Page 46 of The First Time

“What the fuck, Layla! You didn’t tell me this. Who did you go to Italy with?”

Okay, I love Zane. I really do. But let’s face it, this man is a complete gossip. I’m afraid that if I tell him the truth, it will only be a matter of time before my entire family knows what happened in Italy. All it will take is one of my brother’s coming here to eat, and Zane will find a way to talk about it.

“Josh,” I reply, crossing my fingers that my poker face works.

“Josh?” he drawls out, almost screaming. “You went to ITALY with JOSH?” he questions me, like he doesn’t believe it.

I feign indifference, shrugging my shoulders like he’s totally overreacting. “Yeah. He was so annoying.”

“So, the trip was miserable? Shit, that sucks.”

“No, no,” I defend, somehow not wanting him to think that about the best week of my life. “It wasn’t miserable. I mean, Josh behaved after a while. It’s Italy, that’s a hard vacation to ruin.”

He gives me a strange look. I hold my breath, waiting for him to just come right out and tell me he knows what Josh and I did. How dirty our sex got.

“Hmm, I don’t know. Anyone could ruin a vacation if you hate them that much. I’ve got some exes that could easily ruin a trip to Italy for me. But I’m glad you had a good time. I’m so damn proud of you for not reaching out to me. I gotta tell you, I didn’t think you had a chance in hell of not calling or texting for an entire week.”

I release the breath I was holding. “Yeah,” I smile. “I honestly surprised myself. Maybe it was all the wine. It calmed my nerves and let me just enjoy myself. Maybe I should become an alcoholic.” His eyes bug out, and I laugh. “I’m kidding, Zane.”

“I think it’s gonna take some time for me to get used to this new Layla.”

I’m not sure if that’s exactly how I would describe this. It’s more like the old Layla finally breaking through. The Layla who would make dirty jokes and try new things. Who wasn’t afraid to throw herself into any situation, not worrying about the repercussions.

I fulfilled a piece of my dream when I bought this restaurant but also lost a little piece of myself in the process. Truth be told, I lost a piece of myself before that, when Josh broke my heart and made me rethink trusting men entirely.

I can’t believe I opened my heart back up to the very man who shattered it to pieces. That was not a very smart move.

Well, I can’t think about that right now. I have a huge to-do list now that I’m back. First, starting with catching up on my emails. Zane leaves me alone to catch up on the administrative side of things while he takes care of making sure everything else runs smoothly.

Before I know it, it’s already dinner time, and the restaurant is packed. That’s one thing about owning the most popular restaurant on the peninsula: It’s busy every night—a gift and a curse.

I’m walking around, checking to see that I’m happy with the quality of the food that is going out when I spot Josh walk into the restaurant. Like an idiot, my heart starts beating rapidly. Ilook behind him, expecting to see my brother or a group of his friends with him, but I can’t spot anyone.

His eyes scan the restaurant while I stand frozen in place next to the bar. Once he spots me, a huge smile breaks out on his face.

He strides towards me casually, hands in his jean pockets, like he has all the time in the world. Why isn’t he freaking out like I am?

“Hi,” he smiles as he stops right in front of me.

“Hi,” I breathe.

We both stand in silence for a moment, just looking at each other. I don’t know what to say to him. I want to tell him how miserably I slept last night without him in my bed. How I replayed every detail of our nights together until I was so worked up that I had to slip my hand into my underwear to relieve myself.

He looks around the restaurant. “You guys look busy tonight.”

“Yeah, it’s that time of the year. There’s really no slow night.” I tuck my hands in my pockets, then feel stupid for mimicking his stance, so I pull them out and cross them over my arms.

His grin widens. “Are you nervous, Freckles?”

“Not at all,” I lie. “Why would I be nervous?”

He shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know. That’s why I’m asking. There’s nothing to be nervous about.”

“So, what are you doing here?” I ask, trying to get the heat off me.

“I just got off work and was passing by on the way home. I thought I’d stop in and say hello.”

That’s it? He stopped in to say hello. What am I supposed to do with that? I’m equally annoyed as I am turned on by the sight of him in his torn jeans and old shirt. I love him in his work clothes. He has a baseball hat on, and his muscles are poking out of his shirt sleeves. It’s almost too much for my mind to take.

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