I narrowed my eyes. It made me uneasy to think he might already know me so well. “You don’t know me well enough to know that.”

“Oh, really? I saw the same thing on the balcony when you talked about moving here. I saw it again yesterday when I hugged you goodbye. And now you’re doing it again. I’m pretty good at reading patterns. So, what’s bugging you?”

I sighed. He wasn’t going to let it go. “What are you doing with me?”

His smile was quick. “Right now, I’m helping you mat a photo. Fascinating work, by the way. I’m hoping you’ll let me take a turn at the printer next.”

“Can you be serious for a minute?”

“Sure.” He dropped his end of the mat board and tried to comport his features. “This good enough?”

I shook my head and laughed. He was incorrigible. “Why are you chasing me?”

His brows rose. “Is this chasing? I thought it was me spending time with a friend.”

I crossed my arms. “You kiss all your friends like that?”

The frown was back. “Oh, Abbie. You have no idea. The truth is I have no idea what it is you're doing to me. This isn't me. I don’t run around chasing anything in a skirt. You’re… different. And you’re bloody driving me insane.”

I didn’t believe him. “Uh-huh.”

He sighed deeply. “Every now and again, I think I can still taste you. Or I catch a whiff of your perfume. It’s… inconvenient.” He ran a hand through his thick hair. “Look, on the roof, that was the first conversation I’ve had with someone in a long time. A real conversation, anyway. Not one that was all surface talk or about what someone wants from me. I haven’t been that open with anyone besides my brother in a very long time… maybe ever.”

My heart twirled in joy, but my brain was quick to bitch-slap it into submission. Easton had said things like that to me before, and where the hell had I ended up? Absently, I rubbed my cheek. “You don’t even know me.”

“Maybe not, but I recognize you. You’re looking for something real. Looking for something to make you feel alive.” He shrugged. “I’m looking for the same thing. Doesn’t hurt that you’re beautiful.”

Oh, he was good. I hid a smile. “And yesterday, in Brixton?”

He pitched his voice lower. “I just wanted to see what it would be like to hold onto you for a minute.”