“You’re my tour guide today.” I spread my arms out to the side when Shane opened the door to my announcement.

“What?”

“We’re going out.”

He cocked an eyebrow at me and pursed his lips. “Do I need to remind you about the last time we went out?”

“Yeah. You went down on me in the back seat of your car and it was awesome.”

“We also listened to your brother talk dirty to his wife.”

“Unimportant.” I waved his comment away refusing to ever think of it again.

“Shane, Cincinnati is so big,” he said high-pitched, mocking my words from the last time I’d convinced him to go out with me. “There is a slim-to-none chance anyone will see us.”

I gave him a deadpanned stare.

“One, I am not amused by your imitation.” Then I reached in my oversized purse and pulled out a hat and sunglasses. “And two, I thought ahead. Look, I got us disguises.”

I slipped them on and waggled my eyebrows at him. When he opened his mouth to talk, I held up my hand, signaling him to wait. I dug in my pocket and pulled out a sticky felt mustache and stuck it on my upper lip.

“You’ve already got that hot as hell five o’clock shadow going on, but they’ll never recognize me with my sweet mustache.”

Finally, he laughed, shaking his head at my absurdity.

“If anyone sees us, we’ll say we just happened to run into each other. No one will suspect anything. Come on,” I whined. “I’ve lived here almost a year and haven’t explored any hidden gems. I did all my homework this week for the lab, and we’re both free this weekend. It’s gorgeous outside and Google and I created a sweet ass itinerary for today. Show me your city you love so much.”

“How do you know I love it so much?”

“All the pictures hanging in your apartment for one. And you live to protect it. Duh. You kind of have to love the city to risk your life for it.”

He chuckled, like he was surprised I noticed all that. “I guess you’re right.”

“Of course, I’m right. Now grab your stuff and let’s go.”

“Fine. But if we run into anyone, I’m going to pretend to not be into you and probably bail. You don’t get to be pissed about that.”

I couldn’t help but be a little annoyed, but I understood his stance, so I held up my hands in surrender. “I solemnly swear to not be mad, as long as I can meet you back here and you make it up to me with your mouth.”

He laughed. “One more thing . . .you need to take that damn mustache off.”

“Fine.” I rolled my eyes and peeled it off before shoving it in my purse. When he turned to me after locking his door, I waggled my eyebrows again. “I’ll save it for later tonight.”

His laugh followed me down the stairs as we headed to his car.

First stop of the day was Findlay Market. I’d looked it up online and was instantly excited by all the options and colors.

However, once we parked and strolled up to the crowds of people with the early spring sun shining down on us, the pictures online couldn’t compare. I grabbed Shane’s hand when we braved the crowds, weaving in and out of the red tables filled with people, not wanting to lose him.

“Do you want to go inside, or stroll the tents on either side?” he asked, his shoulders tense as he scanned the crowd, looking for anyone who may know us.

“I don’t know. Whatever you think is best. I’m so overwhelmed in the best way. There’s everything here.”

“Yeah, Findlay Market is kind of like Seattle’s Pike Place.”

“I’ve never been there either, but I’ve heard of it.”

“Let’s start inside and work our way out. It’s still a little chilly this morning.”

As we made our way from shop to shop, Shane’s shoulders slowly relaxed, and he began to stop looking everywhere, turning his attention all on me. It was intoxicating.

We’d hold hands when we needed to make it through a crowd, but as the day wore on, he stopped dropping my hand when we got to an opening. I wasn’t even sure he realized he was doing it. I thought about saying something, making a joke, but I didn’t want to do anything to make it stop. Instead, I held tight and enjoyed the feeling while it lasted.

We walked past food vendors and tasted meats and fruits and whatever samples they had out, each flavor somehow better than the last.

Shane laughed when we made our way outside to a vendor tent and I oohed and aahed over the cards and mugs.

“I love the funny cards, the dirtier the better. Even if I don’t have a reason to buy them, I’ll get them anyway to look through later. Oh, and check out this mug.” I pulled it from the rack and held it up to him. I’d love to stay and chat but I’m lying.

He laughed and pulled it from my hands, taking it to the check out. “We’ll take this one.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I know. I want to. I noticed all your mugs in the kitchen. Pretty interesting for someone who doesn’t drink hot coffee.”

“It doesn’t have to be coffee to use it. It’s still just a cup. Besides, I love hot chocolate.”

“Fair enough.” He took his change and reached for my hand as we walked out.

Next on our list was Shane’s choice. I’d found a small local restaurant, but he’d vetoed it and said I hadn’t lived until I’d had Larosa’s.

I’d told him I’d never had it and he threw his hand to his chest and gasped like a true Southern belle, claiming we couldn’t do anything else until he shared the glory of Cincinnati pizza.

I couldn’t deny how right he was. When we walked in, the smell alone was almost orgasmic. His jaw clenched when I’d moaned as the waiter set the pizza in front of us. We got a classic cheese and a meat deluxe.

I pulled the cheese off the top and began eating it.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Eating, why?”

“Why are you pulling the cheese off?”

“Because I like to enjoy each part individually. This pizza is kind of awesome because when I pull off the cheese, all the toppings are underneath. Like little surprises.” He stared at me like I’d grown a unicorn head on my shoulder. I gave him a big smile and popped the cheese in my mouth, moaning at the flavor.

“You’re weird as hell.”

“You love it,” I said with a mouth full of bacon, sausage, and pepperoni. “What other food does Cincinnati have? Can we try something else tonight?”

“Don’t worry, Mini MacCabe. I’ll introduce you to all the foods Cincinnati has to offer. Sometime soon, I’ll have to take you to Skyline Chili.”

“Ooo, I’ve had that. Jolene and I stumbled upon it one day. It’s delicious. It’s not really chili. More of a crumble of meat in some sauce, but I loved it.”

We paid our bill and it was already closing in on three in the afternoon. We had one more stop that I’d looked up: Eden Park.

We strolled hand in hand along the beautiful walking path, the trees just beginning to bloom. He explained the different architecture like the Eden Park Standpipe and the Elsinore Arch. It was all so gorgeous. There was also entirely too much to do before it got dark.

“We’ll come back and do the conservatory and art museum another day.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

With his word locked in place, I followed him back to the car. “Well, that’s all I had planned for the day.”

“Let me take you to one more food place. It’s on Fountain Square.”

“Oh, I’ve never been. Driven past about four thousand times, but I’ve never stopped to walk around.”

“There’s a really good ice cream place there.”

I clapped my hands I was so excited. I loved ice cream.

He parked in the garage and led the way to a place called Grater’s. I walked in, looked at all the handmade ice cream, and my eyes lit up. There were so many flavors, I couldn’t decide.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“All of it.”

He laughed. “As much as I would love to see you eat it all, I don’t want you to be sick later tonight.” He smirked and I nudged him with my shoulder, laughing at his meaning.

“Okay. You pick for me.”

“Hmmm. How about we stay with the theme of Cincinnati and go with the Buckeye Chocolate Chip.”

“Sounds glorious.”

And it was. We ate our ice cream and people watched from our table next to the window. When I’d practically licked my paper cup clean, we went to walk around the Square.

We stood in front of the huge fountain, the lights shining all over it, as water poured from the top, flowing over the many layers. I shivered as we looked up at the top and he pulled me into his arms, holding my back tight to his front. He kept me warm with more than just his arms. He made me feel special, cared for, and safe, and I wanted to stay there forever. I wanted to kiss him.

I maneuvered around in his arms, to face him and smiled up at him. “Thank you for today.”

“Thank you. It’s been a while since I’ve toured my own city.”

He leaned down at the same time I lifted my chin and pressed my lips to his. They were cold from the ice cream and the chill outside since night settled. The kiss was slow, like we were trying to memorize every detail of the other’s lips. When his tongue brushed along the seam of my lips, I opened, letting him taste me. We didn’t rush, just let our hands slide up and down each other’s backs and made out like a couple of teenagers in public.

When we heard salsa music coming from the other side of the fountain, we pulled back, and I stepped away to see what it was.

“They’re teaching salsa.” I looked back at him with wide eyes, excitement pouring off me.

“Juliana,” he warned.

“Come on,” I pleaded. “There’s an instructor and everything. We can hide in the back.”

He held firm until I started swirling my hips and backing away toward the crowd. He begrudgingly followed, and a huge grin split my face at his acceptance.

We stood in the back and tried to move our hips the way the teacher showed. The instructor would come around and help us find the rhythm and correct our foot placement. Every time I looked over at Shane, he seemed to be doing his own thing, struggling to find the rhythm. I tried not to laugh, but he stiffened every time the teacher tried to help him move his hips. He’d glare at me, and I’d just twirl in a circle, swiveling my hips for him.

Soon everyone was set free to practice their newly learned moves on their own on the dance floor as the band played songs. The instructors did the dance in the middle so people could follow if they wanted, but I decided to swirl my hips and dance circles around Shane.

I noticed some people stopping and staring at my excitement and the show I put on for Shane, but it didn’t bother me. All I needed were his blazing eyes scorching over me as I shook my ass at him. All I needed was the feel of his muscles clenching under my hand as I dragged it across his back and chest.

The song ended and Shane stepped into me, leaning down to my ear. “I’m ready to go.” His words were spoken barely above a whispered growl, the air brushing against the sensitive skin of my neck. I nodded and let him take my hand in his and lead the way.

We had to cross the street to get back to our garage and when we stood at the corner, waiting for the light, I could still hear the music and decided to dance against him. The people on the crowded corner probably thought I was a drunk. But I didn’t care.

I lived for the twitch of his lips that formed a small smile as he watched me. I closed my eyes and moved my shoulders to the beat, and when I opened them and looked up at him, his smile was gone. His brows furrowed and he looked at me as though he’d never seen me before. The intensity of how hard he stared hammered at my chest, but I didn’t know what he was thinking when he took me in.

“What?” I asked quietly, not even sure he heard me.

He closed his eyes and shook his head before letting another smile stretch across his face. “Nothing.”

The light turned green and we ran across the street. I laughed, dancing around him until the salsa music faded in the background. Throughout our walk, he continued to stare at me the same way as he had on that corner. His bright eyes blazing hot along my skin. They looked me over as though trying to find something he hadn’t noticed before. My chest felt tight and hot, and I wanted to dance for him forever if it meant he never stopped watching me the way he was. I was forced to stop swaying around him when he snagged my arm and pulled me in for a deep kiss.

He held me tightly to him like I’d slip away. He didn’t stop to breathe, but breathed through his nose, taking me in, brushing his tongue against mine. I clung to his shirt, feeling the heat, the passion, the desperation behind his kiss.

A horn honking and a man yelling for us to get a room separated us. I pulled back with a giddy smile and kissed his nose.

“That’s a good idea. Take me home, Shane.”