“Exactly. Grandma had the hots for Anthony.”
“I don’t know.”
“I’m telling you. Plus, we need to see photos of these women in advance. This whole thing is a waste of time otherwise.”
As they’re discussing this, the front door opens, and Anthony comes inside, home from work. Lindsay wonders if his ears are burning. He’s wearing a white Star Wars T-shirt with an X-Wing fighter on it and the Death Star in the background. Anthony is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Washington. He’s also six years younger than Natalie. Lindsay’s never seen two people better suited for each other.
“Hey,” Anthony says, walking over to them in the living room. He leans down and kisses Natalie hello. “How is everyone today?” he murmurs.
“We’re fine.” Natalie smiles up at him.
Anthony takes his leather satchel off and sits down beside Natalie on the couch. He reaches over to gently stroke Luca’s hair, as he’s fallen asleep in Natalie’s arms.
Lindsay watches the two of them together. Such a beautiful family. It squeezes her heart. She’s so happy her sister found a love like this. Anthony truly is a good guy and definitely enough man for her sister.
He turns his attention toward her now, his dark eyes flickering with a mixture of bemusement and annoyance. “So, how did the interviews go? Are you going to be able to save me from the nanny curse, or am I doomed?”
Lindsay doesn’t bother to correct him that it’s ‘spell’ not ‘curse,’ instead brings her shoulders up with chagrin. “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid it’s not looking good.”
“What do you mean?” He turns to Natalie, and his voice softens. “You didn’t like any of them?”
“None of them were quite right,” Lindsay tells him, though Anthony is still looking at Natalie.
“What did you think?” he asks her.
“I have to agree with Lindsay. I just didn’t feel a connection with any of them. Not because of the curse or spell, or whatever.” She gives Lindsay a look.
He nods. “That’s okay. We’ll keep looking. I’m sure we’ll eventually find someone.”
“I hope so.” Natalie sighs. “This whole thing is already tiring.”
“It’ll be worth it in the end, though.” Anthony offers to take the baby from her to lay him down for his nap. As he heads upstairs, Lindsay follows Natalie into the kitchen.
“It’s kind of early for dinner.” Natalie goes over to the stove and lifts the lid on a pot of chili she has cooking. “But do you want a sandwich? I’m going to make one for Anthony.”
“No, thanks, I’m not hungry. Plus, I’m making dinner for Giovanni tonight.” Lindsay leans against the counter. “It’s his first day of work at the hospital, and I thought he’d enjoy coming home to a hot meal.”
“That’s nice of you.” Natalie flashes up at her. “How’s it going over there anyway?”
“Weirdly okay.”
Her sister nods. “I have to admit, I wasn’t too thrilled about Giovanni at first—or any of this, really. He’s one of those larger-than-life kind of men I’ve always found sort of intimidating.”
Lindsay considers her sister’s description and realizes there’s truth in it. He is kind of like that. She smiles to herself thinking about him. He’s serious in so many ways, but you can’t deny his passion is big.
“He’s really grown on me,” Natalie continues. “Plus, he’s amazing with the girls and Luca. They’re all crazy about him.”
“I know.” Lindsay is still smiling. “He’s all right.”
“I noticed something else when you guys were staying here.” Natalie gives her a sideways glance as she stirs the chili. “He’s very affectionate with you.”
“I guess.” Lindsay shrugs and pretends to act indifferent. She picks up one of Luca’s baby toys and slides the rings around.
“I think he has real feelings for you. Of course, I shouldn’t be surprised.” Natalie turns down the heat on the stove. “They all fall in love with you in the end, don’t they?”
Lindsay doesn’t bother answering and continues to fiddle with the baby toy. What Natalie said is mostly true. Men fall in love with her easily, and they always have. But she’s not so sure about Giovanni. “I don’t know. Giovanni is a tough nut to crack.”
“I’ll bet. Plus, I think you have feelings for him too.”
She looks up. “What do you mean?”
“You giggle quite a bit when he’s around,” Natalie says with a grin.
“I do not.”
“Yes, you do. It was fascinating to watch. Every time he came near you, it seemed like you were giggling.”
Lindsay scoffs. “Please. I do not giggle.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you act that way around a guy before, not even when you were in high school.”
“I like him. So what? I already told you that.”
Natalie laughs, but it’s a knowing laugh. “I didn’t realize you liked him that much. Are you in love with him?”
Lindsay puts the baby toy back down on the counter and decides to be completely honest. “I don’t know. It’s crazy, but I think I might be.”
“Really?” Natalie’s eyes widen.
“Don’t tell Anthony, okay?”
Natalie doesn’t have a chance to answer because Anthony walks into the kitchen. “Don’t tell me what?” he asks, turning on the baby monitor. “Is it more bullshit about the nanny curse? Because I have to tell you, Lindsay, you’re skating on thin ice with all this.”
“I’m only trying to help,” she says sincerely. “I mean well. You know that, right?”
“That’s what I keep telling myself.” Anthony takes a seat at the kitchen’s center island. “But do you really think I’m going to have an affair with our nanny?”
“Of course not. I’m just heading off any potential disasters.”
Her sister sets a plate with a sandwich on it in front of him. He reaches out and puts his arm around her waist, drawing her close. “Thank you, Miss Natalie.”
She grins at him. “You’re welcome.”
“This looks almost as delicious as you,” Anthony says in a teasing voice.
Natalie leans down to kiss him, and the two of them go at it for a few seconds.
Lindsay feels like a third wheel. She clears her throat. “Hello? I’m still standing here, remember?”
The happy couple breaks apart. Natalie gives him one last kiss before she goes back over to the fridge and starts putting the sandwich ingredients away.
Anthony takes a bite of his food, chewing for a bit. He looks over at Lindsay. “You know, I grew up with a nanny, and there were no disasters.”
“Yes, I heard all about your nanny from Giovanni.” Lindsay tries not to roll her eyes. Francesca was obviously smart enough not to explain her hiring decisions to anyone.
“If you’re really that worried about this, why don’t you two just look for a male nanny?” Anthony says before taking another bite of his sandwich.
Lindsay’s mouth opens with astonishment. “A manny! My God, why didn’t I think of that?” She puts her hand to her forehead. “It’s genius!”
Natalie comes back over to the island, eating a piece of apple she just sliced up. “There were some male nannies listed on the referral site. It didn’t even occur to me to look at them.”
“As long as I don’t have anything to be concerned about.” Anthony’s eyes go to his wife with a little grin. “Just promise me you won’t hire some kind of hot stud muffin.”
Natalie laughs. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about.” She leans down to him and lowers her voice. “You’re the hottest stud muffin around.”
“A manny . . .” Lindsay nods slowly. “That’s the perfect solution.” She glances over to where her sister and Anthony look ready to rip each other’s clothes off. “Okay, I’m leaving now. It’s clear you two aren’t getting enough alone time.”
Lindsay stops at the store on the way home to pick up groce
ries. She’s decided on Mexican-style burgers slathered with guacamole and grilled onions for dinner, along with a big green salad. She grabs fresh strawberries and whipped cream for dessert.
By the time she expects Giovanni home, she’s already made the guacamole and grilled the onions. She’s in the middle of making the salad, humming along to La Bohème—the most beautiful opera she’s heard so far, and definitely her favorite—when she hears him come through the front door.
“Hey, what’s all this?” He enters the kitchen with a grin, putting his stuff down on the counter—a computer case along with his phone, pager, and some paperwork. “It smells incredible in here.”
“I thought I’d make dinner to celebrate your first day at work. How did it go?”
“Great.” He peers around at the ingredients. “I met with a few new patients and their families. It’s going to be fantastic having access to so many resources for a change.” He reaches for a tortilla chip and pops it in his mouth, and then he reaches for her. “Come here.”
“Hey, watch it.” Lindsay gives a girly laugh. She puts down the knife she was cutting tomatoes with as he pulls her in close. Her butterflies are fluttering as usual, and she suddenly remembers what Natalie said about her giggling.
Am I giggling?
He puts his mouth to her neck and his hand on her ass. He nips her, and she lets out a little shriek.
Holy shit. “Have I become a giggler?”
He moves his mouth up to hers and kisses her, tasting like corn chips. “I like all the giggling,” he murmurs, squeezing her ass. “I like everything about you.”
“What?” She pulls back from him. “You’ve noticed it too?”
“I’ve noticed you seem happy.” He kisses her again and keeps his face close to hers. “Are you happy? I hope so.”
“Yes, I’m very happy.”
He grins, that beautiful smile and her heart nearly bursts from happiness. She knows right then what she told Natalie earlier today is true. I’m in love. As crazy as it sounds, she’s been in love with him since Berlin, and every day it’s only gotten stronger. There’s no point in denying it to herself any longer.
The two of them gaze at each other, and she wonders if he feels it too. She’s not sure, though, as there are parts of himself he’s still holding back.
“I have to ask you something important,” he says.
“What’s that?”
He rubs his stomach. “Is the food almost done? Because I’m starved.”
Lindsay rolls her eyes. Men. It figures. With guys falling at her feet all these years, the one guy she wants is still standing upright. “It’s almost done. I just have to fry up the burgers.” She moves to do just that but he stops her, and she looks up at him.
“I’m happy too,” he says, taking her hand. “I haven’t felt this good in a long time, and it’s because of you, Lindsay.”
She raises an eyebrow and gives him her best sultry expression. “Of course it’s because of me. I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
He chuckles and draws her close again. Putting his face down near hers, he kisses her, then does that nose-rubbing thing he likes. “Ti adoro, fragolina mia.”
“What did you say?”
“I said, ‘I adore you, my little strawberry.’”
Lindsay giggles. “I do like strawberries.”
“I’ve noticed.”
She giggles some more and decides what the heck. I’m going to giggle as much as I want.
Lindsay starts on the burgers, heating up the frying pan while Giovanni takes his computer and paperwork from the counter and goes into the living room.
“And you’re playing La Bohème,” he calls out to her. “My favorite opera of all time.”
“Really? I think this is my favorite so far too.”
She hears him turn the music up louder and smiles to herself. Whoever thought she’d be happy living in an arranged marriage with a surgeon who likes comic books and opera? Bizarre. She opens the freezer to grab the frozen burger patties.
When she takes them to the counter, she can hear Giovanni actually singing with the music. “Olaf sings opera,” she murmurs. “How about that?” She grabs the large knife she used for the tomatoes and starts trying to cut the frozen burgers apart.
Giovanni is still singing when he enters the kitchen. “I’ll have to take you to see this sometime. It’s incredible. You’ll be crying your eyes out.”
“Is that—Ow!” There’s a sharp pain as she cuts her finger.
“What is it?” His face changes to concern.
She looks down. With horror, she sees there’s blood coming from her finger. A lot of blood. “Oh, my God.” Her stomach drops and her vision goes dark around the edges. The last thing she sees before it all goes black is Giovanni running toward her.
When Lindsay comes to, she’s disoriented. Flat on her back. A golden-haired Viking hovers over her.
“Thor?”
“Look at me, Lindsay,” Giovanni says, and her eyes go to his. She feels his fingers checking the pulse at her throat. He nods. “Good.”
Music is playing—La Bohème—and she realizes she’s lying on the kitchen floor.
“How many fingers am I holding up?” he asks.
“Two.”
“Do your head or chest hurt?”
“No.”
“Do you feel any kind of numbness or tingling anywhere?”
She mentally scans her body. “No, I don’t think so.”
“When was the last time you ate?”
She blinks. “I’m not sure.” She tries to remember. “I think I ate some chips and salsa while I was cooking.”
“You just fainted.” He studies her. “Has that ever happened to you before?”
“Yes.” She nods and swallows, closing her eyes. “Once—when Chloe was born. I was there for the birth, and there was some . . . blood afterward.” Suddenly, she notices the pain in her hand, remembers cutting herself. “My finger!”
She tries to get up, but he stops her. “It’s fine. Keep your head down.”
“Is it bad?” She lifts her hand and catches a glimpse of it wrapped in a clean dish towel, sees a hint of red before he gently puts her hand back.
“No, it’s not bad. I’m going to get you some juice. Stay right there, and don’t move.”
Lindsay continues to lie on the floor. She watches Giovanni grab a glass and fill it halfway with orange juice from the fridge. He comes back over to her.
“I’m fine now,” she says, starting to feel a little silly on the floor. “Really, I can sit up. Like I said, it was just seeing the blood that got to me.”
“No, I want you to stay like this for a little longer. I’m going to have you take a few sips of juice, though.” He comes over to her and has her lift her head up enough to drink a bit.
“How long was I out?” she asks, putting her head back down.
“Not long. I’d say ten seconds.” He places the glass on the floor and sits next to her, picking up her injured hand. “So you’ve fainted before at the sight of blood?”
She nods. “I’ll bet that sounds really dumb to someone like you.”
“No, not at all.”
She laughs a little. “I could never do your job. Can you imagine? I’d be a disaster.”
He smiles kindly. “It’s not for everyone. Some people have difficulty with blood or certain kinds of pain too. It’s called vasovagal syncope, and it’s not uncommon.”
“Really?”
He nods. “I’ve seen plenty of it over the years. Some people faint during a needle stick every time.”
“Did I hit the floor? What happened?”
“No, I managed to catch you.” He gently unwraps the dishtowel on her hand. “I’m going to examine your finger now.”
She watches his face with his regular tense expression. He’s gentle, but it doesn’t change the fact that she’s in pain. “It hurts, but it kind of tingles too,” Lindsay tells him.
He’s still inspe
cting her finger. “I think you’ve cut into the nerve.”
“Is that bad?”
“You may find your sensation is different once it’s healed.” He looks at her. “It needs to be sutured.”
She doesn’t like the sound of that. “Sutured? What’s that? Will it hurt?”
“It’ll be fine,” he reassures her. “I’m talking about stitches. Just a few. It’s not a big deal.”
“Not to you maybe.”
He considers her. “The question is do you want to go to the ER and have them do it for you, or have me do it here?”
“Can you?” She studies him. “I’d rather not go to the ER.”
“Sure, it’s not a problem. I have my medical bag.” He wraps the towel around her finger and instructs her on how to hold it firmly but gently with her other hand. He also tells her not to look at it. “When was the last time you had a tetanus shot? Do you remember?”
She thinks back. “A couple years ago. I smashed my thumb while I was working at my studio.” She remembers how one of the other artists in her building took her to the emergency room. She didn’t faint, but there wasn’t as much blood either. “They gave me one at the hospital.”
“Are you allergic to any kind of medication?”
“No.”
He glances over toward the living room. “Let’s move you to the couch.”
“Are you sure I need stitches? I’d rather not. I mean, I’ve never had them before.”
“Yes, I’m sure.”
“Maybe you could just bandage it up. That’s probably good enough.”
“No, Lindsay. That’s not good enough.” Giovanni instructs her to wrap her arms around his neck, says he’s going to carry her.
“This is silly. I can walk. Seriously, you don’t have to carry me!”
But he’s already lifting her. She has to admit she’s sort of enjoying it, though she’d be enjoying it a lot more if she hadn’t filleted her finger.
He carries her over to the living room couch—a maroon sectional they pulled out of her storage unit last week. He places her down on it so she’s lying flat. She tries to tuck a pillow under her head, but he stops her.
“Just lie flat for a little longer.” He stares at her legs for a moment like he’s considering something but then seems to change his mind. “I’ll be right back. Let me get my bag.” He looks at her pointedly. “And don’t get up.”
Some Like It Hotter (Sweet Life in Seattle #3) Page 25