Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 135522 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 678(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 452(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135522 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 678(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 452(@300wpm)
“Slow down, you’ll choke!” teases Cole, laughing. “The crepes aren’t gonna run away from you!”
“Sorry,” I mutter back, my mouth full.
He smiles at me. “How is it? Are you enjoying your breakfast-for-dinner?”
“How’d you know this was exactly what I wanted?” I cut a big bite of heavenly crepe and scoop it right into my mouth, closing my eyes as I savor it. “Ken really knows how to make them.”
“The Loves know what they’re doing,” agrees Cole, smiling at me from across the table, handsome as ever. “And for the record, we talked about our favorite things last night while cuddling, and you did mention intensely craving breakfast for dinner. Twice.”
I look up. “I did?”
“And you also pointed out that this place always gives you just one squirt of whipped cream with your crepes,” he adds, “which is why I made sure to ask for extra when you put in your order.”
I stop chewing, gazing back at him.
He’s right. He totally did ask for extra whipped cream.
I didn’t realize he did that for me.
“You educated me quite a bit about all the things you like.” He studies me with a twinkle in his eyes, then curls up his lips. “I … sure hope I can manage to stay on that list. Not to presume I’m on that list, of course,” he quickly adds, “but … you didn’t turn down my offer to go on a date with me tonight, so I figured you have to like me at least a little.”
“This is a date?”
My question makes Cole’s smile broaden with near laughter. “What else is dinner and a movie? Well, dinner and half a movie. We’re going to finish it the first chance we get. Noah …” He leans forward, his handsome smile persisting. “I just want you to have the best night ever, all of the time. I want you to believe without a doubt that I care deeply about you. I think you deserve that level of devotion, and I think you’ve deserved it for a long … long time.”
I find myself struck by the sweet, adoring look in his eyes, unable to think, speak, or take another bite. What else can I do but just stare back, mesmerized by Cole and his never-ending quest to make me happy? What did I do to make him think so highly of me?
“This is a date,” I then agree, softening.
“You bet your cute butt it is.” He smiles, drumming a hand on the table, then twists his head up. “I really like this song they’ve got playing on the speakers.”
“It’s Pink Floyd,” I state with my mouth full, identifying it.
“I know. My grandparents listened to this album a lot when they were first dating back in the mid-70s, my Nan told me. This song and album were dear to her heart … ‘Wish You Were Here’. After my grandpa passed, my Nan would hear this song and cry.” He hums along to the woeful melody with surprising accuracy, keeping in the key. I pause my chewing for a moment, taken by the quality of his humming. Did I even know he could keep pitch? “My mom loves Pink Floyd, too,” he adds. “She used to listen to them a lot while I was growing up. Mmm, this song … totally my new favorite jam.”
I watch him with renewed awe.
I’m learning so much about Cole tonight.
“My mom used to listen to a lot of Pink Floyd, too,” I confess. “Still does, actually, from time to time.”
“That so? Sounds like our moms have more in common than just day-drinking.” He smiles at me across the table, then winks and seamlessly returns to humming, sneaking in a lyric near the end of the song: “Wish you were here, mmm …” He shakes his head, happy. “Yeah, this hits the spot.”
Still locking eyes with Cole, mesmerized, I pick up my fork—only for it to slip clumsily between my fingers and tumble down to the floor. “Oh, crap.”
Cole quits humming at once and is quick to react, picking up my fork immediately. “It’s okay, I’ll get you another. Just sit tight!” Then he heads off to fetch our server as the music plays on.
I watch him go, confounded by his kindness.
I think the reason I find him so enthralling is because in some ways, I can’t explain his devotion to me any more than I can my own reaction to it.
I’ve never felt this before. The puppy-dog eyes. The fluttering heart. Hearing Cole hum a tune. What in the hell is all of this?
It’s unfamiliar territory.
Never before encountered lapses in thought.
Uncharted emotional terrain.
I’ve never spent so much time analyzing behavior before—my own or someone else’s. I’ve never had a reason to. No one in my life has spent so much energy and attention on me.
But it’s more than just his thoughtfulness. It’s his continued dedication to me. His focus on the details. It’s the way he listens to me and encourages me to open up to him. He knows things about me that I wasn’t even aware of myself. It must be why he’s so quick to anticipate my needs, from extra whipped cream to how he put a comforting arm around me at the movies when the power failed. Did I also tell him last night that I have a thing about dark places? That it’s why I have three bright, colorful nightlights in my room? I hope they didn’t bother him when he was trying to sleep last night. I’m used to them and didn’t think to ask.