I glance at him over my shoulder, and he raises an eyebrow.
“What? You act like I can’t see every thought running through your head at all times.”
I laugh. “Quite the superpower. Does it work on everyone?”
He doesn’t laugh, though. He just closes the distance between us and rests his hands on my hips. “Only you.”
Something in his voice kills my banter immediately, as well as any reasonable or witty response. I try to swallow, to clear the lump that’s formed in my throat, and stare up at him.
“That’s a pretty useless superpower. Only works on one person.”
“Works on the only person who matters.”
I smile softly and shake my head, giving him a light shove. “Please—there are plenty of people who matter.”
Kolter slides a hand behind my neck, holding my gaze steady as he looks down at me. “Not to me.”
“Kolt,” I whisper roughly. “You’re getting pretty intense for a first date.”
“I don’t intend to hide or minimize what I feel, Peaches. I told you I was all in; I meant it. You’re just gonna have to deal with all that entails.”
“Why does that sound like a threat?” I ask, tilting my head to one side.
“Because it should probably be taken as one.”
It’s stupid to smile, right? That wasn’t romantic… was it? I mean, traditionally speaking, of course not. It gave more alpha-male, you’re-my-property-and-I’m-a-bad-man vibes, but maybe that’s why it’s so romantic? Or maybe I’ve been listening to way too many of those dark romance audiobooks lately.
Kolter’s hand drops to take hold of mine, then he leads me further into the apartment.
In the living room, there’s a large TV accompanied by an entertainment center with a fireplace, a couch and a coffee table absolutely crammed with food. Any takeout food you could imagine, it’s here—Mexican, Italian, sushi, Korean BBQ. There’s even the iconic to-go box from my favorite pie restaurant in Seattle.
Yeah, you heard that right. A pie restaurant. It’s literally everything.
“What is all this?” I ask as Kolter leads me to the couch.
“Food. You were whining about it the whole way up here,” he says with a mock eyeroll.
I smack his shoulder and laugh. “You’re a loser.”
“Hey, you’re the one that loves me,” he says with a shrug.
A blush hits my cheeks at how casually he throws that out. That’s dumb, right? I mean, we’ve had sex; we’ve exchanged the I love yous. This next part is only natural, right? Still, no matter how hard I try to school my expression, my smile grows, as does the flush coloring my face.
He notices too.
“I’ll never get sick of you getting all rosy for me,” he teases, wrapping his arm round my shoulder and pulling me into his side.
“You’d think you would—it’s been happening practically our whole lives.”
He brushes a lock of hair out of my face. “I loved it then too.”
My heart flips as he stares into my eyes reverently, like he’s attempting to commit them to memory, or maybe it’s the moment he wants to save forever. Either way, same, because never in my life have things felt this… perfect.
“What are you having first?” Kolter asks, redirecting my attention towards the plethora of food.
“Well, I was going to go for the chips and queso until I saw the pie,” I say, reaching out with grabby hands.
Kolter laughs and shakes his head. “How’d I know?”