I heaved out a breath. “I don’t know why I like you.”
“Why do you?” From someone else, I would have seen it as fishing for compliments, but there was no mistaking the genuine curiosity on Laurent’s face. “There are numerous times I haven’t been very nice to you.”
I shrugged. “Maybe I’m a masochist. Or maybe I can see it for the defense mechanism it is.” Laurent had no comment to make to that, his dark eyes assessing. “So I like you and you like me,” I announced. “And not just in a sexual let’s have all the orgasms way. Where does that leave us?”
“The problem,” Laurent said, “is that I can’t help wondering how long it will be before you get bored with me. I don’t want to invest in something, only to wake up one day and find you gone.”
“That won’t happen.”
“You can’t guarantee that.”
“Nobody can guarantee anything. That’s not how relationships work. All I can promise is that if you give us a chance, I’ll be honest with you from now on. So honest, you’ll probably wish for an off button for my internal monologues.”
Laurent’s stare was long and considered. “It’s not so terrible that I don’t want to risk a broken heart, is it?”
The broken heart part had my pulse ratcheting up. Confirmation that we truly were on the same page. “No, it’s not terrible. Potentially lonely, but not terrible.”
“Now, you sound like Finn. Everybody has a problem with me being happy alone. You’d think it was their life, not mine.”
“The only reason I have a problem is because if you’re alone, that means I’m not in your life.”
Laurent cocked his head to one side. “What if I asked you to kiss me, right here and right now?” He moved his arm in a sweeping gesture to demonstrate how busy the cafe was. “In front of all these people. There’s a good chance at least a few people here are homophobic. And even if they’re not, some people don’t agree with public displays of affection. It makes them?”
Half standing, I grabbed the back of his neck and yanked him closer. It was a test. I knew it was a test. But it was also an invitation to kiss him, and I wasn’t about to turn that down. Not when it had been four very long days since the last time.
The kiss went on for a while, neither of us stopping to gauge the reaction of all the supposedly homophobic people Laurent had conjured up. It was almost a disappointment when the kiss came to an end not to find our table surrounded by irate French people brandishing pitchforks. In fact, a quick glance around showed that no one was remotely interested. Even the baby had gone quiet.
I sought for some clear thought, arousal having replaced my brain with cotton wool. “Did I pass?”
Laurent’s lips curled into a smile. “With flying colors.”
“Are you sure?” I jerked my head toward the space beneath the table. “Because I can get down there, if not? Really show you how serious I am.”
“Tempting,” Laurent drawled. “But not worth me having to explain to Cillian what his little brother got arrested for.”
“We should go home then, instead. Your home. Where no one else lives, and it’ll just be you and me. We can celebrate these feelings we’ve admitted to having.”
Laurent reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out two rectangular pieces of card. “We could. Or we could continue withmy original plan, which was the reason I arranged to meet here.” He pushed the pieces of card across the table toward me.
I picked one up. It was a ticket. Despite it being in French, I could understand enough of it to get the main gist. That, and the picture helped. “Indoor skydiving, hey?”
Laurent nodded. “I figured it was your kind of thing.But… if you’d rather give it a miss.”
He went to take the ticket, but I was faster in snatching it away. “Now hang on one damn minute. Your bed isn’t going anywhere.”
“I hope not,” Laurent said. “It’s been very well-behaved up to press.”
I waved the ticket. “We can do this and then celebrate.”
“We can,” Laurent agreed.
“You already had these,” I pointed out. “Were you that confident that this discussion would go the way you wanted it to?”
Laurent smirked. “I figured it would either be a pleasurable activity for the two of us to do together. Or a parting gift where you could take someone else. Win, win.”
“Always prepared for every eventuality,” I drawled.
“Not always,” Laurent said, his dark eyes reflecting a simple honesty. “Nothing prepared me for meeting you.”
