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Sal blushes a little. “My mistake.”
“This is her first time eating New York pizza, so give her something good.” I smile.
Sal’s eyes go wide, his blush gone. “A foreigner! Well, why didn’t you say so?”
He turns and disappears back into the kitchen, a few inaudible commands yelled in the distance. Leave it to the old man to want to impress Kylie on my account. I walk toward one of the metal chairs and take a seat. Kylie follows my lead and sits beside me, head on a swivel as she continues to admire the place.
“So, care to share what you’ve found out so far?” I ask.
She stops sightseeing long enough to glare at me. “You and Jax are exactly the same, you know that?”
“We get that a lot.” I chuckle. “There was a rumor going around campus that we were fraternal twins separated at birth. I started it, naturally.”
“I’d believe it.” She glances around one last time before resting those dark eyes on me. “Can we not talk about the case while we eat?”
“Well, then what do you want to talk about?”
“How about the reason why a rich boy such as yourself knows about a place like this?”
She smirks at me as I take in the stained white walls under florescent lights with a smile. “My dad used to take me here when I was a kid. Used to boast that one day he’d buy the place and retire selling pizza. I thought he was nuts. But that was before he changed into someone I hardly knew.”
“Do you miss him?”
I take in the care in her eyes and feel a twinge of pain in my chest. “It’s hard to miss someone who has screwed you over in more ways than one. But yeah. I guess. I guess I haven’t thought about it too much.”
“Asshat or not, he was still your dad. You must’ve had some good memories of him.”
“All the good memories I have are probably left in this very spot.” I smile at her. “I’m glad that I’m able to keep up the tradition.”
Her cheeks flush, and she looks away, a wide grin on her face. Sal comes out with an extra-large box and a white paper bag.
“All right,” he grunts as he puts it on the table next to me. “Half cheese, half pepperoni, with garlic knots on the side. My treat.”
“Aw, Sal. You didn’t have to.” I stand and clap him on the back.
“Your father was a loyal customer and a good friend,” Sal says with tears in his eyes. “And I know that wherever he is, he’s super proud of you, Johnathan.”
I think about the boxes of evidence that say otherwise and manage to force a small smile. “Thanks, Sal.”
He turns toward Kylie and points a thumb my way. “Take good care of this guy right here.”
“Yes, sir,” Kylie says with pride. Sal nods at us with approval and walks back to the kitchen with nothing more than a wave of his hand.
I look over at Kylie and grab onto the pizza box. “Ready to go?”
“We’re not eating it here?” she asks, voice small with disappointment.
Even when she isn’t trying to, she can be the most adorable person I’ve ever met. I sit back in my seat and flip open the box. “I give you first dibs.”
My mouth waters as she pulls a slice from the pie, the cheese hanging off the side in one long string. I secure my own slice and capture the stray cheese with my tongue. Kylie’s face lights up as she takes her first bite, the slice looking huge in her tiny mouth. Kind of like how I had her back on the island. I swallow my own first bite of pizza and try to think of anything else. But the more she eats, the more I can’t stop thinking about it. My pants get tighter by the second, and I’m grateful she’s sitting across from me this time.
“I see why people rave about this stuff.” Kylie licks her lips.
A bit of sauce sits on the corner of her mouth, and I can’t help but imagine myself licking it off. Oh, this is impossible. I calmly stand up and walk over to the napkin stand on the counter, grateful that Sal is busy in the kitchen instead of out here. Nice as he is, he’s not the kind of guy that passes up an opportunity to make a quick joke at another’s expense. The last thing I want Kylie to think is that I only hired her for sex. Not that I would mind putting my face in between those thighs again.
I grab a handful of napkins and try to casually hold them in front of my growing desires. Kylie’s too invested in the pizza to notice. I park myself back behind the safety of the pizza box and hold out some napkins to her.
“Don’t forget about those garlic knots. They are to die for.”
