n

n

nAs they walked around the park and talked about all sorts of random things Christian noticed that Avery seemed rather happy. She laughed a lot—did she think he was funny?—and radiated a general air of contentment and relaxation.

nHe was glad she was enjoying herself because he was too but at the same time he was very, very confused. Had she suddenly decided she liked him because of one terrible, thwarted date?

nShe wasn't like this before. She hadn't been rude or seemed overtly disinterested or anything but the vibe was different somehow.

nChristian was certain she hadn't been interested before he asked her out considering how surprised she seemed. Her reaction made him think she agreed on a whim rather than because she had any real desire to go out with him. Yet now she was acting extremely interested and he wasn't sure why.

nNot that he was complaining! Interested was great!

nHe had to ignore a few internal alarms while they walked but, putting that annoyance aside, he was having so much fun talking to her that he completely lost track of time. It seemed that she did too because before they knew it the park was closing.

nHe hadn't expected things to go this well. What was he supposed to do now? He supposed he should ask her out again but definitely wanted to avoid a weekend date if possible. This one had been much more peaceful.

n

"Are you free after work on Thursday?

" Christian asked hopefully right before he dropped her off.

nAvery looked up at him and nodded.

"Yeah. Rather than going out to eat do you want to come over to my place? We could watch a movie or something and I could cook. I may have specialized in dessert but I did go to culinary school, you know.

"

nWas she seriously offering him a home-cooked meal after two dates? He wasn't about to turn that down but he couldn't deny being surprised.

n

"That sounds great!

"

n

"Cool,

" she said with a satisfied smile.

"Feel free to text me before then though.

"

nAvery leaned over and kissed his cheek before getting out of the car, turning and waving before vanishing inside her building. As a result Christian was left sitting there staring at the door for several minutes until someone honked at him.

nWhen he got home he was still in a bit of a daze and Liam immediately noticed something was up from his place on the couch. He squinted at him.

"…what's with you?

"

n

"I think my crush likes me back,

" he said faintly.

n

"For real? I told you things would work out if you went for it! Congratulations on becoming less of a loser. What's her name again? Amy? How many dates have you been on now?

"

n

"Avery. And this was only the second but I'm amazed she even wanted it considering what happened on the first…we set up another one and she told me to text her before then. And she initiated handholding and kissed my cheek before she left,

" Christian told him.

n

"I'm really confused though because this kind of came out of nowhere. Especially since things really didn't go that well on Friday with the whole Inferno thing. I assume you saw that on the news.

"

n

"Yeah. I didn't realize that was while you were on your date though. What exactly happened?

" Liam asked with a raised eyebrow.

n

"One minute we're talking, the next our table is on fire. She froze in panic and I had to grab her arm and shove her into the bathroom to hide so I could go change. Considering I just left her there and she couldn't find me when she got out she probably thought I ditched her, which makes this even more perplexing.

n

"I don't think she held it against me because she wanted to go get ice cream right after instead of going home, which would have been totally understandable considering she went through a traumatic event, and she was cool as a cucumber. Then she called me handsome when I caught her staring at me. It's become progressively more confusing from there.

"

n

"I don't know what to tell you, Chris. You're thirty and can't read women's signals. She probably liked you already and that's why she's acting like this. People don't change their minds as quickly as you flip a switch.

"

nHe had a point. Still, that wasn't the impression Avery gave off before they were in the ice cream shop.

n

"Even if she does like me, what am I supposed to do? I can't keep my identity a secret from her forever if she becomes my girlfriend!

" Christian protested.

nHis brother shrugged.

"You can if she's busy enough on weekends. Or you could tell a version of the truth and say you have a second 'on call' sort of job. She might buy that. Whatever you do, don't tell her the truth. If you ever break up and she's feeling petty about it she could ruin your life.

"

n

"Thanks for that.

"

n

"Just making sure you're aware of reality. You can date but you have to be careful, as I'm sure you already know.

"

nChristian sighed. He did already know that. It was a large part of why he didn't think things were able to get serious between them. All he had wanted was the chance to get to know her better and enjoy her fresh perspective brightening his boring life.

nIf she really liked him it might not be so easy to play things off as being busy all the time. He didn't want to lie to her but he couldn't tell the truth either.

nHe still hadn't figured out what to do by the time Thursday rolled around. He barely had time to go home and change into jeans and a less formal shirt before he went right back out and headed over to her place.

nThey had texted random thoughts about their days in between their dates and that bit of interaction with her was tantalizing. It made him want more and amped up how much he was looking forward to seeing her again in person.

nWhen Christian arrived at her apartment he immediately noticed this looked more like a family home than a place where a woman in her twenties lived alone. He couldn't help but wonder if she had grown up here especially because of the pictures of her with an older blonde man starting from the time she was a toddler placed strategically throughout the living room. That must be her late father.

nAvery was in the middle of sautéing some vegetables when he arrived and she briefly smiled at him before getting back to her task.

"Go ahead and make yourself at home. I'm a bit busy at the moment.

"

n

"Do you need me to help with anything?

"

n

"Now that you mention it, I could use some help setting the table. The dishes are in the cupboards to my right and the silverware is in the drawer beneath.

"

nChristian did as she asked before rather awkwardly sitting on the couch.

"…are you sure you don't need help with anything else?

"

n

"Nope, I'm good! Thanks though,

" she said oblivious to his plight.

nHe wasn't used to sitting around being unhelpful. It went against his nature. But he wasn't much of a cook and if he tried hanging out in the kitchen he knew he would only get in her way.

nAbout fifteen minutes later she served up some sort of chicken dish that was absolutely delicious. He was sure to tell her so and she seemed pleased. Of course a chef would enjoy having her food complimented. He would have to keep that in mind in case she cooked for him again.

nWhy was he thinking like that? He wasn't supposed to get into a relationship that was doomed to fail because of his need to keep his identity a secret!

nChristian cursed himself internally and wondered why he was even here. He wanted to be happy and deserved to have a good time as much as anyone else but would it truly be fair dragging an innocent girl into his world?

n