Page 156 of Give & Take

“Just like you had a feeling about me when you ogled my ass?”

“Yep.” I sip my coffee, my eyes going swirly at how big a pull she put in there. “Damn.”

Lana shakes her head, but she’s smiling. “Unbelievable.”

“In fact,” I say, “could you put that coffee down a minute?”

She frowns. “Why?”

“I just want to try something.”

She sets the coffee down.

I pick her up, spinning her sideways and sitting her on my lap with a plop. Then I let out a long sigh. “Yep.”

“Yep what?” she says, looking around nervously like someone might be watching. Then, seeming not to care.

“This is what I wanted to do that day at the bar. When you hired me for the summer.” I lean in so I’m whispering in her ear. “All I could think about was what that beautiful ass would feel like pressed up against me.”

“Oh God,” she says as I tilt my hips just a little.

“And whether you were going to fire me,” I admit.

She laughs under her breath and leans back against me. Then she sits up abruptly, shifting on my lap. “What’s that in your pocket?”

“Good one,” I say, waggling my brows.

She laughs.

But she looks down, squinting at the outline in my pants. It’s square, with a right angled corner.

Her eyes dart to mine. I reach into my pants, pulling out a small velvet box.

Lana’s eyes go wide. “You’re not just happy to see me,” she croaks.

Now it’s my turn to laugh.

“I am, but this is a jewelry box.”

“With my name on it.”

There is, in fact, a piece of tape with her name on it on the top. “Yes.”

“Raph—”

“Just open it, okay? Don’t worry, it’s just a birthday present.”

“You already did a dance for me. And bought me that box set of special edition duke books.”

“And gave you my resignation letter.”

“That too.”

She hesitates, then opens the box. Inside is a necklace—it’s a gold Hawthorn leaf necklace. Smaller and more delicate than mine. But matching just the same.

“Raphael LaForest,” she whispers as she pulls it out.

I put it on her neck, fumbling a little with the clasp. I’m nervous, but she doesn’t need to know it. “It’s so you don’t forget to keep your heart open,” I whisper. “Not just for me. But for life.”

---