Page 47 of Stuck On Them

But does anyone ever?

My phone buzzed on the coffee table with a call, and I sighed when I saw the name.

Luca.

He’d been quiet most of the day Friday after I told him I couldn’t be friends with him, but then he’d decided he wasn’t going to listen to me.

Hearing it from my mouth might get through to him, so I answered. “Hello?”

“Paige!” There was traffic noise in the background. “How do I get into your building?”

I sat straight up, surprised my abs were capable of such a feat. “What do you mean?”

“I’m here to pick you up. I can’t figure out how to get in. Didn’t Ryker just show up at your door? How’d he get in?” He sounded downright giddy, and my heart squeezed.

“Luca, I told you...”

“Listen, I know what you told me. I’ve decided it was said under duress.” There was a beeping noise. “These call buttons don’t work.”

“No, they don’t.” I shouldn’t have been embarrassed given I paid a normal amount in rent, but the difference between me and the three of them was vast. “You can’t just show up here.”

“Thank you.” The background noise went away, and I knew someone had let him in. “Four-oh-four here I come.”

I jumped up, looking around for the robe I usually wore to the bathroom. It was in the high eighties and the wall-mounted air conditioner my place had wasn’t the best in the world, so I’d been lying around in just my underwear.

“Paige, you there?”

“Yeah.” I finally spotted it on the floor next to the couch and pulled it on.

Just as I was tying it closed, there was a melodic knock on the door. Why was I covering myself up? I didn’thaveto open the door for him.

Neither of us had hung up yet. “I’m not home.”

“I just heard you through this paper-thin door. No wonder Ryker practically carried you out of here like a caveman.” He knocked again. “I bet your neighbors will love it if I keep knocking.”

I shut my eyes and took a deep breath, willing myself to have some self-control. “Luca, please, just leave. I can’t talk to you right now.”

“Paige, come on. Let me in. We need to talk. I’m not leaving until we do.” His voice was insistent and had gotten loud enough that the whole floor could hear.

I hesitated, knowing that if I let him in, things could quickly spiral out of control. But another part of me was curious about what he had to say. I’d never been pursued like this before. Did he really have nothing better to do on a Saturday than try to convince me to hang out with him?

“Look, I know you’re scared and confused, but aren’t you a little excited too? To see where all of this could go?” It sounded like he was drumming his fingers on the door. “When I want something, I don’t give up until it’s mine.”

I walked to the door, putting my forehead against it. “And what is it you want exactly?”

Luca’s response was immediate. “You. I want you, Paige. And I’m not going to stop until I have you.”

I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath, and tried to push away the flood of emotions that threatened to overwhelm me. It wasn’t that I wasn’t attracted to Luca. Hell, every time I thought about him, my body reacted.

“I thought you were okay with being friends.” I was starting to sweat in my terry cloth robe and wished I would have taken the time to go up to my loft and grab actual clothes.

“I’ll take whatever you can give me.”

It would be nice to have a friend in the city, even if it was the most complicated friendship known to man. I knew deep down I’d regret not letting him in.

I unlocked my door and opened it, finding a grinning Luca dressed in navy board shorts with tiny sharks all over them and a light blue tank top.

My mouth opened as I took in his inked skin on full display. One arm was a colorful scene that started with a giant sun wrapping around his shoulder. An ocean scene was on the rest of his arm with sea life and a gorgeous mermaid and merman locked in an embrace. Tentacles were woven through the whole scene, making it look like they were about to squeeze a glass jar. At his wrist was a tap, a few drops of water spilling out.

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