“As long as we get a tow truck,” I muttered.
“Oh that’s right, his car won’t start. Is it the battery?”
“No idea. He says he tried to get a jump, but it didn’t work.” I thought for a moment. “Although I don’t know who he asked.”
“Are you guys the only ones staying at that motel?”
“No, there are other people here. In fact, only one room was available last night. And there are still some cars in the parking lot.” But something wasn’t sitting quite right—something about this morning when Gianni had told me his car was dead, although I couldn’t put my finger on it.
“So how are things going? What did you guys do all day long, stay in bed?”
“We have definitely spent some time in bed, but we did other things too.” I told her about snowshoeing to the diner and the walk through the woods, including the part where I twisted my ankle.
“Oh, no! Is it bad?”
“It hurts, but I don’t think it’s a serious sprain.”
“How’d you get back to the motel? Did Gianni carry you?”
I smiled. “He probably would have—turns out he’s got kind of a chivalrous streak—but I was able to walk back with his help.”
“Chivalrous streak?” Winnie laughed.
“Yeah. Who knew?”
“Actually, it doesn’t surprise me. I could see that about him, especially with you.”
“Why especially with me?”
“I don’t know, just the way he looks at you sometimes. Or the way he gets jealous if you mention another guy.”
“He does not!” The shower went off, and I lowered my voice. “You’re nuts.”
“I am not! You’ve never noticed how he reacts when you bring up a dude you once dated or someone you think is hot?”
“Yeah, he puts them all down and makes fun of my taste. He’s been that way since high school.”
“Because he was jealous, Ellie. He had no chance with you, and he knew it.”
I thought about what he’d said last night. I lied and read your name off so I’d finally get to make out with you. I didn’t think I stood a chance otherwise.
“He told me something last night,” I whispered quickly. “He said he hadn’t really pulled my name from the hat.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Seven Minutes in Heaven!” I whispered frantically, my eyes on the bathroom door. “He lied and said he’d pulled my name so he’d have a chance to kiss me.”
Winnie gasped. Silence. And then. “I knew it! What the actual fuck happened in that closet!”
“Listen, it’s too much to explain right now, but I’ll tell you later.”
My bestie groaned, and I could hear Dex laughing. “But what does this mean? Are you guys a thing now? Is this finally happening?”
“No!” But I bit my lip. “We’re having a good time together, that’s all. And getting to know each other better. But I still don’t trust him—not completely.”
“Trust him with what?”
But that was when he opened the bathroom door, and appeared in just a towel. He held it together at one hip, and it dipped low enough that I could see the V lines on his lower abs. His hair was damp and messy. His jawline and upper lip were scruffy. His blue eyes were sapphire bright.
My insides tightened. My heart fluttered. I might have drooled.
“Listen,” I said to Winnie. “I have to go. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“But—”
“Bye.” I ended the call and set my phone aside without taking my eyes off Gianni, who’d stopped moving and stood next to the bed.
“So can I sleep naked?” he asked.
“You’re asking my permission tonight?”
He lifted his broad shoulders. “I guess.”
My eyes wandered over his body, igniting my desire. “Drop the towel.”
His eyebrows shot up in surprise. “What?”
“Drop the towel.” My lips curved into a smile. “Earlier you told me to eat my heart out. What if I’m hungry?”
He let go of the towel and it fell to the floor.
God, he was so fucking beautiful. Every inch of him.
But especially those eyes, and the way they were looking at me, like he knew he should have gotten his fill, but had to have more.
I wasn’t sure what had taken my inhibitions prisoner, but suddenly I had zero shame about what I wanted. Maybe it was the wine. Maybe it was the end of the world. Maybe it was some sexual confidence in myself that this time with him had shaken loose from its moorings and set adrift.