Chapter 24
“You’re home!” Lorenzo and Ray rush me at the front door. I laugh seeing how happy they are. I’ve been gone over a month and everything feels different walking back in the apartment.
“Tell us everything.” Ray grabs my hand and leads me to the couch. “Where did you go, what did you see, did you see Joshua naked, are you in love with Chance?”
“That was subtle.” Lorenzo hugs me. “Ciao, Bella.”
“What are you doing here? I thought you’d be in Europe by now.” It’s so nice to see him.
“I postponed my return. I leave in two weeks. I had some loose ends to wrap up. I’ve been practicing here in the states. I’ve got a good crew here. No reason to hurry back.”
“Back to my questions.” Ray bounces up and down on the couch with excitement.
“You’re a pain in the ass, Yunk,” I giggle. “It was crazy. Lots of hours on the bus and about as many in hotel rooms. I sat front row at the concerts and it was crazy to see the way people responded to these guys. I got to go up in the space needle and Max and I ran the Golden Gate Bridge. I almost died. I’m so out of shape now. I played the slots in Vegas with this dork and got a surf lesson in Hawaii. I also spent a lot of time by myself writing and trying to figure out what I wanted to do next. I can’t go back to working for that awful paper.”
‘Good for you. You deserve better.” Lorenzo takes my hand. For a moment, I feel guilty. I remind myself that it’s just Lorenzo. He’s my best friend.
“And the Joshua and Chance questions?”
I sigh. “I didn’t see Joshua naked. In fact, he didn’t even take his shirt off at the beach. He’s pretty reserved. You’d scare the hell out of him. And Chance, that’s complicated.”
“Why? He’s hot and rich, you’re single and gorgeous. Sounds easy to me.” Ray isn’t going to drop this. I can tell by the look on her face.
“Turns out, he’s a kid I knew from foster care. We share a past and I didn’t want to scare him off when he realized who I was. The funny thing is, he wanted to face it head on and I was the one who wanted to act like nothing was happening. He’s great. Not at all what I thought he was when I left here. He’s really affectionate and sweet.”
“You slept with him,” she yells.
Lorenzo’s grip on my hand tightens. I look at him but he seems unfazed. “I did. A lot. But it was so much more than that. I really like this guy.”
“Does he feel the same?” Lorenzo’s voice is quiet.
“He told me he was falling in love with me.” Tears fill my eyes remembering his words. “I’m sure he’s never said those words before. I’ve certainly never heard them. He took my whole disbelief in love and blew it into a million pieces.”
The doorbell rings and Ray gets up to answer it. I look at Lorenzo. He’s lost in thought but when our eyes meet, he smiles at me. He and Ray will always be my best friends. I would be nothing without the two of them by my side. I would never want to lose them.
“Non voglio perderti.” Lorenzo sighs.
“I don’t know that one.”
“I don’t want to lose you.” He kisses my hand.
“You’ll never lose me. You’re my family. You’ll have me forever.”
Ray’s squeal draws me out of the serious mood with Lorenzo. “Lennon Chancellor is at our door.”
He comes around the corner laughing and I run to hug him. It’s only been about an hour but I’ve missed him. “What are you doing here?”
“You left something on the plane and I knew you’d need it.” He slides a pebble into my hand and kisses me passionately, right in the middle of my living room in front of Ray and Enzo.
“This is so romantic.” Ray claps her hands and I giggle against Chance’s mouth.
“Chance, this is my roommate Rachael Yunk. And you remember Enzo.”
Chance walks over to Lorenzo and shakes his hand. “Nice to see you again, buddy. And Miss Yunk, I’m very happy to meet you.” He winks at her and kisses her on the cheek. Flirt. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Lorenzo stares at Chance. He’s acting strangely and I need to find out why. I expected him to be in Rome by now. I need to find out what happened and help him deal with it. He’s not himself. I miss happy Enzo.
“I’ll get out of your hair. I just knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I didn’t see you one last time.” Chance hugs me again and then starts to head to the door.
“Don’t you dare leave.” Ray pulls him on to the couch next to her. “We’re going to order pizza and watch a movie. Join us. You can sleep here.”
I smile at him. It’s exactly what I want. A night with pizza, in front of the TV with my best friends and the man I love. I can’t think of anything more perfect. And if he spent the night, even better.
“You ok with this, Princess?”
“I am if you’re ok with cheap pizza and staying the night in a tiny apartment with us common folk.”
“Cheap pizza is my favorite,” he holds his hand out and pulls me onto his lap. “And I’d sleep on the street if it meant I got to wake up next to you.”
“You’re amazing,” I sigh and snuggle into him.
“Only when I’m with you, Kat.”