He shifted his chair back and patted his lap. Her gaze flew to his before she plopped down on his thighs, searching his face. Then he pointed to his mouth.
“Like I said, shameless.” She leaned in and gave him a sweet, soul-searching kiss. “Don’t be mad.”
Her whisper was rough with emotion, and he drew her to his chest. “I’m not.”
“You so are.” She pushed her finger into his chest before she twined her arms around his neck. “Maybe notthrow a plate at the wallmad, but you’re upset. I know you, Kyle.”
He let his face nestle into her neck. “Consider it a reflex reaction, like a hammer to the knee.”
“I just thought the five hundred candle votives might be a lot for our family to take in.” She paused and then groaned. “But some people have already seen the Romance Shrine, haven’t they? God, now who’s feeling like an idiot? Sawyer did. Then Dean, and?—”
“Brooke and Axel have been over a few times,” he supplied, tightening his grip on her when she tried to slide off his lap with another groan.
“I thought I noticed some new decorating thingamabobs here and there—which are nice, by the way.”
Which meant she’d barely registered them, per her usual non-interest in anything lifestyle related. No, judging by the way she was gently banging her head against his chest, she was more concerned with their roommates knowing what had been going on between them.
“Did anyone ask if we’d started a romance cult or anything?” she groaned. “Like the Blissful Bangers or the Luminous Lovebirds.”
He couldn’t work up any laughter yet. “No, but Axel thanked me for the idea, which had Brooke’s eyes dancing.”
She lurched up, blinking rapidly. “So we gave people ideas? That’s…okay then. Maybe— No, I’ve got nothing. Thea and Jean Luc haven’t seen it yet, but they’ll love it.”
But she didn’t like being on display, and they needed to find a compromise. He brought her back to his chest, caressing her nape to soothe her tension. “How about I move the candles from the common area and line the hallway toward our bedroom with them for now?”
“That’s great, but you like them so much…” Her hesitation had him tightening up. “Maybe we could leave them up this once. I could say we were celebrating the Epiphany with lights like people do in Miami.”
God, that was sweet of her. He leaned back, cupped her cheek, and kissed her. Long and tenderly. Until she wove her hands into his hair and moaned. “Do you think anyone would believe that?”
“Thea might. She’s probably dancing on a cloud after returning from their honeymoon yesterday.”
“I appreciate your give here, but it’s okay. You’re right. We need to move them sometime.”
“But you love our Romance Shrine.” She eased back and cupped his unshaven jaw. “I mean, you’ve been lighting five hundred votive candles every night. If you keep this up, we’ll have people knocking on our front door asking if they can sit and pray since Notre Dame is packed. Wait! I have an idea. Be right back.”
Sliding off his lap, she crossed the kitchen to where she stored her phone in the kitchen drawer closest to the doorway. He’d finally asked about the reason—since he’d noticed she also kept her purse and work bag in a drawer in her bedroom. She’d only responded it was an old habit to keep her possessions safe.
His reaction had been a wave of outrage. She’d talkedabout men bothering her before. Recently she’d confessed to baking her own birthday cakes and keeping her dad pacified. Now this…
What had her life been like?
He took a deep breath as he watched her retrieve the phone, thinking about all the awful things she’d been through that had made her feel unsafe. Those thoughts made him really angry. Fighting angry. That shit was never going to happen to her again on his watch.
“Hey! I have a text from Chef Marcel. He said William Silver messaged him after his meal last night and told him Nanine’s is his new favorite restaurant. Huh.”
He waited as she scratched her head, her brow knitting as she continued to read.
“Chef also asked if you’d call him. He’s thinking about coming back to Paris to be closer to his ailing mother. La Fleur is in good hands. He wanted to know if The Paris Roommates Group is considering expanding into more restaurants. If so, he’d like to talk to you about working together because, and I quote, ‘retirement will only happen when I die.’”
Resting his fist against his mouth, Kyle let the idea germinate. “Well… My first thought is yes to talking more. Imagine opening a restaurant with the famed Chef Marcel here in Paris…”
Her dark eyes were practically squinting at him. “You want this. Bad.”
He could feel excitement surging inside him. “Yeah. I’ve said all along I want to open more restaurants.”
“I’ve worried about what you’re going to do once our businesses are more established,” she admitted, her gaze serious. “Honestly, I can’t think of anyone I’d love for you to work with more than Chef Marcel.”
He almost asked,even Rico?But he kept his mouth shut.
