“Oh, we’d better go,” I said, spinning on my heel, but Ava snatched my wrist and wheeled me back around to face her. I met her determined gaze with wide eyes. Could years of heroin abuse leave a person a little unhinged?
“Promise.”
So, yeah, maybe it could. It was clear she wasn’t going to let this go, and she also wasn’t going to let me go.
“Fine. I promise.”
Ava angled her head, giving me the side-eye.
“You promise what?”
I looked skyward and released a gust of frustration. “I promise that in the very unlikely event that Cole and I become a thing,” I began, blushing furiously as the words left my mouth, “and he does something to screw it all up, I will…”
My voice trailed off. This was really embarrassing.
“Fight for his happiness,” she supplied, as though she were a priest at a wedding feeding the bride and groom their vows.
“Fine. Fine. I’ll fight for his happiness.”
Ava dropped my wrist with a smile. “See? That wasn’t so hard.” She crossed the room and opened the door, turning back to me and whispering. “I’m glad we had this little talk.”
I followed her out of the room, wondering if Cole knew his sister was completely crazy.
Chapter 24
COLE
I don’t know what the hell Ava had done to Elise while they were in the back of the house, but she couldn’t have been giving her a tour. Elise’s cheeks were bright red when they returned and took their seats at the table. I tried to meet her gaze when I served her, but she wouldn’t look me in the eyes.
I’d plated the spaghetti and meatballs, but I’d laid out the salad and garlic bread in the center of the dining table so we could serve ourselves family-style.
“This looks delicious,” Elise said in a hushed voice.
Her color was still high, and I shot my sister a look, but Ava only returned it with an innocent smile so plastic it could have been stamped MADE IN CHINA.
On purpose, I’d placed myself at the head of the table with the two of them across from each other on either side of me. It was my way of sitting as close to Elise as I could without it seeming forced.
But, yeah, I’d forced it.
Maybe I should have felt bad about that, but I didn’t. Ever since the night at the gallery, the need to see her had steadily grown until it had become almost unbearable. But once Elise was in my living room, just seeing her didn’t give me the peace I’d imagined. The ache — because now it was an ache, not just a need — spread to my other senses. I now longed to touch her. To bury my nose in the cascade of her hair in search of her scent. To taste her again.
Sitting beside her would have to be enough. But it was going to be torture.
Once I made sure they both had everything they needed, I took my seat. Without my having to ask, Elise passed me the salad bowl and then followed it with the bread basket.
“Thank you.”
Ava, by contrast, had already started eating, but Elise waited until my plate was full. Something about that gesture of consideration sent a rush of warmth down my chest. What the hell was wrong with me? When had good manners become a turn on? I gulped more iced tea to cool me off and clear my head.
Beside me, Elise took a bite of her spaghetti. “Mmm,” she murmured, her gaze finally seeking mine. She pointed her fork at the meatballs on her plate. “These are better than Alessi’s. Where did you learn to make them?”
Pride filled my chest. Better than Alessi’s? The family-owned Italian restaurant in the center of town had been around forever, and it was a favorite of mine because I’d gone there a million times with Louis and his parents when we were kids.
“That’s high praise,” I said, cutting into one of the two jumbo meatballs I’d served myself. “Would you be disappointed if I told you I found the recipe online?”
Elise’s eyelashes fluttered ahead of her smile. “Of course not. You went looking for it?”
I took a bite and nodded. It was a damn good meatball if I said so myself. “I was actually trying to imitate Flora’s recipe,” I confessed with a shrug. “She may not have taught me how to cook, but she raised me to crave good food. Half of the meals I know how to make are Flora knock-offs.”
