Page 70 of Whirlwind
“It’s really nice.”
“Nobody has ever spoiled you,” I say. No point in asking, since it’s so obviously true.
“The Coles have taken me on a couple of vacations with them,” she says. “I think those count as spoiling.”
“Where to?” I ask, but Kit waits to answer until after Severan has come up with our first course and explained what it is. It’s tiny, bite-sized onion cakes that look like miniature works of art.
“Costa Rica and New Orleans,” she says, then takes her first bite. “Holy shit, Tyson!”
“Luther’s brilliant, right?” I ask, and she hums her agreement, taking another bite. I keep her talking about the vacations with the Coles over the next course. She loved both places for different reasons. In Costa Rica, she was obsessed with the titimonkeys, while in New Orleans, she wanted to learn about the history and culture of the city.
“Did you go on many vacations as a kid?”
“Never,” she answers. “My first plane ride was when I flew here for college. I’d barely been out of my small town, other than an occasional field trip to Bangor. I’m not worldly or well-traveled,” she says with a grimace.
“If you could go anywhere and money wasn’t an issue, where would you go?”
“The Galapagos,” she says instantly. “Joshua Tree, and the Shiraito Falls in Japan.”
“You’ve put some thought into that,” I say with a laugh.
“My lack of travel isn’t because I haven’t always wanted to. I spent a lot of time in the local library as a kid, thumbing through travel books and imagining myself in the different places.” She takes a swallow of the small cup of broth placed in front of her. “Why do I feel healthier after one sip?”
“Luther makes the best soups.”
“How do you know him?”
“He was my neighbor growing up.” His family lived a few doors down and he was the biggest punk on the street. I’d have never guessed he’d end up being one of the most acclaimed chefs in the Pacific Northwest.
“You could have taken me to a restaurant, you know? I’m easy to please. Though, I’m not complaining. This is the best meal I’ve ever had.”
There’s a lot I want to say to that, but I let it go, for now, focusing instead on the food, the wine, the view of the city skyline lit up in the distance. Kit keeps her enthusiasm through the remaining dishes, especially dessert.
“There’s probably not extra down there, is there?”
“I can check for you, Miss Ashcroft,” Severan answers her with an amused grin. When he disappears, I reach over to lift Kit from her seat to my lap.
“Thank you,” she says quietly, dropping her head on my shoulder.
“My pleasure,” I say. “I’m preoccupied, every day, trying to come up with the best ways to spoil you.”
“It’s bad for you to have preoccupations,” she says, bringing her hands over her face. “I don’t want to be that for you.”
“I compartmentalize just fine when I’m working,” I say, dipping my fingers under her coat to drag up her bare thigh. “Besides, you’re the best fucking distraction I could ever ask for.”
“Are you sure?” she asks, peeking through her fingers at me for a few seconds before she drops her hands. “I don’t want to be a Jessica Simpson or something.”
“I’m a much better man than Romo. I can play to my best ability while being utterly infatuated with a woman,” I assure her.
“You know that because of Isla,” Kit says—not in accusation, simply as fact.
“Do you still believe I’m in love with her?” Since my first conversation with Kit about Isla, I’ve thought about what she said—that if we think it’s love, it must be.
“In my whole short life,” she starts to answer, adjusting herself so she can snake a hand around my waist. The position gives me more access to her while keeping it hidden under her furry coat. “I’ve never known anyone who fell out of love with someone. My brain is preprogrammed to believe we only love once in a lifetime.”
“I’m inclined to believe you,” I say, and watch the light in her dark eyes dim. I’m saddened to hurt her, but it tells me that her heart is somewhere near where mine is. “The flaw inyour argument is that sometimes people think they’re feeling love, only because they’ve never truly been in love. When you do finally fall, everything you thought you knew about it before pales in comparison.”
“How do you know?”
