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“So, you don’t have time to join me for lunch?” I ask, realizing that’s the easiest way to show her my gratitude for the baked goods.
She looks down at her watch, and her eyes widen. “No, I have to get back.”
“Dinner then?”
Two
Central Gardenwas an upscale restaurant that sat above the city, overlooking Central Park from the sixteenth floor. The waitlist to get in was at least six months long at any time, unless of course you were Jackson Walsh. I walk toward the door to see Ava staring down at her phone just outside. I frown, wondering why she's standing outside in the cold.
“Ava?” I ask as I reach her, touching her elbow softly.
“Hi!” she says, her cheeks pink from the chilly air.
“Why didn't you go in?”
“Jackson, this restaurant has a crazy waitlist. I'm sure they're used to people trying to get in all the time. Besides, if I told them I was here with you, they'd probably laugh at me.”
“Why?” I ask.You're a stunning woman, Ava. I'm sure they'd assume you were my date.
“Well--” She bites her lip, and my cock reacts immediately.Down boy, this isn’t a date.“I just wanted to wait for you, that's all.”
“Okay, after you, Ava,” I tell her, guiding her into the building and out of the cold.
We sit at my usual table tucked in the corner of the restaurant, and I can’t help but notice the look that hasn’t left Ava’s face since we ascended to the sixteenth floor. “This place is beautiful.” She looks at me nervously, and I can almost hear her thoughts.
“Order whatever you want, Ava. Don’t worry about it.”
She blushes and tucks a hair behind her ear. I can’t say I remember how easily her embarrassment showed across her creamy skin. “Okay.”
An hour and two bottles of wine later, I feel more relaxed than I’ve felt in months. I’ve never been at such ease talking to anyone. Ava is brilliant, witty and wise beyond her years. The conversation between us flowed effortlessly, and I don’t think I’ve laughed as much as I have tonight.
“So, you like law school so far?” I ask her as I bring the glass to my lips, sipping the red wine she’d insisted on choosing. It was sweeter than I liked, but I didn’t hate it.
She nods, leaning forward. “I love it.” Her eyes light up as her lips find the rim of her glass. “NYU is great.”
“Do you have any idea what kind of law you’d like to practice?” I make a mental note to reach out to my father to let him know that eventually little Ava Remington very well may need a job.
She shakes her head. “Is that… bad? That I have no idea?”
“No, Ava. The world is your oyster. You can do anything you want.”
She nods, and I don’t miss the emotion that crosses her face briefly. It’s almost as if no one has ever told her that before. No one had told her that she could be anything—do anything she wanted.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” I ask her, changing the subject, and she cocks her head to the side, giving me a smirk.
“Why? Did my brother ask you to find out?” She slides the spoon through her lips, sucking the crème brûlée we had ordered, and I try to ignore the reaction I have to the sultry whimper she makes when the sweet substance hits her tongue.
Stop it, Jackson, this is T’s baby sister. Truth was, I hadn’t even told Tucker I was having dinner with his sister.
“No, Ava.” I shake my head as I lean back in my chair and cross my arms over my chest. “Your brother didn’t ask. I was just wondering if there was a guy. One who allowed out by yourself, in New York City, at eleven o’clock at night.”
“Allowed, huh?” She throws her head back in a hearty chuckle, and I wonder if she’s had a little too much wine. “There’s no guy, Jackson.”
“You really shouldn’t be running around by yourself late at night, Ava.”
“I wasn’t running around;I was at the library. You know,studying.”
“Well when you’re studying late, you call me. I’ll make sure you get home safe.” I shoot her a stern look, but she doesn’t falter under my gaze like people usually do.
