“Then what happened?” Sabrina asked, completely absorbed. She always thought he was happy as a loner, traveling on assignment too often to really settle down. She supposed she shouldn’t have assumed he didn’t want to meet someone. It was strange listening to him talk about it, as though she were truly grown up now. She felt a spark of pleasure at the thought that Jimmy felt comfortable enough with her to talk about his life.
“Well, one thing led to another, and we met for dinner that entire week. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t really think he was interested in me romantically. I just wanted to get to know him better—he was funny and articulate and interesting. I fell for him but didn’t have the guts to say anything. Then, after a week and a half of meeting for dinner and sometimes playing basketball or catching a game on TV, he told me that he’d received notice of his first assignment and that he had to go undercover for at least a year. I was devastated and embarrassed about it. I mean, we’d only met a little while ago. I shouldn’t have felt so much so soon, and I knew he had no idea.” Jimmy sighed, face serious. She touched his arm, hoping to comfort him.
“So, the night before he had to go, after dinner, we walked back to my apartment. Just before he left me at the door, I grabbed him by the shirt and kissed him.”
“Oh!” Sabrina tried to imagine how nerve-racking that must have been. “What happened then?”
“Thank God he didn’t punch me!” Jimmy replied, chuckling. “I figured it was my last chance, and I had nothing to lose, well, except a tooth or two. You see, he’d never indicated to me that he was gay or bi. It’s really tricky to take that leap.” Jimmy laughed under his breath, shaking his head. “I really thought he was going to freak!” She watched Jimmy rub his hand over the back of his neck.
“Instead of hitting me, he kissed me back. It felt like we went up in flames together right there outside his apartment door.” Jimmy paused and looked at her, then cupped her cheek in his hand. “I feel the same way when I kiss you, Sabrina.”
Sabrina blushed. “Love at first sight?” she quipped, then looked down, uncomfortable with this heavy emotional stuff. Jimmy just smiled and continued his story.
“After the kiss, we hugged. Then he handed me a card with a single number on it, saying, ‘If you ever need me, just call this number and I’ll drop everything and come.’”
“Whoa,” Sabrina breathed.
“Yeah,” Jimmy replied. “When agents go into an assignment as dangerous as Gabriel’s, they don’t break cover. It was an insane breach of protocol for him to give me that number, especially for someone he’d just met. I mean, we knew about each other’s families and what we liked for dinner, but still, we’d really only just met. That’s not a lot of time to form a relationship or even fall in love. I didn’t really believe in love at first sight. Maybe ‘like’ at first sight, but love?” Jimmy shook his head.
“What happened?” she asked, her heart aching for him.
“I never saw him again,” Jimmy said, sighing and running his hand through his hair. “I wanted to call so many times, but I knew he was in deep for at least a year. I couldn’t endanger him.”
“What about afterwards? You said this was several years ago, right?”
“Yes, but he had my number. I thought I remembered wrong. We only knew each other for two weeks. Even now I’m not sure, you know? And what if he’s still undercover? Sometimes those assignments last years.” Jimmy shook his head grimly, and Sabrina touched his arm in sympathy.
“Well, come on, get up, let’s go get some breakfast,” he said, flashing her a quick grin. Sabrina smiled as he moved off the bed and grabbed her glasses to watch him walk out of her room, imagining him kissing the mysterious Gabriel. She couldn’t control her attraction for Jimmy; what would she do if Jimmy’s old boyfriend showed up? She laughed. Like that would ever happen. But what if? What if there was still something there between the two men? Instead of jealousy, she felt arousal. There was no way to deny how exciting she found the idea of Jimmy kissing another man. She shook her head, trying to flick some sense into the lust-weakened center of her brain. Maybe a cold shower will help, she thought, getting out of bed and heading to the bathroom for a quick session of body-numbing therapy.
Half an hour later, Sabrina and Jimmy headed down the tree-lined street in front of her house. She lived in a small town in northern New Jersey, only a few blocks from a quaint downtown that housed a church, a grocery store, a bakery, and their destination: a small bistro, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. She loved their croissant egg sandwiches. As they walked, her loose skirt swung around her knees and she stole glances at Jimmy. He wore another pair of cutoff jean shorts and a tight blue T-shirt that made his tanned skin look even more stunning than usual. He knew she was looking because he kept glancing at her fondly. She couldn’t help but smile back. The second time he caught her staring, he grabbed her hand, and they walked the rest of the way like that in the warm summer sunshine. It was definitely a good day.
“I like the outfit, Sabrina,” Jimmy said after a while, breaking the comfortable silence. He fingered her white halter top as she fluffed her yellow skirt, winking at him.
“Likewise,” she said, swinging their clasped hands a little. She was happy. Thinking about what they’d done together this morning made her flush, so she spent the majority of the walk alternately giggling like a fool and blushing.
“I’m really looking forward to this summer,” he said, squeezing her hand.
“Me, too.” Sabrina smiled at him. In another minute they were at the bistro, seated at one of the pretty wrought-iron tables scattered around outside the front of the restaurant. They gave the waitress their order, and Sabrina basked in the sun, Jimmy on her right. He bumped their legs together companionably. When she didn’t protest, Jimmy put his hand on her thigh, and she felt a low simmer of heat sift through her. He smiled at her, and she grinned cheekily at him. She hoped the rest of the summer was as pleasant as this day. She could certainly get used to having a handsome man paying such excellent attention to her! They waited for their food to arrive; then Jimmy quirked his lips in a lopsided smile.
“I was thinking, Sabrina.”
“Uh oh.” She laughed, smirking at him.
“Hey!” Jimmy smacked her thigh with his hand. “I’m serious here.”
She shook her head at him, remembering the way they joked when they were younger. The back and forth banter and teasing had always been part of why she liked him so much, and she was happy to see that they were still able to have fun together, despite the sudden sexual heat that was now part of their interaction.
“I don’t want to answer your questions anymore,” Jimmy continued. She felt her heart skip and looked at him quizzically, taking a quick sip of her iced tea to disguise her sudden disappointment. He didn’t want to back out, did he? She tried to look nonchalant as she waited for him to explain.
“I don’t want to only answer questions,” he clarified, and her eyes flew up to his. “I would rather show you.”
Oh, she thought, then—Oh! She relaxed, hoping he couldn’t tell how worried she’d been for a moment. “Show me what?” Sabrina joked, hoping to cover up her momentary surge of doubt.
Jimmy mock-frowned at her. “I think you know what I mean, Sabrina. But to be perfectly clear, I would like to date you this summer, and make love with you, not just answer questions.”