Page 35 of The Fantasy League
“No interrogation this time?” he asked with a trace of laughter in his voice.
“Ha. Ha. Hilarious.”
With a coy smile on his lips, Abel placed a hand on the small of my back as he led me out the door. His touch was so hot I was surprised my dress didn’t singe.
Our car ride to the restaurant was significantly easier than the last car ride together. This time, the conversation flowed easily and before I knew it, we were handing off his keys to the valet.
“Hi Abel, long time no see.” The woman at the hostess stand beamed up at him when we walked through the door. Abel immediately let go of my hand so he could engulf her in a giant bear hug.
“Gianna, how are the twins?”
“They’re getting so big. Want to see?” she asked and Abel nodded, moving back over to my side and slipping his hand into mine once again. Gianna pulled out her phone from her back pocket and scrolled for a few seconds before turning her phone to show us a picture of two adorable twin boys.
“They’re huge!” Abel exclaimed, and the two of them chatted comfortably as she walked us to our table and the two of us got settled into the booth.
“Carlo will be with you in a minute.” She smiled at me with a genuine smile before patting Abel on the shoulder and making her way back to the hostess stand.
“Mio fratello!” a long-haired Italian man bellowed from across the restaurant, no doubt notifying all of the restaurant-goers of Abel and I’s presence here. “You’ve finally decided to come see me?”
Abel rose from his seat and embraced the man, patting him on the back before returning to his seat.
Okay, seriously. What was going on with all the hugging?
“Dio mio! Who is this?” The man nudged Abel’s side and I gave him a smile, still a little shell-shocked at all of the eyes on us.
“This is my girlfriend, Scarlett.” Abel’s lips broke into a full smile and the corners of his eyes softened. “Isn’t that right,my love?” He shot me a subtle wink, making no attempt to hide the smug expression on his face.
He was mocking me.Again. This was the second time in twenty-four hours he mocked me.
What a freaking asshole.
I gently kicked his shin from underneath the table, but his smile only grew wider as he ignored it and continued chatting with Carlo.
Okay fine, I had to admit the irony wasa little bitfunny.
Who would’ve guessed that underneath all of our awkward encounters together thatAbel Abbottactually had a sense of humor?
Not me.
That was for sure.
My mind wandered back to the car ride after the charity gala. Somewhere in the recesses of my brain, I still wondered if he’d been like this,himself,from the beginning, if we would have become more than friends.
I wondered whether he’d brought any other girls here before… and that thought instantly pulled me away from the possibility.
Of course we couldn’t be more than friends.
The thought was a momentary lapse in judgment on my part. There was no way he would ever see me as more than a friend. And I kept conveniently forgetting the fact that he was still the one who signed my paychecks every two weeks.
The condensation on my glass chilled my fingertips as I picked it up off the table and brought it to my lips. Sitting back in my chair, I sipped on my water leisurely as I studied Abel interacting with his longtime friend.
He looked happy, relaxed even.
Confident. Definitely confident.
And hot. God, he looked so hot.
The corners of my mouth turned up as I watched him. I liked seeing him with his guard down, giving me a glimpse into his normally closed-off world.
