I laughed. “No, Ma. Do you want mac and cheese?”
“Oh, that sounds wonderful. Okay, go and show your man out and then make me that tea.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied sarcastically, giving Eli a push. When we reached the front door, he grabbed me, by the front of my shirt, and kissed me, hard.
I pushed him against the door in response, leaning into the kiss as much as I could. I ran a hand along the stubble of his jaw and up into his hair, pulling a low moan from his mouth against my lips.
“Stop that, Flanagan.” He glanced down at his growing erection. “I can’t go to the office in this state.”
I smirked. “You started it.”
He kissed me lightly and pushed me away. “And now, unfortunately, I have to finish it.”
I rolled out my bottom lip. “And here I was thinking we could get a quickie in before you left.”
“Really?” He looked conflicted for a moment.
“I was joking. Kind of. My ma wants tea, and I can’t keep her waiting. What time works for dinner tonight?”
“Seven?”
“Seven works for me. I’ll see you then.”
After another quick kiss, he left.
I stood by the front door for a minute or so, wondering when it was going to sink in that we had slept together. Who was I kidding, sleep wasn’t actually part of the equation. He’d made my body heat for him all night long.
When I returned to the kitchen, mom was fiddling with the teapot.
“What are you doing?” I rushed over to the stove. “Let me do that.”
She glanced at me. “I can make a cup of tea, for goodness’ sake.”
I opened the lid and looked inside. There was no tea bag. It was all hot water. I suppressed a laugh as I brought out the tea bags I’d bought yesterday.
“I finally managed to get a hold of those classic tea bags you like, so no more making do with Earl Grey.”
“I was starting to get fond of it, actually.”
“I can make it if you’d like.”
My mom’s eyes widened in horror. “Absolutely not. Nothing beats a good cup of strong, English tea.”
“English tea that comes from India, Sri Lanka, and Africa.”
She waved a hand. “You and your silly geography.”
“Yes, having a solid understanding of imports and exports is merely a silly hobby. Heaven forbid, the knowledge is useful.”
“Speaking of geography,” she said, ignoring my jibe. “Any update on the weather? It didn’t look too bad this morning.”
“I’m not sure, actually.” I was immediately curious. “Let’s go check on the TV.”
I plopped myself down on the armrest of the sofa as I flicked through the channels, stopping when I reached a local weather station. I watched intently, taking in everything that was said, then pulled out my phone to check a few other forecasts.
“What’s the consensus?” she asked.
“Seems like they think this week should be the last of the storms. A warm front is coming in from the south. That should help melt the snow.”
“That’s great news for you. You’ll be able to get back with no worries about your job.”
“Yeah … no worries at all.”
I was happy that I’d be able to finally make it back to work. Getting back to Los Angeles was all I had wanted for the past six weeks. But now, with the weather forecast telling me that I’d finally be able to leave, my stomach twisted, and my heart ached. Leaving felt … wrong.
If the forecast was right, I’d be in California a day or two after my date with Eli, which suddenly seemed far too soon. I’d thought I’d have until the twentieth, like Don had said. The reality was that I had to get back to my job, my apartment, my friends, and my life.
It looked like my first official date with Eli Cooper would also be the last.
Chapter Seventeen
Eli
My stomach churned non-stop from the moment I woke up. I was all frayed edges and nerves trying to make tomorrow’s date with Emily perfect.
The weather had slowly but surely improved, and the snow was finally melting. That meant Emily would be leaving soon, and our first date would likely be our last.
On the upside, the end of the heavy snowfall meant that Owen and Rich finally returned to Frazier Falls. I walked the line between ecstatic and unhappy.
We were having dinner at Owen’s tonight to celebrate, but as I readied myself to leave, I wished it were another day. Spending time with my family meant I wasn’t spending time with Emily.
No doubt, I was acting like an idiot, worrying over the details of our date. A date that shouldn’t matter because it would ultimately lead to nothing. It wasn’t like I was asking Emily to marry me, or heaven forbid, move to Frazier Falls. No, it was simply an overnight stay at a hotel and spa an hour or so out of town.
Suddenly, I wanted to keep the plans for the date a surprise, which was why I hadn’t told Emily to pack a bathing suit. And what if she hadn’t brought one with her to Frazier Falls? Why would she in the middle of winter?
Nonetheless, I had to let her know. If she didn’t have one, we’d have to find somewhere to buy one, which didn’t seem likely in February. Suddenly my plan felt short-sighted and poorly executed.
I quickly pulled out my phone and called her. She picked up on the third ring.
“Eli? What’s up?”
“Do you have a bathing suit?”
She hesitated for a moment before asking, “Do you mean in general, or in Frazier Falls?”
“Frazier Falls. Do you have one?”
“As a matter of fact, I do. I brought one with me in case the recreation center was open.”
“It closed down two years ago.”
“Yeah, I heard. Guess I wasn’t ever invested enough to know that,” she replied off-handedly.
“Regardless, bring it with you tomorrow.”
I could almost hear her brain working, the cogs churning with every possible scenario where a swimsuit would be required. “You’re not going to force me to go swimming in the creek, are you? Because I’m sure as hell not going near it.”
“Why would I do that? Pack a bathing suit, and don’t ask any more questions.”
“Fine, but your behavior warrants my suspicion.”
Like me, Emily was a storyteller, and I’m sure she’d already come up with a few potential blockbusters ranging from a polar bear dip in the creek to a jet on the nearest runway waiting to take us to a tropical island. “Just trust me. I’ll pick you up at noon tomorrow.”
“Fine, fine,” Emily grumbled. “Tomorrow at noon with my bathing suit packed. I’ll see you then.”
The call ended with a click. But no sooner had I put my phone back in my pocket than it began to ring again, so back out it came. I brought the phone to my ear without checking who was calling. I had a fairly good guess, after all.
“What do you need, Owen?” I asked, looking at the clock. I was due to be at his house in five minutes. “I’m on my way.”
“You can start by replacing Carla’s beers that you drank,” he said.
I smiled slightly at the comment. “I guess I could do that. Anything else?”