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“I had dinner with my brother and Sasha. I thought maybe you’d still be out with Mark or your mom.” I hadn’t thought he’d be home.
“Mark had to return home to Connecticut. After I had dinner with my mom, we went by the hospital. Then I figured if you were coming back, we could watch a movie.”
Was this his way of saying he was hoping I’d spend the evening with him?
“I have dessert.”
I grinned. “Obviously, you have my number. Let me change, and then I’ll be right out.”
A familiar flutter took root in my stomach, except this time I felt much more confident about playing it cool. Changing into shorts and a T-shirt, I put my hair up in a ponytail, deciding to keep it comfy.
When I returned to the living room, I noticed he was doing the same in gray shorts paired with a soft black shirt. He was unbelievably handsome, and the thought of him being a terrible kisser was kind of endearing.
I took a seat on the plush sofa, appreciating the large-screen television in the living room and the floor-to-ceiling views of the city. “So, whatcha watching?”
“You pick. You prefer action, gore, or scary?” He knew I wasn’t much of a chick flick kind of girl.
“Action, please. Hey, what did you end up getting for a baby gift?” I needed to figure out what to buy, not wanting to have my mother or Brian put my name on one of their gifts.
His face split into a grin. “Here, I’ll show you. I had one made up for their place in Connecticut, too.”
He led me down the hallway into a room which, when he flicked on the light, showed itself to be the baby’s nursery. It was beautifully done in pink and gray, all set with the rocking chair, crib, and changing table. He pointed to the framed quote above the changing table in matching colors.
“Let her sleep….For when she wakes she will move mountains.”
“What do you think?” he asked, looking uncertain.
I swallowed past the lump in my throat. This was the sweet side of him many weren’t privy to. “I think it’s absolutely beautiful. They’ll love it.”
“I wasn’t sure what to get. It’s indescribable to see my brother the way he is, and to realize that I’m an uncle to that little angel is—It’s silly, I know.”
I put my hand on his arm. “I don’t think it’s silly at all. Matter of fact, you’re kind of adorable.”
He frowned, meeting my eyes. “I’m not sure how I feel about the word adorable. It might be like your aversion to the word cute.”
I linked my arm through his, leading him out of the room. “Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me.”
And I certainly wouldn’t tell him that, as devastating as his dimples could be on the opposite sex, finding out he’d given such a thoughtful, beautiful gift to his niece was the type of stuff that truly got to me.
We settled down for the movie, and I purposefully took a seat next to him on the couch that was a little bit closer than usual. Considering we’d shared a bed, he’d held my hair when I puked, and we’d kissed, I figured sitting only inches apart wasn’t a big deal. We were both quiet while the latest Expendables movie started. Mindless explosions with eighties big-name stars, it was perfect.
“Why didn’t you go out with Will tonight?”
There he went acting almost jealous again with this question. “He said he had to work, although I’ll see him in LA in a few weeks.” I turned to face him, which had our knees touching.
“So the pretty boy model is your type?”
“I’m confident Will could be any woman’s type. But if I’m being honest, normally I’m more attracted to a different sort.”
“Oh, yeah?” he smirked.
“Yep, the bad-boy, rocker types who have brains under their tattoos.”
He arched a brow. “Seriously?”
No, however telling him pretty boys with wicked dimples, and big hearts who make me laugh would make me totally obvious. “I have eclectic tastes. In fact, my criteria is all over the map.”
“You have a list?”
