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“A bit.”
“My code name is Typhon,” he blurted.
When I glanced over at him, his expression was sheepish, and I smiled. “It’s fitting.”
“No one calls me Leviticus. Not even my parents.”
“Would you prefer I call you Typhon?”
He shook his head. “I like Levi.”
Since we still had a long drive ahead of us, I figured there was no time like the present for me to share how I felt. Especially given the flowers and that we were both being flirtatious. “I realize we’ve just met, but sadly, I’ve been in relationships with men who have jerked me around and made me feel like I was forever doing something wrong. I vowed I never would again.”
Levi reached over and took my hand. “I am sorry. Profoundly so. I too know that we’ve finally met and you have no reason to trust me or believe me or agree to give me another chance, but I swear on my mum’s life, I will not jerk you around, as you put it.”
I thought about all he’d said, but part of it stood out to me. “What did you mean by ‘we’ve finally met’?”
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “I noticed you at the Fumoir.”
“That was merely a glance in passing.”
“I’ve seen you again. More than once.”
“Where?” I asked.
“Walking in the city one afternoon. Another time, I thought I saw you looking out the window of an inn when I was entering a pub.” He shook his head. “Seeing things, I’m sure. It happens every night when I close my eyes to sleep.”
“Where was the pub?”
He glanced at me again. “Surrey.”
“Shere?”
His eyes opened wide. “It was you.”
I nodded. “I think I may have seen you walking in the city the same day you saw me.” I rested my head against the seat and closed my eyes. “I see you now too. Awake or asleep, you’re there.”
Levi weaved his fingers with mine. “And we finally met.”
“I approached someone I thought was you.”
He raised a brow. “And?”
“I had a very lovely dinner with a man from Spain, and when we parted company at the end of the meal, we did so without sharing contact information.”
“Thank you for telling me the last part.” He squeezed my fingers, then let go. “What are my odds of getting a second chance? Please don’t say the same as that bloke.”
“I don’t think he was any more interested in me than I was in him.”
“His stupidity is my good fortune.”
“Levi?”
“Yes?”
“Why don’t you and Niven get on?”
“Ancient history. No point in dredging it up again.”