"Well, he isn't getting any younger, you know."

Natalie laughs. "I'm sure he's aware. He still doesn't know I told you I spoke to him. How sweet. He's really respecting your wishes and not pushing it."

"Fuck my wishes. Since when has he really ever done that?" I mean… he has and hasn't… like in the heat of the moment when I'm screaming his name.

"This is different, sis."

I groan, gripping the phone tighter. She's right, and that annoys me. "I know. Maybe I should drop hints. But obvious ones."

"Don't embarrass me."

A smile draws across my face. I wouldn't go that far, but it was fun while the thought lasted. Exhaling a breath, I wince at the inflamed skin over my ribs. I gently cup my side and hold myself, wondering what James will say. After this morning’s opening of Retreat, I told a little fib and said I had a doctor’s appointment I couldn't miss.

"Do you think James will like the tattoo?" I ask Natalie for the tenth time since I got it. She saw it the moment the artist was finished, I had quickly FaceTimed her before it was wrapped up.

"Yeah, I actually think it's gonna give him a raging boner."

I shake my head. Any chance Natalie gets to be vulgar, she jumps on it. "I hope so. At one point I felt like she was under my damn boobs with the needle gun."

"It's gorg, Aub. He's gonna love it. Maybe be a little jealous you didn't take him with you for your first tattoo. Put a robe on so he doesn't see it through the slip."

"Good idea," I say, then stand up to retrieve the silk robe. I’m waiting until later tonight to surprise him with it. "How's Italy treating you?"

"I'm rich, young, and single, fucking my way through Italy with limoncellos running through my veins. What's your question again?"

She's a rare breed of person. "You are literally the worst, and I love it."

"Oh, speaking of lemons… this man came up to me on the beach today, and to make a long story short, he said I haven't had the best limoncello, even though I claimed the one in my hand was the best, to which he replied I haven't had his lemons yet. Thank heaven he was gorgeous, or I would've taken him to church for that one."

I cup my mouth and laugh. We both hate lame-ass pick-up lines and would try to beat each other with who had the worse ones in college. I could just imagine her facial expression when he said that to her, it would've been priceless.

"I would've loved to have been there for that. What did you say?"

"I told him when you’ve had one lemon, you've had them all." I feel like she's right next to me as we're having this conversation. "He asked me to come to this place called South of the Lemon Tree."

"What's that?"