Chapter Seventeen
ALLISON
The next evening, I was just as confused as the night before.
Nick was picking me up. The last time he’d come to the house, I’d already been on edge, but this was something else entirely.
I kept telling myself that nothing happened.
We hadn’t even kissed last night. But I’d wanted to—so damn badly that my body was still shaking when I remembered how much I’d craved his mouth on mine.
But Nick and I were both adults. We could work this out.
I waited for him out by the street, and he arrived just in time. I grinned as the car approached, and when he stopped in front of me, I immediately jumped in.
He frowned. “I was going to come and open the door for you.”
“There’s no need. But thank you.”
“You think it’s a good idea to go inside and say goodbye to the twins?”
“Oh no, don’t. It’s actually the reason I’ve been waiting out here in the first place. If they see you, they might not let us go at all.”
I was relieved that some of the ease between us had returned. That the sexual tension wasn’t as thick. Maybe there was a chance we could forget what had happened in the steam room.
“Soon enough they won’t have to.”
I felt his words like a warm hug.
“So, are you going to tell me what we’re doing, or is it a surprise?”
He grinned. “I’m cooking for you.”
“Wow, that’s actually a surprise.” I was stunned. “You can cook?”
“I’m not too bad at it.”
My heart started to race. “So, we’re going to your place?”
“Is that a problem?” He looked at me for a beat before we drove off.
“No, not at all.”
“I wanted to show it to you anyway.”
“Why?”
“So you can keep it in mind in case your house ends up being too cramped.”
I swallowed hard. “That’s very thoughtful of you, thanks.”
We spoke about our respective days until we reached his building, and I relaxed a bit. It was impressive—one of the tallest buildings I’d seen along the water. His penthouse was even more impressive, though.
“Nick, this is incredible!” I was proud of being a homeowner and everything.
Boston wasn’t cheap, and for someone to be able to afford a house with a single income was no small feat, but this was on another scale altogether.
“All this light!” The sun was just setting, and the view from the living room was gorgeous.
He didn’t have floor-to-ceiling windows everywhere, but there were plenty of them to take in the surroundings. “It feels like we’re up in the clouds.”
“I know.”
“And yet you’re willing to move?” I turned to him. He’d gone straight to the huge kitchen.
It was modern, like the living room. The colors were rather minimalistic—a lot of grays and blacks and white. He had a huge fridge, plus a smaller one full of wine. The kitchen island was enormous, with a granite countertop.
“I think I might have fallen in love with your kitchen.”
He winked at me. “I like it too. Gives me enough space to work. I’m a disorganized cook,” he said.
“Out of all the things that have happened lately, this is something I hadn’t been counting on.”
“What? Me cooking?”
I nodded. “Yeah.”
“Why not?”
Why not indeed?
I racked my brain, trying to come up with an explanation. “Because you’re such a fan of pizza, I guess. I don’t know. Sorry, I just jumped to conclusions.” I shook my head. “What are you making?”
“You like spaghetti carbonara?”
“Yes!”
“Perfect, then that’s what I’m making. I have everything I need, and it doesn’t take long.”
“God, the view here is so impressive. I like that you can see the sunset.”
“And you can see the sunrise from my bedroom.”
I instantly blushed. Knowing that detail seemed a bit too intimate.
“What do you want to drink?” he asked as he started to chop onions and ham. “I have wine, obviously.” He pointed to the wine fridge.
“I don’t want any alcohol. I’ll look in the fridge to see what else I can have.”
“Afraid to get tipsy around me, Allison?” Nick asked playfully.
I stood in front of the fridge and looked over my shoulder at him. He was watching me; heat gripped my entire body at the sensation. “I just don’t feel in the mood for it,” I whispered.
His eyes darkened a bit, but he nodded. I opened the fridge and once again was stunned at the amount of food inside.
I’d simply assumed that just because my fridge had been deplorably empty before taking the twins in, his would be the same.
“Want me to give you a tour of the apartment after we eat? Or before? I can wait with the cooking.”
“Let’s eat first.” I took out a jug of orange juice. Maybe it would be easier to resist him on a full stomach.
“This isn’t going to take long.”
“I can put the spaghetti in the water,” I said as he was cracking eggs.
“That would help.”
I filled a pot with water and put the spaghetti in it once it was boiling. It certainly didn’t take Nick long to whip up the sauce.
“Easy dinner,” I remarked.
“Indeed. I like cooking more elaborate stuff, but I don’t really have time, and it’s inefficient. But soon I won’t have that problem anymore. I can cook for you and the twins.”
Suddenly, he was even more attractive in my eyes.
“It smells amazing,” I exclaimed a few seconds later, trying to put my mind on something else. The scent of onions mixed with that of ham and herbs.
I opened a few drawers until I found a wooden spoon and then was about to dip it into the sauce, but Nick gripped my wrist. The contact singed me. As I looked up at him, my breath quickened.
“No tasting until it’s done. You’ll just be disappointed.”
I smiled and took a step back as he let go of me, as if I didn’t just get turned on because the man touched my wrist.
I was going to make a fool of myself this evening. I just knew it.
“Then I’ll wait for your approval before I dive in.”
“It’s only going to be ready when it’s on your plate.”
My shoulders slumped. “You’re no fun.”
He took a step toward me, tilting closer. “We both know that’s not true.”
Ah, this man. Why was he calling me out like that? It wasn’t fair. How could he move so effortlessly between flirty and non-flirty? I couldn’t keep up.
The food was ready in a matter of minutes. We ate at the small table he had in front of the kitchen island.
I took a bite and barely suppressed a moan. “This is delicious. You’re a very good chef.”
“Thanks. I started playing around in the kitchen as a kid, especially once my older brothers had a lot of after-school activities and they couldn’t continue cooking. Mom did her best, but with working two jobs, there was only so much she could do at home.”
“I still don’t understand how that all went down,” I admitted. “How your father was a gazillionaire, yet you were struggling.”
Nick shrugged. “I keep asking myself the same, how come Mom bought his story, but you have to remember, the internet and social media weren’t a thing back then.
We lived in Maine, so the goings-on in another state weren’t important to us.
Short of going to Boston and investigating, I don’t think she could have done anything else. But still…”
“And he wasn’t contributing at all?”
“He was, some. Just not enough for my mom to be able to only have one job.”
I frowned. “I’m sorry. That’s terrible.”
“It’s not, actually. It instilled in us a strong motivation to work hard from very early on. But it was difficult for Mom,” he said with affection in his voice. “By the way, she’ll be at the wedding too.”
I was stunned. “How come? She knows it’s all fake, right?”
“She does but wants to join us anyway.”
“Where is she exactly?”
For the rest of the meal, we spoke about what she was doing in Bali. I also kept asking pointed questions about the recipe because it truly was delicious, and it was a bit different from the carbonara I’d had at Italian restaurants in the city.
After we finished, he said, “I want to take you on a tour of the place. Sound good?”
“Yes, please. I already know I’ll love it. I still don’t think it’s a good idea to move out of my house, though.”
“I agree. The kids’ stability early on is important. Besides, I wasn’t suggesting that we do that right now. I just want you to take a good look at the place and remember all the possibilities.”
I nodded in agreement, loving the fact that he seemed to think of the twins often. It was almost natural for Nick, and that was so important to me.
I was shocked when he told me he had six bedrooms. How on earth was he going to sleep on a pull-out couch in the living room when he was used to all this space by himself?
“So, my plan is for Leo to put it on the market. He’ll list it for an astronomical price. That way, no one will actually rent it. It’ll give the appearance to Jim’s parents that my moving in with you is legit. What do you think?”
Nick was right. This was all for appearances, and I needed to remember that.
“That’s a great idea. I’d hate for you to lose this while you’re helping me out, though.” It just didn’t seem fair. Nick was giving up a lot. I started feeling guilty for everything he was going through for me.
“Stop that, Allison. I want to do this. To help you. Help the kids. It means a lot to me. It’s not just about helping an old friend anymore. I really want to be there for the three of you, someone you can count on… always.”
Oh my. I needed to get off this topic; otherwise, I was going to start thinking things I shouldn’t.
“Do you have guests overnight often? Is that why you have all the extra rooms?”
“No, not at all. This is, for example, my home office.” He opened a door to a large room. “Not all the bedrooms are bedrooms. I’ve converted a few, like this one, and the others are still empty or used for storage.”
“Oh, I like your office! It drips with authority. Power.” The dark wood and masculine furniture were so alpha.
“Do those things turn you—” He stopped midsentence, but I knew exactly what he’d been about to ask—“turn you on.”
I sucked in a deep breath. He closed his eyes, his nostrils flaring. He looked as if he was trying to ground himself.
Ha! Finally, he was starting to lose control a bit.
“I just meant that your office fits you” was all I said.