Once I end the call, I spin around and find Alek back at work. Without looking up, he says, “If you’re needed elsewhere, you can go.”
“I wouldn’t say I’m needed. More like, wanted.”
“Either way.”
As I make my way closer, I ask, “Do you want me to leave and this is your way of saying it without saying it?”
“If I wanted you to leave, you’d know.”
I grin. “Then I’m staying. You don’t have to beg, you know?”
I watch as his lips start to draw up, his head shaking. When I’m up close, I reach down, putting a finger under his chin. When he gazes up at me, there’s a brief moment where something passes between us. But it doesn’t last. There’s a knock on the door and he shoots up from his seat and pushes past me.
12
Right around thetime we’re finishing our relatively quiet, late night dinner, I decide to speak up. “Wanna play a game?”
He shoots me a curious look. “Game?”
“I’ll ask you some questions, and you answer.”
“Doesn’t really sound like a game.”
“Rapid fire. You can’t think. Just answer.”
He exhales, putting his fork down. “Okay.”
“Favorite color?”
“Gray.”
I snort. “Favorite drink?”
“Bourbon.”
“Favorite hobby?”
He hesitates and I gesture for him to hurry.
“Sex.”
I laugh. “Really?”
He shrugs, a grin pulling on his lips.
“Okay. Favorite guilty pleasure?”
Once again he pauses. “Butterfingers.”
“The candy?”
He nods. “They’re good.”
“I’m not into chocolate. I like Skittles and Starburst.”
“You gonna answer the other questions, too?”
“Not yet. Okay, favorite movie?”