about a taxi?” Scarlet asked.
Bryce shook her head. “Still too enclosed.” She took a hasty step back and away from Scarlet. “Maybe you should just forget—”
Scarlet reacted quickly and stayed Bryce’s hasty departure with a hand on her arm. “The Crimson Dragon on Broadway. I seem to recall there’s a bus stop right by it. You’re not getting away from me that easily, Bryce Donovan. If I have to get the food hand delivered to your door and bring the chopsticks myself, I will do so.”
“Why does this mean so much to you?” Bryce’s tone held more than a hint of exasperation.
“Because you’re beginning to.”
Scarlet had spoken without censure and watched as Bryce’s surprise was replaced by the first true smile Scarlet had seen from her. Oh my God, she’s beautiful . Through the lingering pallor and all too obvious pain left by Bryce’s accident, Scarlet could finally see beyond that and was seeing some of the real Bryce beneath. It took all her strength not to reach out and kiss her then and there.
“Your eyes just changed color. What are you thinking?” Bryce asked as she stepped closer, all her attention fixed firmly on Scarlet’s face.
“How much I want to kiss you,” Scarlet said, her voice breaking as she stared at Bryce’s mouth. The smile remained on Bryce’s lips.
“You might want to save that for the date. Besides”—Bryce cocked her head toward the men who were starting to file into the buildings—“we don’t want to startle our work colleagues or break Gregor’s heart.”
“They’d enjoy it.” Scarlet shrugged, only now noticing that others were milling around them, gathering up their equipment.
“They probably would, but I’d rather they didn’t get their jollies from something as special as that first kiss between you and me. I’d rather that was something kept for us alone.”
Scarlet swallowed back a moan at the way Bryce’s tone had lowered and made the air more intimate between them. She regretted that they were standing on the driveway in plain view of the work site. “Seven o’clock?”
“I’ll be there.”
*
The Sullivan-Williams household was hosting a lively get-together that evening. Juliet sat beside Monica as they discussed some work-related issues that had cropped up, and Trent and Elton were seated opposite them with their own agenda.
“Zelda is kinda pretty,” Trent said.
“A Ganondorf wouldn’t be bullied…well, not too much. Or how about Leon Kennedy instead?”
“Jill Valentine.”
“Marcus Fenix.”
“There’s always Peach.”
“And you can’t beat Mario.”
Juliet half listened as Trent reeled off baby names for a girl while Elton countered with names for a boy. They’d been at it for five long minutes and Juliet had been impressed by their ability to rattle off the most bizarre names of characters from all forms of media. “I’ve told you both before, there’ll be no naming the baby after a character from a game.” She shifted uncomfortably on the sofa, trying to get in a better position that eased her aching back.
Elton sighed then brightened. “Baelfire,” he announced.
“Ariel.”
Monica shook her head at them. “Guys, I’m guessing TV fairy tale characters are off the list too. Besides, everyone knows the Evil Queen in that show is the fairest of them all. Mighty sexy too in her low-cut regal gowns that I am just dying to re-create.”
“I just don’t want to name my kid anything boring or regular. He or she is going to be amazing just like its mommy so I’m vetoing any old-fashioned name from our grandparents’ era. And no fucking reality TV names either.”
At Juliet’s pointed cough, Trent sighed and reached into her jeans for her wallet. She took out a dollar bill and slipped it into a large jar with the label “Baby’s College Fund” stuck on that was set prominently on the coffee table. Between her and Elton, that night alone they’d added twenty dollars due to the “no
Bryce shook her head. “Still too enclosed.” She took a hasty step back and away from Scarlet. “Maybe you should just forget—”
Scarlet reacted quickly and stayed Bryce’s hasty departure with a hand on her arm. “The Crimson Dragon on Broadway. I seem to recall there’s a bus stop right by it. You’re not getting away from me that easily, Bryce Donovan. If I have to get the food hand delivered to your door and bring the chopsticks myself, I will do so.”
“Why does this mean so much to you?” Bryce’s tone held more than a hint of exasperation.
“Because you’re beginning to.”
Scarlet had spoken without censure and watched as Bryce’s surprise was replaced by the first true smile Scarlet had seen from her. Oh my God, she’s beautiful . Through the lingering pallor and all too obvious pain left by Bryce’s accident, Scarlet could finally see beyond that and was seeing some of the real Bryce beneath. It took all her strength not to reach out and kiss her then and there.
“Your eyes just changed color. What are you thinking?” Bryce asked as she stepped closer, all her attention fixed firmly on Scarlet’s face.
“How much I want to kiss you,” Scarlet said, her voice breaking as she stared at Bryce’s mouth. The smile remained on Bryce’s lips.
“You might want to save that for the date. Besides”—Bryce cocked her head toward the men who were starting to file into the buildings—“we don’t want to startle our work colleagues or break Gregor’s heart.”
“They’d enjoy it.” Scarlet shrugged, only now noticing that others were milling around them, gathering up their equipment.
“They probably would, but I’d rather they didn’t get their jollies from something as special as that first kiss between you and me. I’d rather that was something kept for us alone.”
Scarlet swallowed back a moan at the way Bryce’s tone had lowered and made the air more intimate between them. She regretted that they were standing on the driveway in plain view of the work site. “Seven o’clock?”
“I’ll be there.”
*
The Sullivan-Williams household was hosting a lively get-together that evening. Juliet sat beside Monica as they discussed some work-related issues that had cropped up, and Trent and Elton were seated opposite them with their own agenda.
“Zelda is kinda pretty,” Trent said.
“A Ganondorf wouldn’t be bullied…well, not too much. Or how about Leon Kennedy instead?”
“Jill Valentine.”
“Marcus Fenix.”
“There’s always Peach.”
“And you can’t beat Mario.”
Juliet half listened as Trent reeled off baby names for a girl while Elton countered with names for a boy. They’d been at it for five long minutes and Juliet had been impressed by their ability to rattle off the most bizarre names of characters from all forms of media. “I’ve told you both before, there’ll be no naming the baby after a character from a game.” She shifted uncomfortably on the sofa, trying to get in a better position that eased her aching back.
Elton sighed then brightened. “Baelfire,” he announced.
“Ariel.”
Monica shook her head at them. “Guys, I’m guessing TV fairy tale characters are off the list too. Besides, everyone knows the Evil Queen in that show is the fairest of them all. Mighty sexy too in her low-cut regal gowns that I am just dying to re-create.”
“I just don’t want to name my kid anything boring or regular. He or she is going to be amazing just like its mommy so I’m vetoing any old-fashioned name from our grandparents’ era. And no fucking reality TV names either.”
At Juliet’s pointed cough, Trent sighed and reached into her jeans for her wallet. She took out a dollar bill and slipped it into a large jar with the label “Baby’s College Fund” stuck on that was set prominently on the coffee table. Between her and Elton, that night alone they’d added twenty dollars due to the “no
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