The first car to notice us—to slow down, at least, maybe for a totally unrelated reason—flashes by in the rearview mirror when I’m pulling my sundress back into place and catching my breath.

This is not how apologies usually go, but somehow, with Levi, it seemed right. It seemed right to let that crackling heat sweep over me, pull me under. It seemed right to let go of all the bullshit still lingering between us and do something...physical. 

Levi’s got a half-grin on his face that makes me want to tell him to pull over again, but we’re on our way somewhere. He has plans, and I desperately want to know what he has up his sleeve. 

Once we’re back on the highway, my heart picks up speed. It’s clear he’s taking us to the city, but where? I can’t summon the words to ask him. The anticipation is too intoxicating. 

He’s not going to disappoint me. That’s the one thing I’m sure of. And I’m sure of it because I felt the way his hands moved against my skin, the way our bodies moved in perfect sync, even though we were crushed in the front seat of his car, the steering wheel digging into my back. He’s amazing, even in tight quarters. 

I cover my mouth with my hand for even having the thought, and he looks at me, his eyes shining. “What’s on your mind?”

“You.” 

“What about me?”

“We don’t need to get into specifics.”

“I want to get into specifics.”

“I want to know where we’re going.”

“We’re really on opposite sides of this thing, aren’t we?” Levi reaches out and takes my hand in his. 

“Not even a little.”

He drives with a confidence, a pointed focus, and with his eyes on the road, I’m free to look him up and down. We had a hot, hard romp in the front seat, and Levi still looks like he stepped out of the shower and slipped into his clothes. I want my hands gripping his shoulders again. I want my body pressed against his. And I want space. I want to be alone with him. Without interruption.

I take a deep breath and let it out, trying not to let the excitement take over.

We still have a stop to make before we can do anything else.

Levi pulls up to the curb outside a stately building in Park Slope, red brick, three stories, with wide windows on the first floor.

“You brought me to an elementary school?”

“You’re funny.”

“It’s not an elementary school?”

“Not in the least.”

He gets out and comes around to open my door for me, and my legs go weak at the knees. We’re here, and I don’t know if I want to see what’s inside. I cast around for an idea—what the hell could it possibly be?—but I come up with nothing. I can’t imagine what he would need to show me, right now, today, that would change anything. That would change everything. Whatever it is, the energy coiled in the lines of his shoulders tells me that this is something big.

“You’ll need to get out of the car to see what’s inside.”

“I know.” He offers me his hand, and I take it.

The heat moves over my shoulders like a shawl, settling softly over my skin. It’ll only be about five minutes before it’s oppressive. Levi has no intention of standing here for five minutes.

He slips his arm around my waist and leans down to kiss my temple. “You’re going to like it.”

“I liked what we did earlier.”

“I promise you. You’ll like this, too.” His words are a sultry promise, an invitation to afterward that I have no interest in passing up.

I’m moving before I realize it, but Levi keeps pace with me, leaping ahead at the last moment to hold the door open for me.

The lobby that we step into is gorgeously cold and meticulously clean, but it’s all dark wood and polished tile, the space hushed despite the fact that it’s almost empty.

“This seems like your kind of place.” I don’t raise my voice—not at all—but I still hear it echoing off the walls.

Levi smiles.

A man bustles out from one of the four doorways leading off the main lobby. “Mr. Blake!” His face is flushed, a little sweaty, and he’s slightly out of breath. “The team has finished up. Come this way. Please, come this way.”

“Carl, take your time. We can wait if you need more time. There are plenty of restaurants and—”

Carl, whoever he is, gives Levi a broad smile. “Not at all, Mr. Blake. Aside from some polishes we’ll put on for the public opening, everything is in place.”

“Public opening?”

Carl shakes his head. “I’m so rude. You must be Ms. Ashworth.” He steps forward, offering me his hand to shake. As flustered as he looks, it’s surprisingly dry. “I think you’ll be very, very pleased with what we’ve managed to do with—”

“Carl, I think we’d better show her instead of telling her.” Levi keeps the smile on his face, but there’s a tension around his eyes.

“You’re absolutely right, Mr. Blake.” Carl laughs nervously. “You’ll want that second doorway, and straight down the hall. I’ll—” He sticks his hands in his pocket, shifting his weight from foot to foot. “I’ll be in my office, if you need anything.”

Levi reaches out, putting a hand on Carl’s shoulder and looking him square in the eye. “Thank you. Sincerely.”

Carl flushes an even deeper red. “It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing.” Levi drops his hand and turns back to me. “Are you ready?”

I look into those gray eyes, flecked with a silver that flashes even in light filtered through high windows.

Whatever is coming next is going to change everything. I can feel it.

“I’m ready.”