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I appreciated that, even though there was nothing to tell. “Can I ask you something?” I squinted.
“Anything.”
“Okay, so this is kind of embarrassing, but I don’t know who else to talk to about these things.”
Naomi gave me her full attention.
I closed my eyes before I lost my nerve and blurted, “Do men really love to have their nipples kissed?”
Naomi spat out a laugh.
My eyes flew open, and she covered her mouth to stifle her laughter.
“I’m sorry, honey, you caught me off guard.”
“It’s stupid; forget about it.”
“You know my rule: all questions have merit.” She leaned against her desk and tilted her head. “Is that something Kane wants you to do?” She cringed a bit.
“No.” I laughed. “I watched a YouTube video about how to kiss like a goddess, and the guy said it drove men wild.”
Naomi pressed her lips together like she was holding back another laugh. She cleared her throat before she said, “Well, I suppose for some men that might be a turn-on, but the best advice I can give you is to kiss like Scarlett. You don’t need to be anyone you’re not. You do what makes you comfortable.”
“That’s what Kane said.”
“Sounds like a good man.”
“He is.”
“I’m happy for you, honey. Of course, I’m going to want to meet him.”
“I want you to meet him too. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about him.”
“Don’t apologize. I can understand wanting to keep him to yourself. There is something about new love.”
I rubbed my neck. “I’m not in l . . . love,” I stuttered.
She grinned. “I should hope not, but don’t be afraid of it if it comes your way.”
Kane and me in love? Sounded farfetched and scary to me.
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I kept glancing at the coffee table and smiling at the list we had made in between watching Confessions of a Forensic Pathologist on my laptop, with Kane working next to me on his. He had a big presentation at work on Monday, but he still wanted to hang out. It was our last weekend together before Auggie and Eva came home tomorrow night. I tried not to think about it. Instead, I focused on all the things Kane and I had planned for the summer, written out in permanent ink. Everything from the World of Coca-Cola to hiking Stone Mountain. It was going to be a great summer. It already had been more amazing than I could have ever imagined.
I kept sneaking peeks of Kane typing away. The evening sun filtered into the sunroom, illuminating him. He truly looked like a vision and added to the beauty of this space made of mostly windows with the prettiest view of our pool. It was a place often neglected in the house, given the outdated rattan furniture, but that was part of its charm. And it was a good spot to be alone when I needed to be. Tonight, though, I was grateful to share it with Kane, even if it was mostly in silence. In the silence there was peace.
He caught me staring at him and leaned over for a quick kiss. “I’m almost done, I promise.”
“Take all the time you need.”
He tilted his head. “Thank you for being so understanding.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
He tugged on some of my curls. “This is why I like you so much. Most women I’ve dated would be throwing a fit by now.”
“Maybe you should date different women,” I teased, sort of. I wanted to say, “Only date me.” With that said, I couldn’t understand why any woman would be upset. Kane didn’t have to make time for me tonight, but he had anyway. In fact, he always seemed to make time for me.
“Scarlett, you are different in all the right ways.”
“Are you saying I’m unusual?” I smiled.
“Very.” He kissed me before turning back to his work.
Feeling content, I focused back on Landon, the host of Confessions of a Forensic Pathologist. Landon was suddenly not as attractive to me anymore. Of course, I was still super into his show, he just didn’t seem to shine as bright compared to Kane. Still, he could suck me in with his brainpower. He was working on an unsolved case in Maryland. He was describing how the trail had gone cold, but he’d found two pieces of obscure nonhuman hair on the victim’s clothes that had been stored in evidence bags for two decades.
I sat on the edge of my seat while they analyzed the hair and ran DNA tests. The hairs were from an otterhound, a rare breed of dog from England. The victim’s neighbor at the time happened to be from Great Britain and owned two otterhounds.
“Genius,” I whispered. I literally got tingles when they were able to obtain a DNA sample from the old neighbor and compare it against the DNA found at the crime scene. It was a match. Tears filled my eyes when Landon was able to finally tell the victim’s family what had happened to their daughter and that her killer would be brought to justice.
