CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Lucas
Sandro was going to have my head. Knock me out with one of his spatulas and fling my unconscious body into the East River, just like he’d threatened.
Maybe Rosie would help him. Because talk about ruining a date. I seemed to have a knack for that.
Something else I had a knack for? Getting distracted. Parking common sense at the curb and losing perspective of the lines that were drawn around me. The ones that had seemed to blur tonight. Or had they? Because that had been the whole point of the experiment. Jump-start her inspiration. Helping her forget about everything weighing on her and make her feel something else. That was all I wanted.
No, not all I wanted. The image of Rosie in my arms, all supple against me, ready to let me lick that goddamn tomato sauce off her lips, flashed behind my eyes.
Until today, I had been somewhat able to ignore the pull she’d had on me, to hide it beneath the fact that I genuinely enjoyed her company as a friend. That I truly, honestly, wanted to become even better friends than we were. But now? After tonight? After the lines had blurred long enough for me to lose myself to that all-consuming spark?
Long enough for me to burn something? Not something, but food.
Por Dios. Now, pretending she didn’t have any effect on me didn’t look like something I’d be able to do.
“I think we did a pretty good job cleaning,” Rosie announced beside me as we made our way back to the apartment. “Sandro might not even notice anything.”
I looked both ways at the intersection, as I placed my hand on the small of her back before crossing. “Hopefully,” I answered, still a little lost in my head.
We had spent a good hour scrubbing that oven—after waiting for it to cool down so we wouldn’t burn ourselves. I hoped we’d removed every last black speck of charred dough from the oven. “Either way, I don’t think it’s about our cleaning skills. I think we just make a great team, Ro.”
Rosie’s mouth twitched, returning my smile. “I guess we do.”
“So.” I checked the time on my watch and threw the door of the building open for her. “It’s past midnight and I haven’t fed you yet. How hungry are you?”
“I’m okay,” she said climbing the stairs before me. “But I wouldn’t mind ordering something if you’re not too tired to wait for delivery.”
My eyes, which had been glued to the back of her head, traveled down her spine, reaching her backside. Her hips and ass swayed as she made her way up, and I found myself a little mesmerized by the motion. By her beautiful curves.
I felt my pace pick up, as if I was in a rush to get closer to her. Shaking my head, I made myself chill. Told myself that I couldn’t pant after her like a horny teenager. I was her friend. Her roommate.
Just look somewhere else, Lucas.
Rosie stopped in front of the apartment door, giving me a strange look. “So, what do you say?”
What do I say? “To… what?”
She frowned. “Should we get something delivered? I don’t think I want pizza after scraping burnt dough.” She paused. “How about Japanese?”
“Ah… I don’t know.” I pulled out my keys and turned the lock.
“Let me surprise you,” she insisted as I let her in first. “You’re always cooking for me. And I can’t really return the favor, so let me. It’s my turn to feed you.”
I liked that. I liked hearing that from her.
She walked to the coffee table, slipped off her boots, grabbed her laptop, and plopped herself onto the sofa. “You’ll love it, I promise.”
I joined her on the sofa, letting myself fall with a sigh. “I don’t know…”
She glanced at me over her laptop. “You don’t trust me?”
“What?” I said, but it came out as a grunt. I crossed my arms over my chest. “It’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
I exhaled through my nose, confident I was pouting, too.
Her socked foot nudged my thigh. “What is it? Tell me.”
“I’m hungry, okay?” I grumbled. “I’m starving and I was very excited about those pizzas. But now, I’m not in the mood for pizza, either. I can’t get that smell out of my nostrils.”
“And?” She nudged me again with her foot, and because I couldn’t help myself, I grabbed it, wrapping my fingers around it and securing it in my hold.
I swept my thumb over her instep. “And you want Japanese, but sushi always leaves me… unsatisfied.” Hungry. Soon enough, hangry.
Rosie was taking her time answering, so I looked at her. She was staring at my hand, right as it massaged her foot.
Lines, Lucas. Lines. My fingers stopped but I didn’t release her.
“We’ll get something that’s not sushi. And you’ll love it, you’ll see.” She returned her gaze to her laptop. “I’m a little offended that you won’t trust my taste, though. So, if you want to make it up to me, you should continue with that foot massage.”
Keeping the sweet, delightful surprise to myself, I obeyed. Happy to be gifted with yet another green light tonight.
That, until she muttered under her breath, “Cheesy, bossy, and grumpy. Who would have thought?” And I stopped massaging her foot to tickle her instead.
That night we only lasted two episodes of our show before calling it a day and heading to sleep.
“Lucas?” Rosie whispered loudly from the master bed.
I smiled up at the ceiling from the couch. “Rosie?”
“Did you like the Chicken Karaage?”
“It was okay.” It hadn’t been just okay.
My head was already pondering how to reproduce the way they’d breaded the chicken and maybe even give it a twist. I could add crumbled crackers or even very finely chopped nuts marinated in soy sauce. I could—
“Liar,” Rosie called. “I saw you licking the container lids when you took everything to the kitchen.”
Busted.
I threw an arm up and rested my hand under the back of my head. “Fine, it was fucking fantastic. You were right, and I’d lick those containers again if there was anything left on them.”
She laughed and the sound made the corners of my lips inch even higher. It was a beautiful sound and it didn’t come out nearly often enough.
“Why are you trying to play the tough guy card and saying it was just okay?”
I went with the truth. “Because the plan had been to feed you those pizzas. And burning them bruised my ego.”
We fell into silence for a couple of minutes, my head going straight back into my gutter. Thinking of her, of tonight. Of her parted mouth and how I’d wanted to dip my head and lick her bottom lip—
I cursed myself when my sweats got a little tighter at the crotch.
“Lucas?” Rosie called.
When I answered my voice was thicker. “Yeah?”
“Tonight was amazing. Regardless of the pizzas.”
“I’m happy it helped, Rosie.”
“It wasn’t just that,” she replied. “Sure, it helped. More than you know, but I… loved it. It was the best second date I’ve ever been on. I don’t deserve you going out of your way so much for me—for this,” she corrected herself. “For the experiment.”
Something in my rib cage shifted. “Your bar is so low, Rosie. It drives me insane.”
A beat of silence.
“Why do you say that?” she finally asked. “I think my standards are normal.”
The fact that she believed that made it all even worse. “You shouldn’t be content with a date that ends up with you scraping an oven clean,” I told her, and I could hear the frustration in my voice. “Or standing on top of a counter, terrified.” I closed my eyes for a couple of seconds, needing the time to stifle the urge to say more than I should. “You deserve so much better than any of that. Whether it’s an experiment or not, you deserve more.”
No answer came from her. And I hated that I had snapped like that and couldn’t see her face in the dark.
Only when I’d given up and thought she’d fallen asleep, she spoke, “I wish you’d attended Lina and Aaron’s wedding, Lucas. I…” She trailed off, what sounded like a shaky breath chasing her words. “I really wish I’d met you that day.”
My chest constricted.
And I thought about that for the first time. That alternative reality where we—Rosie, the maid of honor, and Lucas, the bride’s older cousin—would have met and perhaps had a glass of wine or two. Maybe a dance. Hopefully a little more than just that. God knows I would have tried.
But I wasn’t that man anymore. I couldn’t… hope for more with anybody when I didn’t even have my own shit together. And we were friends, roommates. And I loved that. Spark or not, I loved having Rosie in my life.
For now, I reminded myself. Because in three weeks I was going to leave.
And that was something I shouldn’t forget.
Whatever existed between us didn’t change the facts.
And I’d been dead serious when I told her she deserved more.
My leg acted up during the night.
And that meant a longer than necessary shower.
After weeks of traveling and staying on my feet almost all day, a long day like yesterday had this kind of effect.
It was the price to pay for ignoring physical therapy and skipping more than a third of the sessions advised. But what point was there? I’d been told since I’d woken up in that hospital bed in France that there was no going back to hundred for me. So, I just… didn’t bother trying. I let them do whatever they needed to and the moment I could walk without an obvious limp, I went home. Home.
Taco’s image flashed in my mind.
But besides my best friend, and my family, what did I have left in Spain to call it home? The feeling of belonging had dulled since the accident. It was as if something was missing. It no longer called me back. And I had no family of my own. No one I called mine and longed to go back to. With all the traveling and demands of my career that had never… happened.
With a shake of my head, I turned off the water and wrapped a towel around my waist before stepping out of the bathroom. Feeling strangely weary, I came to the decision that I’d ask Rosie if she minded having me around today. Even she was planning to write, I could be quiet and keep to myself.
I threw the bathroom door open, and my gaze immediately zeroed in on my roommate as she stood there in her sleeping shorts and tee. Dios, those shorts were going to be the end of me one of these days. “Morning, Ro—”
“Te voy a matar.” The threat to my life cut my words right off. It came from somewhere to my side and it was delivered by a familiar voice that shouldn’t be here. Unless—
“Lucas, ¿qué está pasando aquí?”
The query was sputtered, and it was only then that I noticed Rosie’s face. The warning. The pained expression.
I turned very slowly. “Hola, prima,” I said, welcomed by Lina’s contorted face. My eyes jumped to the man standing beside her. His eyes were on me and while they looked a little less murderous, they still managed to be threatening. “Nice to meet you, Aaron,” I continued. “Congratulations on the marriage to this little treasure here.”
Aaron didn’t even give me a dude-nod; he just cocked a brow and greeted me with a curt, “Yes.”
Yes, to what exactly, I had no idea. But by the looks of it, it probably meant that a double ass whooping was in the cards for me today.
A strange sound came from my cousin, returning my attention to her. “Why are you roaming around half naked?” That last word was a high-pitched squeak. I looked down, taking in my bare chest, the towel wrapped around my hips. My mouth opened, but Lina let out another strangled sound, stopping me. “Why is my best friend here, in her pajamas, so early in the morning, with you”—she paused—“half naked?”
“Lina,” Rosie interjected, coming to my side quickly. “It’s not what you think.”
Lina’s forehead vein, the one I had memorized from when we were kids, pulsed. “It’s not what I think?” she asked before pointing a finger at me. “Is he wearing some kind of invisible sweater?”
I snorted, and I felt Rosie’s elbow on my side. On reflex, without even thinking about what I was doing because I hadn’t even had my goddamn breakfast and not thinking seemed to be my thing lately, I grabbed her arm and muttered, “Not nice, Rosie.”
Which clearly was a mistake because my cousin stiffened, her face turning even redder.
“Before you start jumping to crazy conclusions—”
But Lina lunged forward, succumbing to all and every crazy conclusion she could possibly come up with.
Luckily, her husband intercepted her, snaking a strong arm around her waist. “Baby,” he told her, securing her against him. “Don’t.”
At the same time, Rosie cried, “What the hell, Lina?”
But Lina was busy growling and pointing a tiny fist at me. “This is my best friend, you nitwit.” She waved that arm in the air. “My best friend in the whole world. Couldn’t you keep your Lucas juju to yourself? Couldn’t you keep your penis in your silly nitwit pants?”
I should have probably been offended by Lina acting like my Lucas juju had just ruined her best friend, but I wasn’t. In that moment, I could only focus on how distressed Rosie looked, and how her lip was doing that thing it did when she was upset. Trembling. And I knew the reason. I knew Rosie well enough by now to guess that she was feeling responsible for this. That she felt guilt over not telling Lina that we had been sharing the studio.
That was why I lowered my head a little and whispered to her, “What the hell is a nitwit?”
Her head turned very slowly toward me, and when she looked up at me, it was with wonder in her eyes. Also, a little humor. Just like I’d wanted. “Lucas, be serious,” she reprimanded me. But at least, her lip was not doing that thing anymore.
“Aaron, amor mío,” Lina said, returning me to the matter at hand. “Can you please put me down so I can kick my cousin’s nitwit nuts? Apparently, he thinks this is all a joke.”
Aaron rolled his eyes slightly, but then, he pinned me with a serious look. Intimidating-looking dude, he was. All tall and scowly. Not that he was intimidating me, though. The only person in the room I was slightly scared of was 5’4” and had a vein that might pop out of her forehead.
“Okay.” I sighed. “You need to calm down,” I told my cousin. “We spent the night together, here, in your apartment. But it’s not what you think, all right?”
Lina’s eyes narrowed. Aaron’s head tilted.
I could see my cousin’s skepticism all over her face. “There’s only one bed, Lucas. And should I repeat that you’re practically naked?”
I knew Lina; I knew she wouldn’t drop this until… the end of times. She was as stubborn as they came. So, I said it as clearly as I possibly could: “Rosie and I haven’t fucked.”
I heard my roommate’s sharp intake of breath at my words, but I ignored it. I had to. I was in a towel and trying to make a point, for Christ’s sake.
Lina let out a strange sound.
After a few seconds, Rosie took a small step forward. “Remember those missed calls? Soon after you left?”
Lina nodded, her murderous eyes softening when they switched to Rosie.
“Well, that night there was a… a little incident in my apartment.”
I huffed. “The ceiling in her living room caved in. Nothing little about it.”
“Fine,” Rosie relented. “Little or not, I couldn’t stay there. In fact, my place is out of commission until the repairs are done. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I called you that night, to see if it was okay to spend a few nights in your apartment. But you guys were somewhere off the grid, so I just packed my stuff and used your spare key. That was the night Lucas arrived in New York.”
There was a long silence in which Aaron resumed his frowning and Lina’s vein eased off until becoming barely noticeable anymore, gracias a Dios.
My cousin finally said, “So you two”—she waved a hand in our direction—“have been living here? Together?”
I nodded and caught Rosie doing the same.
“Which means,” Lina continued, “that you haven’t hooked up and that we haven’t walked into you two engaging in post-sex shenanigans?”
Rosie croaked, her cheeks turning red, “Post-sex shenanigans?”
I just crossed my arms over my naked chest and answered a simple, “No.”
Lina seemed to process that, her expression falling when she said, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Rosie spoke before me, “I feel awful and—”
“It was me,” I took over. “I convinced Rosie that we shouldn’t bother you. That there was no point in telling you anyway.”
Rosie’s head turned, looking at me for a beat before returning to her best friend. “I’m so sorry, Lina. We should have told you. We really, really should have. But we didn’t want to worry you over nothing. And I… well, with everything going on I forgot you were returning today so I couldn’t even give you a heads-up.”
Lina nodded slowly, assessing the information, looking more sad than pissed off.
I sensed Aaron’s gaze on me. His eyes were narrowed, but not in a disapproving way.
“Lucas has been so great to me,” Rosie murmured, taking a couple of steps forward. And when she spoke next, her voice seemed to pick up, turning steadier. “No. He’s been the best. In fact, I don’t know why you’ve been so hard on him. Because he’s a kind man. Considerate, too. And he’s done nothing but make me feel safe. So, no one’s nuts should be kicked here. Especially not his.”
Hearing Rosie say those things about me made me wish I wasn’t standing in a towel in front of my inquisitive cousin and her husband. Because I wanted to wrap my arms around her and bring her to my chest. Squeeze her right into my body for what I knew would be a wildly inappropriate amount of time.
Because she’d stood up for me.
Not even I’d thought of doing that. I’d been ready to take the beating.
I swallowed, pushing down how that made me feel.
Lina’s mouth parted, her body now lax in Aaron’s arms. And Aaron was… smiling? If the barely there bent of his lips could be considered one.
It was Lina who broke the silence, and her voice was back to normal, her tone gentle and sweet. “So, you’re sure you’re not hooking up?”
Rosie huffed. “Lina. Would you just stop asking that question? We’re not having sex.”
“No flirting?” my cousin continued. “Intense staring? Sensual touching? Heavy petting? Kissing? French or not, both count in my book.”
“Déjalo ya, Lina,” I told her, even though she might have been onto something. I didn’t have a single issue admitting to her that Rosie and I were going on experimental dates, for her book, but I’d never do that without checking in with Rosie first. Being research partners meant something. We were a team. “Rosie and I are friends.”
And above all else, we were.
My cousin stared into her best friend’s eyes for a long time, and when she finally looked at me, she said, “Ella es mi mejor amiga. Como una hermana para mí.” She’s my best friend. Like a sister to me. “Es demasiado buena.” She’s too good.
For me.
Lina hadn’t said that, but I knew it followed that statement.
And I didn’t disagree.
Rosie was out of my league. Women like her didn’t go around with men that had lost so much, who had nothing left to offer. Men that wouldn’t even stay in the country for more than a few weeks.
Lina locked eyes with me for a long moment, then pointed a finger at Rosie. “A moment.” She waved it in the hallway’s direction. “Alone, please.”
Aaron finally released his wife, but not before kissing her temple, and murmuring, “Be good.”
Rosie sent me a quick look, and I winked at her before watching her follow her best friend out, leaving Aaron and me behind.
“So…” I said with a sigh. “Do you think my nuts are out of the woods yet?”
His eyes jumped to the entrance door, as if he could see right through it, then back at me. “If you play your cards right.”
I cocked a brow. “And by right you mean…”
The man crossed his arms over his chest and considered his answer. “Lina’s more bark than bite.” His gaze darted in the direction of his wife again, then back at me. “She loves you, Lucas. She was so excited to see you that we came here straight from the airport. Unannounced.” That warmed a spot in my chest. I loved Lina, too. Of course, I did. “But I don’t think I’ll be able—or want—to hold her down if you hurt Rosie.”
I could tell he wasn’t bullshitting me. He’d probably help if I ever hurt Rosie. And I liked that, I liked knowing that people like Aaron and Lina had Rosie’s back.
That was why I looked at him straight in the eye when I said, “I’d never hurt her. I could never do that.”
Aaron’s lips tipped up in a surprisingly bright smile. “I know.”