Page 35 of The Billionaire's Commitment

“I never liked pizza. It’s got too much sauce and bread,” I told him.

“Have you not had New York pizza? It isn’t like Arturo’s. Theirs was more of a Chicago style. New York pizza is so flat you can fold it in half. It’s how some people eat it.”

“Not with a knife and fork?” I asked.

Brody had laughed. “Never with a knife and fork.”

It was decided then that the next time we went out, it would be for pizza, and Brody knew just the place. It was a small hole in the wall a few blocks from his bar. I wondered if he had found it because it was close or if it really was the best pizza in the city.

“I would like to think it is a bit of both,” Brody stated when I asked him.

The pizza was good, and it wasn’t at all like the one pizza joint we had back home, Arturo’s. He was right; the bread wasn’t as thick, and the sauce helped to accentuate the toppings, not overpower it. We had started with a Ceasar salad, and as such, I had only a few slices of pizza and was more than full. Brody had easily finished his half and was trying to get me to take the rest home.

“You looked like you really enjoyed it. You should take it home.”

“I ate my share. That is yours,” he said.

“It won’t last while we’re at the movie,” I said.

“There is that,” Brody said and contemplated the problem. “We could drop it off at the bar and pick it up after.”

“That seems like a lot of work for pizza I might not eat.”

“Not a fan of leftovers?”

“Occasionally. You really should just finish it,” I suggested.

He eyed the pizza, and I could tell he wanted to have it. He looked up at me and gave me a slow smile. It was a smile that told me he was coming up with an idea, one that involved me, and he was very excited about it.

“What are you thinking?” I asked.

“Why do you say that?”

“I can tell you’re thinking something. You have that look on your face that tells me you have a scheme in the works.”

“Not a scheme exactly, but an idea. I like that you know me well enough that you can tell what I’m thinking by a look.”

“We have known each other most of our lives.”

“And I want to know you for the rest of it,” Brody said.

My breath caught in my throat at his words, and I was reminded of Alice’s comment about seeing that he wanted something more if I just allowed myself to. His eyes held mine, and they didn’t let go. He wanted me to hear what he was saying and understand what it meant.

“I thought you would be sick of me by now,” I said.

“Never. I have enjoyed every moment we’ve spent together, and I’m looking forward to the next.”

His words made me think he wasn’t just talking about the movie we were going to see but about the future. I was excited that he was saying such things, and I wanted him to. It was getting harder and harder to fight my attraction to him or to even wonder why I was doing it. He was a great guy, kind, caring, sweet, funny, and certainly the sexiest man I had ever been around.

I could see it being easy to fall into bed with him. As I looked at Brody, I wanted to be with him. It was the long and short of it. I didn’t care as much that there was no future for us. I just wanted to enjoy the time I had with him. If that meant we could spend some of it in bed together, then I was all for it. I would worry about the future and what it all meant when I left New York later.

His words made me think that he was looking for more than just some fun, a quick roll in bed, and it was making me hesitate. I didn’t want to hurt him; I didn’t want to hurt myself. He would be so easy to fall in love with, and I knew I couldn’t do that. It would only make seeing each other if he ever went back home all the more awkward.

“We should probably get the check and get to the movie,” I said.

Brody looked at his watch and smiled. “Time flies when you are having fun.” He motioned to the server that he wanted the check, and he reached over and put the last two slices of pizza on his plate.

“You are going to take them,” I said as Brody brought a piece to his mouth. He stopped with his mouth open and looked at me with a guilty expression. I had meant it in a teasing manner, but he hadn’t taken it as such.

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