Page 26 of The Autumn We Fell in Love

When I head off for the elevators — down the correct corridor this time — I feel like I’m walking on air. I can’t remember the last time a guy made me feel like Colby does. Under his gaze, I feel sexy and funny and so damn turned on.

The elevator takes forever to come, so I give up and take the stairs, hauling my rolling suitcase awkwardly at my side. But I don’t mind. I’ve got a date with a guy that makes my pussy wetter than it ever has been just by talking to me, and nothing is going to keep me from it.

Colby

Iwalk out onto the fourteenth floor’s patio, and damn, it’s the perfect place to woo my woman. It boasts a killer view of the bay, the Golden Gate Bridge standing proudly over the water. There’s no fog at the moment, so the sun is pleasantly warm on my skin, cut by the breeze coming in off the ocean.

The patio itself is populated with posh but comfortable-looking outdoor couches, some of them protected from the elements by an overhang decorated with a cacophony of flowers. In one corner of the patio, also beneath the overhang, sits the wine bar, a serious-looking man dressed in a crisp black vest and tie behind its counter.

I waste no time in crossing to the bar and ordering two pinot noirs for Brie and I. Yeah, I’m short on cash, but she’s worth it. I’d give anything to have her in my life, for keeps.

The sommelier hands me two elegant glasses of the dark wine. I turn — and come face to face with a tall redhead in six-inch heels with cutting green eyes and legs for days.

“Oh myGod,” she says, freckled nostrils flaring. “I thought it might be you, but I wasn’t sure.”

I frown. “I’m so sorry. Have we met?”

“Well, no,” she says, tittering a little, “not exactly. I know you very well, though. My name is Gretchen Cox. I’m ahugefan of Planet Yum. I’ve watched every upload at least twice. You make cookingsoaccessible.”

“That’s amazing to hear,” I say, relaxing. “Thank you for watching, it means the world to me.”

All of a sudden she steps so near that we practically bump foreheads. “Youmean the world to me, Colby Jackson. Thanks to Planet Yum, I haven’t only fallen in love with cooking — I’ve fallen in love with you.”

My easy smile freezes on my face. Becausewhat in the actual fuck?

“I’m sorry,” I say, putting some space between us. “I don’t think—“

I don’t get to finish my sentence because Gretchen practically pounces on me. “I know, it sounds crazy. But I feel like I know you on an intimate level.” She fixes me with a smirk. “I’d love to take that intimacy to a physical level, if you know what I mean.”

Yeah, I know what she means, and I have no appetite for what she’s offering.

She plucks one of the glasses of wine from my grip and tangles her free arm with mine. “I’m here at the CCI competition because of you, you know. As a spectator, of course. I’m a San Francisco local, and when you shared on your latest video that you’d be here to compete . . . well, I couldn’t resist finding out where contestants are staying and booking a room in the hopes of seeing you. And look! It’s definitely paid off.”

I try to extricate myself from our entanglement, but Gretchen simply scissors her elbow joint even harder on my arm. I won’t be able to get free without practically pushing the redhead off me.

“I’m sorry,” I try again. “I’m sure you’re wonderful, but I’m not looking for a, um, relationship right now.”

I think of Brie and guilt sears through me. I want a relationship with just one woman, and it’s not Gretchen. And while what Gretchen’s offering isn’t much crazier that me having already claimed Brie in my mind, for some reason my feelings about Brie seem so much more powerful and real. They don’t seem crazy at all.

Gretchen drops her head to one side so it almost rests on my shoulder. “Oh,” she purrs, looking up at me from beneath a thick fan of mascara-heavy lashes, “I’m not talking about a relationship. I’m talking about one night, maybe two, to make all our dreams come true.”

I don’t know what this woman’s been dreaming of, but it’s nowhere near what I want. Not with her anyway.

Tensing my shoulders, I get ready to yank free and make my escape. But then something draws my gaze to the patio’s entrance.

Maybe a flash of movement caught my eye.

Maybe it was a sixth sense.

Whatever the reason, all of a sudden my vision is filled with the sight of Brie gaping at me, those beautiful eyes brimming with hurt and betrayal.

Fuck.

I haul my arm out of the crook of Gretchen’s elbow, but it’s too late. Brie has already disappeared.

Running from the patio — and from Gretchen — I try to see where the woman of my dreams has gone. Wine sloshes out of my glass in my hurry, covering my hand with rich crimson liquid.

But it’s all to no avail — Brie is gone, leaving no hint of which direction she went or where I can find her to make things right.

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