by Jackie Lau
Yeah, it was true. He was just so good.
Seriously, how had Nicole turned down a guy like that?
Well, no more. She’d throw herself at him...soon. For tonight, she was out with her friends, enjoying this delicious food.
When the waitress brought them another round of drinks, Nicole held hers up,
“I’ll tell him tomorrow,” she said, clinking her glass against those of her friends.
Rose gave her a hug. “I know you can do it.”
Yes, Nicole was ready to make some changes in her life. But these friends, most of whom she’d met back in university, before they were even old enough to buy alcohol, would still be part of it. As would her family, who’d doubtless find new ways to torture her and show their affection.
She smiled before taking a sip of her martini.
Tomorrow.
Chapter 28
David had gone to bed well over an hour ago, but sleep eluded him. He couldn’t help wondering what Nicole was doing tonight. It was a Saturday, so she’d probably gone out, unlike him.
He shouldn’t be surprised that she’d rejected him last week. Still, he’d been hopeful, in part buoyed by Murray’s encouragement.
Alas.
He should think of something relaxing, maybe recite the geologic timescale in his head, but no matter what he did, his thoughts turned back to her. He wanted her in bed with him. He wanted to make her coffee in the morning and buy her pulled pork sandwiches or Portuguese egg tarts as a surprise. He wanted to kiss her after a long day of work. He wanted to introduce her to his family and see hers again, too.
He wanted, he wanted, he wanted...
But she didn’t, and he would respect that.
Maybe, eventually, his heartbreak would heal and they could be friends again. It could never go back to the way things were before, but it would be nice to eat with someone on occasion.
He rolled over and sighed. It would take a while to get over Nicole, and he wouldn’t be interested in set-ups from Murray anytime soon.
More time for reading and swimming, he supposed.
* * *
At ten o’clock the next morning, David was back from the pool and making himself a pot of coffee when there was a knock on the door.
He padded to the door and swung it open.
It was Nicole.
“Can you come over?” she asked. “I’ve got breakfast.”
He nodded, even though it was painful to see her now, but he wouldn’t deny her.
Except if she was asking him to come over, maybe it meant...
They went next door, and on the counter, where they’d eaten many meals over the last several months, was a cake.
“Mango passionfruit cheesecake,” she said. “I hope you’re okay with cake for breakfast.”
She was smiling as she moved about the kitchen, but he could sense her anxiety. He shouldn’t allow himself to hope, but...
Oh, screw that. He couldn’t help it, not now.
Especially when she pulled out two heart-shaped candles, exactly like the ones he’d bought the other week. She put them on the cake and lit them.
“David.” She gestured for him to sit down, and she sat on the stool beside him. “You know me, and so you know this isn’t the sort of thing I’m used to doing. From the beginning, I was very clear about what I wanted, but I didn’t expect, well, you. I kept telling myself that I didn’t have feelings for you, even as you took care of me and brought me a new dessert every Friday. But in the past week, I realized...I was wrong. I do have feelings—very strong feelings—for you.”
He inhaled swiftly at her words.
“As you know, I gloried in my single life and feared what a relationship would do to me. I told you that, and you said you’d give me all the space I need, and...I thank you for giving me space for the past several days to figure this out. I feel like you’re always on my side, no matter what.”
A tear slid down her cheek. He moved to brush it away, but she stilled him.
“After we started sleeping together,” she said, “I couldn’t help worrying you’d find true love elsewhere and end things, as has happened to me many times in the past. That’s why I got drunk that night. And even if I didn’t want a relationship, I craved having someone see me that way, just once. Then, somehow, you did.”
“Because you’re amazing.”
“I know, I’m pretty kick-ass.” She smiled through her tears. “Still, I felt broken. Like there was something wrong with me—why couldn’t anyone feel that way about me? I guess I just needed to wait for the right person to come along. Your feelings are such a beautiful gift. Assuming you still—”
“Yes. Of course.”
She grinned at him, and oh, she looked so lovely. “I know we can figure out how to make this work for the both of us. I’m so sorry I broke your heart. Really, terribly sorry—I hate the thought of ever hurting you. But now, I’m ready.”
He was, too.
Ready to kiss her.
David leaned forward and cupped her cheeks in his hands. He kissed her deeply. Kissed her for the first time with the knowledge that they’d be together.
It was perfect.
He pulled back to look into her eyes. “Perhaps we should blow out the candles and eat some cake to give us a little energy.”
“The candles! I almost forgot.” She blew them out quickly. “Now, rather than cutting proper slices of cake, how about we each take a fork and dig in?”
He agreed, but a few minutes later, he regretted his decision.
He’d prefer to savor the cheesecake, but Nicole was practically inhaling it, and he had to eat quickly to ensure he got his share.
Then she took one particularly slow, sensual bite, holding his gaze as she slid the fork into her mouth and moaned. Moaning almost as much as she would if, well...
“I think we’ve had enough cake for now.” David placed her fork on the counter before standing up. He took her hand and led her to the bedroom, where he pulled her close to him. His attention was momentarily distracted, however, by a flash of color on the wall. “You hung up the painting.”
“I did, and I’m thinking of having another one done. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“Of course.”
“Now get me naked, dammit.”
He laughed as he pulled her shirt over her head and dropped it on the floor, along with her bra. He was about to remove the rest of her clothing when her phone rang.
“Ignore that,” she murmured.
He was glad to do so.
He swirled his tongue over her nipple, and she groaned.
And then the phone rang again. Except this time, it was his phone.
That was a strange coincidence.
She sighed. “Get it. I’ll check who called me and tell them not to disturb me again.”
Reluctantly, he answered his phone. “Hello?”
“David! It’s Nicole’s po po. I just called her, but she did not answer. Can you go next door and check she’s okay?”
“I’m with her right now,” he said.
“Ah, you made up. Okay, that is excellent news, and now I can tell you both my news. Put it on speakerphone.”
He did as asked.
“You will not believe what happened!” Po Po’s voice boomed through the bedroom.
“What?” Nicole sounded slightly cross about the interruption.
“I was attacked by a Canada goose!” Po Po said gleefully. “Kelsey and I went for a walk, and we were crossing the field at the nearby school, you know?”
“Yes, those geese can be mean.”
“Wah, so mean and aggressive. But the babies are cute.”
“I think you got a little too close to the goslings, Po Po.” It was Kelsey speaking. “That’s why they attacked.”
“Goslings? What are you talking about? Ryan Gosling wasn’t there. Anyway, the mama goose tried to bite me.”
“What I don’t understand,” Nicole said, “is why you’re so happy
about it.”
“Because Kelsey recorded it! I fought the goose off with my purse, it got the message, and it left me alone. People online are saying I am tough. I have so many views.”
“I thought you didn’t care about that anymore.”
“No, I just do not care as much. Am no longer trying to be biggest TikTok star. But people say I remind them of their grandmothers and tell me how much they missed their grandparents, so I feel like I’m doing good community service. David, you are very quiet. Are you okay?”
“I am,” he said, placing his hand on Nicole’s thigh.
“Okay, I will let you get back to having sex. Bye!”
The call ended, and Nicole and David looked at each other in horror.
“Maybe we can wait a few minutes,” Nicole said. “That kinda killed the mood, and I actually have a couple of things I want to ask you.” She paused. “First of all, how would you feel about going on a real date? Maybe have dinner at a restaurant rather than takeout?”
“I’d like that.”
“And the second thing is... You know how you enjoyed hearing me have sex?” She glanced at the wall. “Is that something you want to do more of? A kink of yours?”
“No, I prefer being in the same room as you now—and I don’t mean watching you with someone else.”
“Good. Because I haven’t wanted to sleep with anyone but you in months.” She started unbuttoning his shirt. When she tossed it aside, she smiled in appreciation.
God, he was lucky.
An hour later, they returned to eating the cheesecake, and then they went back to bed.
That evening, they went on their first real date. Unlike the last time he’d gone to a restaurant with her—for Valentine’s Day and his birthday—he now knew that he was hers.
There was no better feeling in the world.
Epilogue
A few months later...
Nicole sipped her drink and took in her surroundings. From the hotel’s rooftop patio, she had a beautiful view of the old buildings in Toledo. Dusk was coming, and there were smudges of pink in the sky. The air was hot, and even in her skimpy dress, she felt like she was wearing too much clothing.
She turned her attention to the man across from her.
That was a great view, too.
David sipped his tea and smiled at her, and she smiled back.
It was such a romantic setting, and fortunately, romance no longer scared her. No, she enjoyed getting bouquets of roses and peonies, and watching the sunset with her boyfriend.
And eating lots of cake.
Cake was romantic, wasn’t it?
David had done lots of research before their trip to Spain, and every day, he had a new dessert place for them to try.
That was more romantic than anything else.
She definitely enjoyed traveling with him, although yesterday, when they’d been in Madrid, she’d requested a few hours apart. She’d gone shopping, and he’d visited the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales.
When they’d met up again, she’d been so glad to see him that she’d thrown her arms around him and kissed him in the street, and then they’d strolled through a rose garden and eaten lots of delicious food. Food was something they both liked about traveling.
It had taken her a little while to adapt to being in a relationship, but it was totally worth it, and she had more sex than before.
Including sex on the other side of the Atlantic.
“Shall we order some food?” David asked.
Nicole had eaten a ridiculous quantity at lunch today, and then they’d had ice cream. She wasn’t hungry yet; her tinto de verano was enough.
But...
“Yes,” she said.
He took his glasses out of his pocket and put them on before picking up the menu.
She’d never tire of looking at him wearing glasses. In fact, she’d never tire of looking at him, period. Hard to believe she’d thought he wasn’t her type when she’d first seen him.
Now, he was the very definition of her type.
“What do you think of this?”
He pointed out something on the menu, and she shook her head. He pointed out a few more items, and she shook her head again.
He eyed her. “You’re not hungry at all, are you? You just wanted to see my glasses.”
She responded with a coquettish shrug of her shoulder and crossed her legs. The skirt slid up a little farther, and she didn’t bother to fix it. Let him look.
Sure enough, he did.
But just briefly.
She was certain there were some naughty things going on in his mind, though.
He tucked his glasses back in his pocket, and she pretended to pout.
“Later,” she said, “I’ll get you wearing those glasses and nothing else.”
Just then, her phone buzzed.
“Go ahead,” David said.
She took a peek. The text was from Sierra, who was in Paris with Colton Sanders at some luxury hotel. She was having a good time and asked how Nicole’s trip was going. Nicole gave her a quick answer, then put her phone on silent. Sierra had been with Colton for almost a year, and last month, Nicole and her friends had finally managed to spend more than five minutes with him. Nicole, frankly, was even more skeptical of Colton now. She couldn’t help hoping their relationship didn’t last—Sierra deserved better.
A moment later, David’s phone buzzed. He looked at it quickly, then set it aside.
“Who was that?” Nicole asked.
“Your grandmother, asking whether I’ve proposed to you.”
“Didn’t she text you that yesterday?”
“No, that was the day before. Yesterday was the TikTok of her and Mrs. Dong dancing to a Britney Spears song.”
“I don’t know how I forgot about that.” She paused for a sip of tinto de verano. “Don’t give into her pressure, okay?”
“Don’t worry, I know you’re not quite ready yet.” He squeezed her hand.
“One day, I promise.” She squeezed back.
“Look at the sky.”
She turned her head and nearly gasped. She’d been so focused on her boyfriend that she hadn’t noticed the beautiful brushstrokes of pink, orange, and indigo, which tinted the fluffy clouds. David snapped a few pictures, and then they stood by the railing, their arms around each other. The light breeze—a blessing in the heat—blew her hair back from her face.
It had been a lovely day, and she was sure tomorrow would be a good day, too; she looked forward to all the days she’d spend with him, as well as the nights.
“I love you,” she murmured.
“I love you, too.”
“Want to head back to our room?” She sent him a saucy wink, which, as she’d hoped, made his eyes darken.
“There’s nothing I’d like more.”
Yes, she was very much enjoying this new phase of her life, with David Cho by her side.
* * * * *
I hope you enjoyed The Professor Next Door! There will be two more books in the Cider Bar Sisters series. Both Sierra’s story and Rose’s story should be out in 2022.
In the meantime, have you read my Holidays with the Wongs series? It starts with A Match Made for Thanksgiving.
To learn about my new releases (and when I have a book on sale!) sign up for my newsletter here.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to my editor, Latoya C. Smith, as well as Kate Pearce for their help with this book. The cover was created by Flirtation Designs.
Thank you also to Toronto Romance Writers, plus my family, for all your support.
About the Author
Jackie Lau decided she wanted to be a writer when she was in grade two, sometime between writing “The Heart That Got Lost” and “The Land of Shapes.” She later studied engineering and worked as a geophysicist before turning to writing romance novels. Jackie lives in Toronto with her husband, and despite living in Canada her whole life, she hates winter. When she’s not writing, she enjoys gelat
o, gourmet donuts, cooking, hiking, and reading on the balcony when it’s raining.
Find out more at jackielaubooks.com. You can also follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, or join her Facebook reader group, Northern Heat, with fellow Canadian rom-com authors Jenny Holiday and Farah Heron.
Also by Jackie Lau
Donut Fall in Love
Cider Bar Sisters Series
Her Big City Neighbor
His Grumpy Childhood Friend
Her Pretend Christmas Date (novella)
The Professor Next Door
Kwan Sisters/Fong Brothers Series
Grumpy Fake Boyfriend
Mr. Hotshot CEO
Pregnant by the Playboy
Holidays with the Wongs Series
A Match Made for Thanksgiving
A Second Chance Road Trip for Christmas
A Fake Girlfriend for Chinese New Year
A Big Surprise for Valentine’s Day
Baldwin Village Series
One Bed for Christmas (prequel novella)
The Ultimate Pi Day Party
Ice Cream Lover
Man vs. Durian
Chin-Williams Series
Not Another Family Wedding
He’s Not My Boyfriend