jerky and all kinds of other stuff.”
“I can honestly say I’ve never had deer.”
“Would you be willing to try it?”
“For sure. As long as I don’t have to see the deer gutted.”
Like Hailey.
Shrugging off the unpleasant thought, I finished my sake and poured another glass. “I love trying new things.”
Connor grinned, his eyes sparkling. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
We finished our food, commenting here and there on what we liked. Connor and I shared a love of fantasy and sci-fi, a dislike of sour beers, and, according to him, there wasn’t a rom-com I could name that he hadn’t seen.
“You really are a mama’s boy?”
“Damn right. And proud of it too.”
“What about your dad?”
Connor tensed and deliberately took a mouthful of food. A frown wrinkled his forehead as he slowly chewed. All the anxiety of the beginning of the date rushed back. I’d never been very good at navigating awkward situations, especially if I’d caused them.
“You don’t have to answer that,” I rushed out, realizing I’d crossed some kind of line.
He rested his forearms on the edge of the table, his fingers locked around his chopsticks. “No, it’s okay. I haven’t seen my dad since my fifth birthday, a little after Jamie was born. There’s a reason we have her last name and not his.”
“Oh.” What an intelligent and supportive response.
“Yeah, oh.”
“I’m sorry, I—”
“Had no way of knowing. Jamie and I don’t talk about it, so how would you know?”
A heaviness in the pit of my stomach pushed me to try to fix the mood. “The fact that you guys don’t mention him should’ve been a clue. We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“There’s honestly not much to talk about. He left, I stepped up, and now Jamie has the life he deserves. What about you? You said you went on vacation with your mom. Are you two close?”
It was my turn to cringe. “We were, but things changed. Or maybe I finally noticed how it had always been.”
He tilted his head as he ate the last of his roll.
“Last semester, my sorority sister fell off the roof of Frattic and died. That same night, I got busted for an MIP just hours before I was officially twenty-one. Well, when my parents found out, my dad got pretty nasty with me, and she just sat there and agreed.” I took a breath.
This wasn’t fun first date stuff, but something about Connor made me want to open up.
“Disapproval had always been passive-aggressive in the Tilney house, but last year, my dad let me know just how much of a disappointment I am. And she let him.” Saying it all out loud hurt more than I expected.
Connor frowned and reached out to squeeze my hand.
Embarrassed, I fanned my face, looking up to stop the tears welling in my eyes from falling. “Okay. Next topic.” I scanned the restaurant until I found Kat at the bar chatting with the owner. “Desserts!”
“Are we ready for dessert?” Kat’s barely polite smile fell as she noticed my watery eyes. Shooting Connor a questioning glare, she leaned against the table, hovering over him.
“Kat, it wasn’t him.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“I mean it.”
She didn’t become any less suspicious, but she did release Connor from her murder stare. “Dessert?”
“I actually have something back at my place for dessert,” Connor said with a shy smile.
Kat crossed her tattooed arms and craned her neck back. “Oh, do you now?”
“Not like that.” Connor rolled his eyes and put his focus back on me. “My mom makes the best apple pie and homemade vanilla ice cream. I asked her to make us some. It’s not on theme with sushi, but . . .”
A smile crept onto my face. “That sounds delicious.” I looked up at an unimpressed Kat. “Can we get the check?”
She walked away without saying anything, which, under the circumstances, was a small miracle.
“I wasn’t trying to assume anything by having dessert at my place.”
“Don’t worry about it. Pie and ice cream sound great.”
Connor’s tan cheeks darkened. I loved the way he blushed. A lot of guys tried to be hard asses, but he had emotions and let me see them. I didn’t always know the whys, but I figured we were new to each other. We’d get there eventually.
Connor paid, and we walked the three blocks to his apartment. We skirted around the smokers outside the door of his building. When the door closed behind us, the smell of cigarettes lingered in the hallway—one of the perks of living above a bar. Luckily, his apartment smelled as fresh as always.
“Why don’t you go sit down, and I’ll bring you a plate?” Connor placed his hand on the small of my back, encouraging me toward the couch while he went to the kitchen. “You want coffee?”
“Yes, please.” As I spoke, a kettle whistled from the kitchen.
“Be right back.” Some more clanging, and he returned with a French press of coffee and two mismatched mugs. “Just a minute on the coffee.”
He picked up his plate and dived right in. Following his lead, I cut off a piece of pie and nearly died when it hit my tongue. “Oh my god. Connor, this is fantastic.” I shoveled in another bite for emphasis.
“It’s won a blue ribbon.”
“I can’t imagine having a mom that cooks like this.”
Connor poured us each a cup of coffee, and I was blown away by how good it tasted. “What did you put in this coffee?”
“Nothing special. I just grind my own beans, and then the French press does the rest.”
“Is it a McCormick thing to make everything taste delicious?”
He paused with his fork between his teeth. Slowly, he pulled it out, and my eyes devoured the silver sliding against the plump flesh of his bottom lip. The corners of his mouth quirked up, and I quickly looked away.
Shifting in my seat, I took a bite of ice cream to cool down. Of course, it was the best ice cream I’d ever eaten.
“You okay over there?” Connor said, amused.
“I’m fine, just dying from deliciousness overload.”
Setting down his now-empty plate, he settled back onto the couch, his arm going across the back, so his fingertips grazed my shoulder. “I’ll let Mom know you liked it.”
“You do that and make sure I’m notified the next time she’s making treats.”
“Will do.”
I finished my dessert and spent a minute or so making sure I got every crumb and melted bit off the plate. I contemplated licking it, but it was our first date.
Best to save the truly shameful behavior for the second.
“I can’t believe you grew up with food like that.” I flopped backward, settling next to him.
“We were pretty lucky. My mom always said she may not have money to eat out, but she had enough money to cook a great meal.”
Turning my head, our faces were only inches apart. “So, do you and Jamie know how to cook?”
“Jamie is a better cook than I am, but I can hold my own. How about you? Can you cook?”
“Eh. Not really. I can make enough to survive, but cooking was never something my mom worried about passing down. Mainly because she couldn’t cook.” I twisted my torso so my chest pressed into Connor’s side. “She’s only attempted one Thanksgiving turkey, and after that, she’s had it catered.”
“My mom’s turkey is the stuff of legends. I’m going to have to get you a dinner invite so you can get the whole experience.”
“Please do. I would like the opportunity to worship at her feet.”
Connor’s whole body shook as he laughed. Wrapping his arms around me, he brought me flush to him. As his laughter subsided, he kissed the top of my head and sighed. “You’re really great, Sarah.”
Tilting my chin up, I kissed the underside of his jaw, my lipstick leaving a red mark. “Right back at cha.”
I slid my hands from his chest to the hair at the nape of his neck. My nails gently scratched there, and his eyes closed as his throat bobbed. Placing another kiss on his jaw, I smiled when his chest rumbled with a groan.
“Are we doing this?” His half-lidded gaze sent a tremor through my body.