Page 49 of Poinsettia Lane

Asim doesn’t seem to need that type of response though; he scoots around next to her, kisses her temple, then helps her dish out the food, sending a sideways smile her way as he does so. Everly’s lips twitch up inresponse, and they dig in.

“So, crab rangoons are the winner here?” Asim asks a few minutes later.

Everly laughs. “I do love rangoons. Only if they have crab meat in them though, the plain cream cheese ones aren’t worth the calories.”

Asim squints at her when she mentions the calories, a spring roll hovering halfway to his mouth. Quickly she moves on, because that’s not a conversation she wants to have with him tonight. She likes her body, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t mindful of what she puts in it. Most men just don’t get it.

“What’s your favorite?” she asks.

“I’m partial to egg rolls for an appetizer, but I love egg drop soup and a classic Kung Pao.”

“What about your native foods?” Everly has been curious to learn more about his culture.

“Which are my favorites?” Asim clarifies and she nods, mouth full of rich peking duck. “That’s an impossible question.” He laughs, one hand flaring out like a stop-sign.

“If you haven’t had Middle Eastern food, you probably won’t recognize any of them," he warns, but Everly doesn’t care. She wants to learn, so she looks at him patiently, eyebrows raised.

“Let’s see, if I had to pick one it would probably be tepsi baytinijan, it’s different depending on who makes it, but it’s similar to a casserole crossed with stew. My mom’s recipe has lamb meatballs and veggies, it’s very good with the spices she adds. For sweet foods… that one’s tough.” He pauses, thinking. “Maybe daheen, or muhallebi. Daheen is textured, kind of like a fudgy cake, but flavored with dates and nuts, very sweet. I like it best with coconut on top. Muhallebi is a cold dessert. It’s made with milk and sugar, like pudding with fruits or nuts on top. Zerde is good too, it’s normally reserved for special occasions though.”

“You have a sweet tooth?” Everly asks, laughing. She didn’t picture him as the type of guy to enjoy sweets so much, but based on the sermon he just gave, he definitely does.

Asim grins back at her. “I always have. My motherused to despair that I’d never grow big and strong, but I don’t think they held me back all that much.” He gives himself a pointed look and raises an eyebrow at her questioningly.

“No, I don’t think they did," Everly agrees.

They finish only a small portion of the food he ordered and when the clothes are dry, Asim gets dressed, returning her robe to her. He helps her pack up the leftovers and Everly insists he take some home with him, on account of the fact that there’s no way she can eat that much food on her own in the next few days.

Asim treats her to a toe-curling good night kiss before he steps outside, waiting on the porch again until he hears the lock click behind him. Everly leans back against the door with a dreamy sigh, fingers touching her lips as though she can hold his kiss there forever.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

ALTHOUGH THE PLANTING is finished, they still need to add the final touches to the terracing. Just as Everly wonders if she was supposed to reach out to him about the ground cover, his name pops up on her phone screen.

Her heart jumps, and she fumbles her phone, snatching it off the counter.

“He-hello?” Everly says, steadying the phone in her hand and leaning against the cabinets behind her, carding her fingers through her hair. Her stomach flips in an uncomfortable amalgamation of nerves and excitement.

“Hey, it’s me.” Asim’s voice comes through short and surly, and Everly straightens, on alert. “I have some bad news… I don’t think I’ll make it to your place today.”

“Oh. Kay.” Her brows furrow, and her thoughts are ready to start spinning.

“I’m really sorry. I’d love to, but I’ve been neglecting some upkeep on the wiring in the shop and it’s on the fritz even more than usual this morning. I really need to take a closer look and get it fixed up," he says.

“The wiring, right.” Relief that he isn’t ditching her washes through her, but she’s also a little concerned he hasn’t mentioned any issues like this before. “No problem, of course you have other things you need to do, I shouldn’t have assumed. Just let me know when you have time again and we can figure it out.”

Everly’s voice rises in pitch the more she talks, until she sounds entirely unlike herself. Has she been taking up too much of his time? He’s an entrepreneur, abusiness owner, and his job is much more hands on than hers. She hasn’t once considered what that means for his responsibilities in light of the many hours he’s been spending at her place, working on her project instead of his own. Everly starts to wonder if she’s been unreasonably self centered, when he interrupts her thoughts.

“Everly," Asim says, his voice firm in her ear. “It’s not a big deal, I’ve been happy to spend time with you and we’ll get the terrace finished up before you know it, okay? This isn’t on you. I’m the one who has been procrastinating over here.”

She can practically see him—talking with his hands and the wry look on his face with those last words. Everly takes a calming breath, and nods. Then remembers they’re not on video and he can’t see her.

“Yeah,” she says, “okay.”

“Thanks, I owe you one," he says. “Let me know how I can make it up to you.”

Everly cocks her head at that, her mind already racing with possibilities. She absolutely will.

~~~