Page 9 of Falling Madly
“Do you play show tunes in your head?” I asked as we stepped into a dark hallway.
“Show tunes?”
“Reruns of the Simpsons?”
He blinked slowly, trying to follow my runaway thought train.
“How do you stay so calm?” I clarified. “You must have a solid happy place. Like, on another planet. None of that babbling brook shit.”
He chuckled. “You’re a babbling brook.”
An uncontrollable laugh erupted from me, and I leaned on the wall to keep my balance. “It was so loud. I seriously jumped out of my skin.”
Finding my center of gravity, I adjusted my dress to make sure my bra wasn’t peeking through the plunging neckline. I might have been feeling a little drunk, but there was no reason to look trashed.
His eyes dipped to my cleavage. “I’m used to it. My family home had a smoke alarm that went off every time anyone made toast.”
I pulled a face. “Sounds awful.”
“Then one year, I bought my mom a new toaster for Mother’s Day.”
“Instead of cleaning the old one?”
“That’s what she said!”
A moment of sadness lingered in the air. I knew his mom was long dead and all those stories of his family had taken place years ago in Scotland, which made them sound like fairy tales to me. Sweet and nostalgic.
He led me down the hallway to a frosted glass door labeled “spa.”
“There’s a spa?”
“Sort of.” Trevor produced a swipe card from his pocket and tapped it on the reader. The door slid open with a beep. “Take a look.”
Crypto-Gavin lived a life of luxury, so I’d already expected something grand. Still, the massive swimming pool surrounded by huge indoor plants took me by surprise. Like a jungle-themed holiday destination on an international space station if NASA had the budget.
We found a bench under two potted palm trees overlooking the silent pool. Ornate lanterns hung overhead, creating an eerie atmosphere. I heard a faint tip-tip-tip of water dripping somewhere far away.
I let out a reverent sigh. “This is impressive and unreal, all at the same time.”
“Aye. The ultimate controlled environment.” His hand brushed against mine and stayed. “I prefer wild nature with all its discomforts. You?”
I glanced at our hands. At work, we never touched, not even by accident. Tonight was different. The skin on my shoulder still glowed from where he’d placed his arm around me. That first touch had woken my nerves, making me hyper aware of him. Ofus. He’d claimed me in front of Kyle like I wasn’t just a colleague but… something more.
“Sure. Overly controlled and manicured is a bit creepy. But I also like coffee shops and movie theaters and occasional concerts that don’t involve line dancing, so I prefer civilization over small towns or total wilderness.”
He was quiet for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts. I knew he disagreed, which was fine. It wasn’t like we were getting married and deciding where we wanted to live.
“I love the mountains. I’d happily give up lattes and concerts for a cabin in the woods, if I could convince George to let me work from home.”
I smiled at the thought. “Cabin in the woods, huh? What would you do there all day long?”
“Hunt and fish, build things…”
“And split logs and make fire and push the snow?”
“Aye. O’ course.”
The mental image of him wielding an axe flashed behind my eyes. Why was it so easy to imagine him as a mountain man? A laugh bubbled in my belly, and I couldn’t resist poking fun at him. “Every day, you buy your coffee from that pretentious master barista. You get your beard trimmed and waxed at that place downstairs from the office. I’ve seen them give manicures…”
