Page 18 of The Dating Contract

He snickered. “Still call it the city, hm?”

The sound of her answering laugh melted his insides. “You can take the girl out of Briarwood but can’t take years of living in Briarwood out of the girl.”

“Right. So, Queens?”

She paused. “Fine. I have a late day tomorrow. I’ll come to Queens.”

“Urgency?

“Yeah.” She paused and he wondered if she’d finished talking. “Party’s Thursday.”

This was urgent. Right. No wonder why she was agreeing to come to his apartment. “So I’ll see you tomorrow and I’ll be your boyfriend on Thursday.”

And when she hung up, he wasn’t sure what to do with himself, or more importantly, how to calm his racing heart.

She was coming.

They were doing this.

Chapter Six

Leah had preparedfor this meeting as if she was negotiating with a professional team on behalf of a client. List of needs, some basic information and direction of her armor.

And breakfast.

Which was the result of a quick text sent this morning.

You have coffee? I’ll bring bagels.

He didn’t take that long to respond, thankfully, so she still had enough time to stop off at Baums—the rideshare car arriving just in time for her to make a detour for bagels she didn’t want to take on the subway.

Even luckier for her, there was little traffic; the ride was fast and she could still smell the bagels when she got out onto the street in Queens. More importantly, Samuel’s building wasn’t the artist’s special she expected. The building’s large doors opened to reveal a smiling doorman who directed her to an elevator; the door creaked when she opened it, but the ride up to his floor was smooth.

Her shoes smacked against the tile floor as she headed down the hall to his apartment, which was all the way at the end of the hall; a small mat and a visible mezuzah the signs someone lived there. She hit the buzzer, knowing this was the point of no return.

“Thanks for coming,” he said as he opened the door, looking adorable in ways he shouldn’t. “I appreciate it.”

“Can’t stay for too long,” she replied, grounding herself in the certainty of her departure. And the scent of what had to be coffee.

“Come in?”

The sound of his voice wrapped around her and she fought against it. But not too hard. For now, for this moment, he wasn’t her enemy.

Yet.

But all she could manage was: “The bagels are getting cold.”

He put his hand out in front of her face, as if he was trying to show her something. What it actually did was yank her back to reality, and as she crossed over the threshold, she was reminded that there was no turning back.

*

As Leah steppedinside his apartment, Samuel felt as if he were upside down. “Do you have any questions?” he asked, deciding to just go with it.

“What’s this?”

She was pointing to a frame he’d stuck on his mantel; inside was a simple drawing. White blossoms on snow, encircled by braided branches. “A frame,” he said. “An untold story.”

She looked up at him as if he’d lost his mind. “What?”

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