Page 20 of Sweet as Sin (Bad Habit 1)
“Hmm. Your friend already hates me, and we haven’t even met yet? Bummer.”
“Well, Chloe doesn’t hate you. She thinks I should give you a chance.”
“I like Chloe better than Grace,” Nico said immediately.
I had to laugh. Talking with him felt good. Also incredibly strange, but mostly just good.
“Love that fuckin’ laugh of yours, Kat Reid.”
His voice had gone all low and rough. Which, in turn, made my face get hot. I didn’t know what to say. I fiddled with the toilet paper dispenser.
“I wanna see you again.”
I closed my eyes. “I’m not that girl, Nico,” I said softly.
“We have chemistry that’s off the fuckin’ charts, Kat. You ever felt like that before, first time meetin’ someone? Because I sure fuckin’ haven’t. There’s somethin’ between us. I wanna get to know you, find out what it is. Gimme a chance.”
His words thrilled me. But then again I was a closet romantic with a long and glorious history of shitty choices in men. My judgment couldn’t be trusted.
However, he cursed more than me, which was no small achievement. I liked it. And I liked hearing him talk. I liked the deep, lilting timbre of his voice. It did something to me.
All that was beside the point. The glaringly obvious point.
“Avery—”
“Is not my girlfriend.” His voice was rough, but in a different way. He was frustrated. “I told you, I wouldn’t ask you out if she was.”
Did I believe him? Could I? I’d unrolled half the toilet paper onto the floor before I spoke again. “Is that what you’re doing? Asking me out?”
“Just tryin’ to get to know you. We can go out, we can stay in. We can just drive around in my car if you want. I do that sometimes, drive around, nowhere in mind. Just to clear my head.”
“Me, too.”
I was surprised we had that in common. Why would Nico Nyx need to drive around and clear his head? Too many choices about how to spend his money?
“Is that a yes?”
I heard the hope in his voice. My heart, which to this point had been doing a reasonable job of not bursting, threatened to do just that. Determination wavering, I bit my lip.
“My boyfriend wouldn’t like it.”
“Yeah, if he fuckin’ existed, he probably wouldn’t. Quit playin’ games with me, Kat.”
I faked offense. “How do you know I
don’t have a boyfriend? Do I look like I couldn’t get a boyfriend or something?”
I might have been fishing for a compliment there.
Nico didn’t take the bait. He made an aggravated sound, halfway between a sigh and a growl. “All right. Here’s the deal. If you really don’t want me to, I won’t call again. I’m not a stalker. But I think you’re bullshittin’ me about havin’ a boyfriend. At least be up front about it.”
He was quiet for a moment, just breathing. “Well?”
Again, that hope in his voice. Who was this badass rocker/hopeful boy with the filthy mouth and that beautiful, sweet soulfulness? The combination made me crumble.
“I don’t have a boyfriend.”
His exhalation was relieved. Hearing it, my stupid, never-learning heart soared. “Do you have a girlfriend?” I asked.
