Page 17 of Text Me A Kiss

Show Pridamant some of the places I’d told him so much about? “That’s easy.” My fingers gripped his arm, the firm strength of his arm beneath his coat so wonderfully real, and we started off together. “Some of these places might not exactly be what you’re expecting, though.”

“Perfect.”

I couldn’t feel the cold through my thick jacket, but something made me shiver a little when he pulled me closer to make room for a mother pushing a covered stroller past.

“Are we going to Central Park? Juilliard’s about half a mile from there, right?”

“It is. But we’re not,” I said mysteriously. “We can walk around Central after, if you want.”

He placed his hand over mine, holding it to his arm. “I told you what I want.”

“Then,” I began, gesturing dramatically at the building next to us, “Here we are.”

“‘New York Public Library for the Performing Arts’,” Pridamant read. “Um….”

“Oh, not the library.” I faked surprised innocence. “What’s inside.” I led the way inside, took a very familiar path, and emerged into a bustling little shop filled with simple plastic chairs, round wooden tables, and the smell of fresh bread and coffee.

“A cafe?”

“Where else would college students go?” I shouldered my jacket off as I led the way to the counter. “We aren’t here for coffee, though. We’re here for pain au chocolat. Bread filled with chocolate.”

“What can I get for you?” the man behind the counter asked.

“Uh—” Even though I’d literally just spoken the words of my order aloud, my brain lost the words it reached for as Pridamant immediately took my jacket and draped it over his arm. “Uh, sorry. Two pain au chocolats, please.”

“That’ll be $7.50.” I took my forest-in-fall patterned wallet out of my purse.

“Let me get it,” Pridamant said, reaching for his back pocket.

“No, no. No,” I added one more time, more insistently as I handed a card quickly to the man. “You got dinner last night. Anyways, Juilliard students get 10% off.”

Something danced behind Pridamant’s eyes, some sort of emotion or deep thought I hadn’t seen there before. “What?”

“What?” he echoed, and the look disappeared.

“You were looking at me funny.”

“Oh.” He took the paper pastry bag I took from the counter and handed to him. “I guess I’m just used to handling the check.”

“I actually kind of feel bad if I don’t pay sometimes.” Tucking the card into my wallet and the wallet into my purse, I glanced around at the mostly full seating arrangements. “Want to walk and eat? Central Park’s not far.”

“Sure. Lead the way.”

His eyes followed me as I passed—well, they followed my ass as I lifted my knee-high boots and tight pants to step over a fallen mop beside a cleaning bucket. Not caring whether or not he caught my tiny smirk, I made sure to walk with just a little more swing in my hips on the way out.

“What?” Innocently, I blinked twice at his chuckle.

“This just tastes really good.” Desire clouded Pridamant’s eyes as he placed his finger on his tongue. The bit of chocolate on the tip of his finger vanished between suggestive lips.

We had an entire day ahead of us, and clearly Pridamant wasn’t afraid to play the little game I had thought I would use to tease him a little. Time to slow things down a little.

There was nothing like cold to do just that. Giggling, I opened the door and walked normally onto the sidewalk and accepted my jacket back from Pridamant.

You know what? Maybe that whole thing with the finger and the chocolate hadn’t even been for me. These pastries were really, really, really good, after all.

Our next stop was on the other side of Central Park, but I was in no hurry to get there despite the cold wind that rattled the leafless branches. It was incredible how good it felt just to walk next to Pridamant, to know that he was real and here with me.

Almost too soon, I led Pridamant through another door.