Page 64 of Tony

She laughs. “It definitely is.”

“No. We had our first date yesterday at lunch. And our second date last night. So this is our third date.”

“We can’t be on our third date when we’ve only known each other two days! And anyway, I don’t think stalking our exes over food counts as a date.”

“Why not?”

She slaps my arm. “Because. It just doesn’t.”

“We spent time together. We ate food. And drank wine. And talked. They all sound like dates to me.”

“Um… I think you’re conveniently forgetting how in between dates one and two we took time off to go fuck our exes.”

I laugh, then point at her. “OK. That’s maybe a little weird.”

“Maybe?”

“Fine. It’s unconventional. But I’m still counting them as dates.”

“Why? Because that makes this date three? And date three is the official ‘fuck date’?”

“Is date three the official fuck date?”

“It’s in the rule book.”

“I don’t think I play by those rules.”

“So you’re not going to fuck me?”

I stare at her. No. I gaze into her brilliant green eyes and get lost for a few thousand eternities before I pull myself back to reality and find the right words that need to come next.

“I’m not going to disappoint you, Soshee. Trust me on that.”

She gets up and extends her hand to me. “Trust you, huh?”

I take her hand and let her pull me to my feet. And when I’m standing I realize that we’re very close.

Only inches apart.

I also realize I’m only wearing a towel.

I look down into her green eyes. Picturing myself kissing those cherry-red lips as I slip my hand up her flirty little tennis skirt. Imagine her moaning into my mouth when I do that.

“Yeah. Trust me.”

“Hmm. So are you going to kiss me now?”

“Now? No.”

“No!” She laughs. “What the hell! Why not? I’m sending all the right signals. Aren’t I?”

She looks a little bit vulnerable when she asks me this question. A little bit of the tough Italian Mob girl disappears. But only a little.

“I want to. Don’t get me wrong. But not now. That comes at the end of the third date. Your rules, remember?”

“Thought you didn’t play by them?”

“Eh. They’re growing on me.”