Page 48 of Falling for the Bad Boy
“Very. I told you I’m the youngest. Grandma spoiled me. She used to watch me quite a bit since Mom was so busy with my siblings.” Talking about her grandmother felt like someone had ripped a bandage off an old wound. “She’s the one who taught me how to knit.”
Oliver nodded. “So this co-op is a way of honoring her?”
Tears welled up in my eyes, but I willed them not to fall. I wouldn’t cry in front of anyone, especially not Oliver. He already thought I was enough of a hot mess.
“Yeah. Something like that.” I needed to change the subject before I started bawling. “Where are you off to?”
“Class.” He nudged his chin toward the backpack slung over one shoulder. “Finals are next week.”
“Ready to finish up and head back home?” At the thought of Oliver leaving, my stomach gave a little twist. I smoothed my palm over my navel.
The smile faded. “I’ll stick around for a little while longer. It’s winter there so I’m not too eager to get back.”
“Good.”
“Good?” His brows rose.
“Yeah. You’ve shown me you’ll work for food. I was wondering if I could interest you in some gourmet pizza in exchange for a few hours of manual labor.”
His head tilted down, and he moved closer. “What kind of manual labor are we talking about?”
Tingles raced up my thighs. “Not the kind that’s making you look like that.”
“What do I look like?” He stepped to the side and stood in front of the window, checking out his reflection.
“You look like you did last night. Right before…” Oh hell. Had I said that out loud?
“Before what?” His hands pushed against the brick wall, caging me between them. He stepped closer, sandwiching my feet between his, lowering his head toward mine. “Before I did something like this?”
He didn’t give me a chance to respond before he covered my lips. Without thinking, my arms reached up, grasping his shoulders. Heat unfurled from my belly, radiating out along my limbs as he took the kiss deeper. My back pressed against the wall, the rough texture of the brick barely registering. I could lose myself in a kiss like that.
“Um, miss?” A deep voice broke us apart. The sign installer stood three feet away, clearly uncomfortable at interrupting our public display of affection.
I cleared my throat as I ran a hand over my hair and pulled down the edge of my shirt with the other. “All done?”
He shoved a clipboard at me. “If you could just sign here?”
I scrawled something that might pass for my signature on the paper. “Thanks so much. It looks great.”
“They’ve got the power set up on a timer, so you don’t have to worry about turning it on or off.” He ripped the bottom page from his clipboard. “Here’s your copy. Let us know if you have any questions.”
“Thanks, I will.” I folded the paper in two as I turned back to Oliver.
“So pizza tonight? Your place or mine?” He’d tucked his thumb through his belt loop and stood there like the earth hadn’t just tilted on its axis.
“What?”
“The manual labor you asked me about…your place or mine?” The way his mouth quirked up on one side told me he knew I’d enjoyed it.
“Mine. Definitely mine.” If we started at his place, we’d never get around to setting up the shelves I’d ordered. “Six? Seven? What works for you?”
“I’m off tonight so I’m flexible. How about I stop by around six? We can have dinner and then get to the hard stuff.”
I rolled my eyes. “The only hard stuff we’re going to get to is trying to decipher assembly instructions for the shelves I bought.”
“Mmm hmm.” His grin grew wider. “See you tonight.”
Then he turned and moved down the sidewalk like a man who knew he’d be getting exactly what he wanted later. And who was I kidding? The way he kissed was only a hint at his true strengths.
