“No, it’s okay, don’t bother, you must be so busy . . .”
He pauses, giving me that smile of his. Even after all these years, it still looks so disarmingly boyish on his rugged features, instantly taking years off and making him look all of five years old. “It’s going to be a crazy weekend, isn’t it?”
You have no idea, I want to say.
“Tell you a secret?” He lowers his voice and moves closer to me. My heart thumps painfully. “I may be pissing my pants a little at the thought of everything that needs to go well this weekend. Just a little. It’s a huge deal for us, and I just—opening this hotel was my dream. My investors are pretty nervous at the expense. I really need this wedding to go perfectly.”
I gnaw on my lip. Perfectly. Right. Which probably means no corpses being found on the premises.
Nathan rakes a hand through his hair and grimaces. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to spill everything. It’s just—” He smiles at me. “Seeing you . . . it’s amazing, Meddy, and so unexpected. I mean, seriously, what are the odds? I’m so glad you’re here. You’ve always got your feet firmly on the ground, and it’s great to see you.”
“It has been amazing,” I say, meaning every word. “And I’m so glad to see how well you’re doing. I mean, you opened your own hotel at twenty-six, Nathan. That’s incredible.”
He shrugs, blushing. “I had a lot of help. Met the right people at JLL, got seed money from my folks, got to know lots of investors . . . I didn’t do all this by myself. I just got really, really lucky.”
“Well, I’m sure you also worked your ass off.”
“A bit,” he laughs, and it’s exactly like the old times, as though we’ve picked up right where we left off. We meet each other’s eyes, and all of our beautiful history unravels in my mind’s eye. I remember every single detail—every kiss, the exact way his eyelashes feel against my face, the solid warmth of his hands—with aching clarity. “So, um, are you seeing anyone?”
My heart stutters, and I shake my head furiously. “You?”
“My family has been setting me up with various blind dates, but nothing has stuck.”
Oh god. I can feel my cheeks burning, because speaking of blind dates, mine’s in the cooler right next to him. As though reading my mind, he picks up the cooler handle and pulls, frowning when it doesn’t budge.
“It’s impossible to move it on this pebble path,” I babble. “Look, don’t worry about me, you’re slammed with work, and like you said, you’ve got investors up your ass. Just go, I’ll call for a bellboy or something.”
His frown deepens. “Let me do this for you,” he says in a gruff voice, giving the cooler a hard yank. The top of the cooler pops up a couple of inches for one heart-stopping moment before I push it back down. Jesus. I could pass out right now, I really could.
Nathan looks down at the cooler and cocks his head to one side. “Is that—”
Oh god. It is. It’s a corner of Big Aunt’s blanket sticking out like a fucking woolen tongue. I watch as Nathan moves in slow motion and reaches down to open the cooler. And I do the only thing I can, the thing I’ve been dreaming of doing for the last four years.
I grab his broad shoulders, feeling his muscles under my fingers, and pull him back to face me.
“Meddy—”
I don’t wait for him to finish speaking. I reach up, still pulling him down, and let our mouths meet in a fervent kiss.
14
The kiss sears through my skin, singeing my flesh, reaching deep into my memories, reminding me of the heat of our romance. In the space of a few seconds, I taste those college days once more—the Diddy Riese cookies we used to share with Selena at 11 p.m. on a Tuesday, the scent of hookah smoke as we walked down Broxton Ave holding hands, the feel of his hand cupped firmly round my waist, sending hot waves running through my entire body. The way he made me laugh, a full-on, no-holds-barred belly laugh, and then how he’d climb on top of me and kiss me fully, with his entire being, his skin against mine—
By the time we break apart we’re both breathless. I look at his face, and I know he’s thinking of our UCLA days as well.
“Meddy,” he whispers, leaning in again, catching my mouth with his. So soft, and warm. New and yet achingly familiar. “God, how I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too.” My voice catches with emotion. I have. So much.