Spin My Love (My Love #1)(29)

He narrows his eyes at me playfully. “I picked it all out myself. I used catalogues, but it still counts.”

“Ahhh,” I say, nodding. “You copied it all from magazines, got it.”

He pinches my butt lightly, and it’s my turn to narrow my eyes at him. “Come on,” he says, taking me through to the living area. It’s gorgeous, with comfy suede couches and a big screen fitted on the wall. The kitchen is simple and spacious with little to no clutter. I’m not sure if he’s a clean freak or just doesn’t have much cooking equipment, but it makes me feel a little self-conscious about my small, compact kitchen.

When he takes me into the hall and we come to a door that reads Parker in cute blue letters, my heart skips a beat. He already decorated a room for Parker?

My breath leaves me when we enter. The room is beautiful. The indigo-coloured walls look amazing against all the matching white furniture. There is a carpet on the floor with a racetrack on it, and the cars and trains scattered around the place are evidence that Parker enjoys playing there. There is even a proper mini train-track.

I turn around and hug Tane. I can’t help it. “It’s amazing, Tane!”

His cheeks redden. “I’m glad you like it.”

I look at the time. “We should get going.”

“Alright,” Tane says leading me out of the room. “So, what movie are we seeing?”

“It’s a surprise,” I say.

*****

“Next time I’m picking the movie,” he announces as we drive home.

“I guess that’s fair,” I reply with a chuckle. Okay, so I didn’t have to choose a chick flick, but I did it anyway. On purpose. “So I guess this means date night is over, and now I get to ask my question.”

He chuckles. “Alright then. I’ve been bracing myself for this all night.”

I take a deep breath before I talk. “When we had our one-night stand,” I watch as he cringes, “to me it didn’t feel like a night of meaningless sex. I don’t know if it was just because it was you, but to me it felt more than that. What was going through your head that night?”

He swallows. “You probably won’t believe me when I say this, and I did try to tell you this before, but you weren’t like the others. I knew it. Something was different.” He looks at me in earnest. “In the morning, I saw you lying there, hair all over the pillow. I thought it might be you. I hoped it was. The previous night was completely blurred and hazy, but I remembered flashes of it. Of your eyes. I went to get you breakfast. I didn’t leave a note. I should have left a f*cking note,” he mutters the last few words to himself.

“Wait, you were going to come back to me in the morning?” I ask, my jaw dropping open. You have got to be kidding me.

He sighs. “I woke up and thought I was f*cking dreaming. You looked so different. I thought maybe it was you, but I wasn’t sure. Why would you have come to me without a word? I went and got us breakfast, but when I came back you were gone. Then I told myself it definitely wasn’t you, because you would never just leave like that.”

“Holy shit,” I whisper.

“It was karma,” he says, laughing without humour. “How many times had I done that to other women, and then the one woman I wanted to stay with …?”

“Hey, I didn’t leave you. I thought you had walked out when you didn’t return,” I say defensively. “And there were no personal belongings in the room, what was I supposed to think?”

“I went around the corner to get food; I was probably only gone twenty minutes. There was a line. And I’d left my bag inside the mirrored sliding door.”

We’re both quiet after that, lost in our own thoughts.

“I’m glad you told me that,” I finally say. It’s nice to know that he felt something, anything that night. Still, it’s a bit weird to wrap my head around, because technically, he didn’t realise it was me. Still, I put that to the side and just embrace the fact that he had felt a connection.

“You know what, I have a question for you now,” he says suddenly, making me feel a little nervous.

“Okay,” I say unsurely.

“You and Levi: what’s the deal with that?” he asks, and I cringe. I don’t know why I’m surprised he’s asking me about this, but I am.

I clear my throat. “When Parker was about one we dated for a while, but we decided we’re better off as friends.” By we, I mean me.

“How long did you date?” he asks in a tone that tells me he’s none too pleased about my news.

“Six months?” I reply, making it sound like a question.

“So you slept together,” he says to himself. “Great. I think it was better when I didn’t know.”

I completely agree with that statement. “It’s in the past,” I say softly. “We’re trying to move forward, right?”

He nods, looking tense, but saying nothing. I puff out a breath and look out the window.

When we pull up at Gage’s house to pick up Parker, Tane says, “How about on the next date night we take Parker with us?”

I smile. “I think that sounds great.”

“Good because I have an idea.”

“Are you going to share it with me?” I ask.