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She leans back in her chair, her eyes at half mast, her mouth downturned in thought. “It kind of annoys me that it took a stranger to see what I couldn’t. Especially when that stranger has questionable motives, tons of money, and keeps insisting that he wants to marry me.”
I feel my ears getting hot. Clearing my throat, I finish washing the rest of her dishes, remove the apron, and swipe Nardi’s plate from in front of her.
“Hey! I didn’t even touch that!”
I don’t respond and carry it away.
“Are you punishing me because I said I don’t want to marry you?” She frowns.
Quietly, I return her pasta to the pot, set it on the stove and warm it up again. When it’s steaming once more, I share out two plates.
Nardi’s eyes widen and then she chuckles. “If you’re eating with me, you should get another place mat.”
“I’m not.” I pull my car keys out of my pocket. “The other plate is for Josiah. I’m leaving now, so you can release him from his room and let him try it if he wants to.”
“I didn’t…” Her words fade as she can’t quite stick the landing of her lie.
Not waiting for her to escort me, I walk to the door.
“Cullen,” Nardi calls.
Once again, I feel that warm sensation when she calls my name. Turning, I look at her, waiting.
“Thank you. For the food. And the conversation,” she says.
“Thank you for the stairwell and inviting me in.”
She smiles a little wider than she did before. “You’re still a psycho for buying our entire apartment and Josiah’s school.”
“It was only a wing.”
“That doesn’t help your case, Cullen.”
I concede the point.
“But,” her expression gentles, “you’re not that bad.”
“So you’ll marry me?”
She rolls her eyes. “Goodnight, Cullen.”
I chuckle and reach for the door. “Goodnight, Nardi.”
I do not feel drained when I get home.
After dealing with contractors, getting the team’s insight on designing our new office space, and catching a spell of vertigo on the stairs, I should have been wiped out.
Instead, my batteries have been recharged.
Taking advantage of the energy burst, I clean my bedroom, re-wash my sheets, and deep clean the master bath. It’s a task I prefer to do myself rather than hand it over to the housekeeper, but time’s gotten away from me and I’ve let it reach an awful state.
Finally, after my bathroom floors sparkle bright enough that I can see my reflection in them, I shower and climb into bed.
Staring at the ceiling, all I can think about is fixing Nardi and Josiah’s apartment.
I want to renovate the kitchen so she has more space. It amazes me that she cooks for her food stall in such a small area.
I also want to fix whatever’s leaking in her ceiling. What if she and Josiah get mold? What am I supposed to do if my legacy catches a dangerous cough because of my negligence?