or dinner.”
“Let’s see... I’m working four twelve-hour shifts this week... and I’m working one night this weekend.”
“Sounds like you’d benefit from someone taking your mind off things.”
“Well, yes, but after a shift, I usually just grab something on the go and crash as soon as I’m home.”
“I’m very good at taking care of you.”
His voice was deliciously raw. Just like that, I was on fire. And I did want to see him. He’d awoken so many things inside me in the two days we spent together that I couldn’t help wondering what would happen if I saw him again. I had to stop being afraid. I wanted to.
“Fine, Mr. Winchester. Meet me at the back entrance of the hospital tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. I might be late, but hopefully I’ll manage to message you if that’s the case. And then we can do whatever you want.”
“My pleasure.”
Now that I’d taken this leap, I couldn’t wait to see him. Tomorrow was going to be crazy at the hospital, but I didn’t want to give myself too much time—I might chicken out.
After hanging up, I was even more giddy, but I didn’t have time to daydream about tomorrow, because I was already late to Isabelle’s.
The Uber driver gave me the side eye because I insisted on keeping the espresso machine next to me instead of putting it in the trunk. I couldn’t wait to see my best friend, tell her everything. I’d told her about my day with Cole in Rome, but this was different. I needed all the advice I could get.
Isabelle’s apartment was in the Parkchester neighborhood in the Bronx, a forty-minute ride from my apartment. It was really pretty. The buildings were mostly red brick, and they only had between six and ten stories. The walkways connecting the buildings were full of bushes and trees that were starting to turn green now that spring was here.
I clutched the espresso machine with both hands, pressing the doorbell with my elbow.
When she opened the door, her eyes widened as she took in the box.
“Oh my God. You brought that with you from Italy?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Did I tell you I love you?” Isabelle looked gorgeous, as usual. She had red fiery hair that reached to her waist. Her green eyes were vivid, and the mascara she wore brought them out nicely. She was wearing a white shirt with tiny black flowers and jeans. My friend looked impeccable even when she was at home, unpacking.
“This place is gorgeous.” The inside of the apartment was very cozy, with cream-colored walls and some old-school metal chandeliers hanging from the high ceilings.
“I know. I am so, so lucky. The old tenants even left some of their stuff here.”
She liked to mix and match styles and did so successfully. One of these days, I would ask her to give my apartment a makeover too.
Inside the living room, I was surprised to find her siblings there too. Well, I’d expected Josie to be here, but not Dylan and Ian, considering they didn’t live in New York.
“Look who’s here,” Isabelle exclaimed, grinning.
“Wow, I haven’t seen you in years. You guys look unchanged.” There was no other way to say it, the Gallagher brothers were hunks. They both had dirty-blond hair and some serious muscles. Ian’s eyes were blue, Dylan’s brown.
“We get better with age,” Dylan corrected.
“Like George Clooney,” I agreed.
Ian shuddered. “Pick someone younger, Ace.”
That had been his nickname for me growing up because I’d been a nerd. I hugged both of them and then Josie as well. She, too, looked just like I remembered her. Her brown hair was cut in a bob that brushed her neck in a straight, seductive line. She wasn’t wearing makeup. She and Isabelle had always been polar opposites. It was comforting to know that some things didn’t change.
I was closer to Ian and Dylan than Josie, because she’d left Montana when we were still kids. She’d gone to high school here in New York. Growing up, I used to pretend Ian and Dylan were my brothers. It came in very handy in certain situations—no one messed with me. They’d had my back and even volunteered to tell people I was their sister when the situation required it. We’d gone our separate ways in college. Isabelle and I went to Philadelphia, the guys went to Washington, DC, where they still lived.
“It’s good to see you, Laney,” Josie said. “These two came to help build the stuff Isabelle had in storage.”
“We’re staying until Sunday,” Ian