Alec seems like that kind of guy.

His kiss alone tells me he’s different from any other guy I’ve been with.

And he’s not just a guy. Alec is a man—that much became clear last night.

Luna: I like that.

Alec: Do you like it enough to go out with me tonight?

I glance up and catch him staring back at me. Holding back my smile, I type back.

Luna: What can I say? You had me at nice tits.

From across the set, I can hear him chuckle as he shakes his head.

Alec: You’re brutal—you know that?

Luna: I have to make you work a little. Have fun in your interviews today.

Alec: You too. Try not to cry too much over your loss yesterday.

Luna: Trying to go to dinner alone again?

Alec: Nah, just trying to show you I’m not the uptight asshole you initially thought I was.

Luna: Don’t worry, you proved yourself worthy this past week.

I set my phone down as Declan and Cohen return. Declan hands me my drink, and Cohen hands me a plate of pineapple and grapes. He knows me so well.

“What’s with the smile?” Cohen asks. “Last time I saw you smile like that, you found waterproof decoupage.”

“That was a special day, wasn’t it?” I open my drink and take a sip, growing warm when I remember how Alec stocked his fridge.

“You made me a birdhouse, for my apartment in the city.”

“Pigeons need love too.” I wink and pop a grape in my mouth.

“Seriously,” Declan says, nudging my shoulder. “What’s with the good mood? I half expected you to show up today in a state of panic because we got second place yesterday. Speaking of, did you try Baxter’s cake?” Declan leans in and whispers. “That was really good cake—like, I want him to make our wedding cake.”

Cohen laughs and leans in as well. “Did you hear Helen complaining to the producers, saying she swears she saw him use a box cake?”

“She did not,” I say with a roll of my eyes.

“She did. I understand her confusion. Team Baxter hasn’t been able to pull it together the entire competition, and then all of a sudden, the guy pulls a cake that belongs in a bakery out of his ass. Suspicious.”

“Maybe he just practiced,” I say, realizing I probably shouldn’t be defending Alec in front of Cohen and Declan—at least not until I see how tonight goes.

I could find out that Alec in fact is a really good first-time kisser but follows up with a sophomore slump of epic proportions, something like dead-fish lips.

But I think deep down I know that a case of dead-fish lips won’t be the problem: me falling head over heels for him will be.

“Or he paid off the judges,” I add, just because that sounds more like me.

“I don’t know.” Declan waves a piece of pineapple on a fork at me. “Helen could be on to something.”

“Helen is on something all right. Just not quite sure it’s legal.”

Cohen nudges me with his foot. “Seriously, sis, why are you so happy?”

Crap, why doesn’t he ever let anything go?

“Just excited to be here.” I grip their forearms. “I love you guys.”

They both stare at me for a few seconds and then at each other. As he spears another piece of pineapple, Declan says, “Your sister totally had sex last night.”

“Declan, don’t say that shit,” Cohen says while I madly blush. “As far as I know, she doesn’t know what a penis is.”

“That’s a lie and you know it.” I point at Cohen. “I know what a penis is because you forced me to look at sex positions for gay men.”

“What?” Declan says. Cohen groans and buries his head in his hands.

“Wow, Luna, it’s been, what, ten years? You’re going to bring that up now?”

“I panicked.” I laugh and turn to Declan. “In our defense, we were drunk and Cohen wanted to become an expert, so we spent some time on the internet researching illustrations. There was no brother-sister porn watching going on, just to clear the air on that. Strictly illustrations.”

“Yeah, that makes it better,” Declan says on a laugh.

Picking up a grape, I ask Cohen, “Should I expect a lecture later tonight?”

“I think you know what time.”

I nod. “I’ll be sure to let the call go to voice mail.”

Alec: Running late. Thad decided to tell his entire life story and relationship with cake. Meet me in half an hour?

Luna: Running late too. But not because of Thad, because I decided to curl my hair to have dinner in a diner and it’s taking longer than expected.

Alec: You getting all gussied up for me?

Luna: No. I have a date with someone else after you. You’re just the appetizer. Main course is with Frederick later.

Alec: Going to make something clear: no man named Frederick will ever be the main course. He’s a palate cleanser at best.

Luna: Are you saying you’re main course material?

Alec: And dessert. See you in a bit.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

ALEC

I lean against the wall of Dining Hall, my hands stuffed in my pockets, my eyes scanning the calm streets, waiting for Luna to show up. I love this neighborhood. It’s quiet—pretty much the opposite of Midtown—like its own little borough, tucked away, where you can find solace in this mad, crazy city.

And to think, in this few-block radius, I’ve been so close to Luna and never noticed her—it feels odd.

I glance at the time on my phone. She’s one minute late. Technically, we’re both half an hour late. But now she’s thirty-one minutes late, and that makes me fucking nervous she might stand me up.

I’ve been stood up before, back in college, when I thought it was cool to grow a mustache. I was a punk back then and didn’t really care. I took off, called my buddies, and went drinking.

Now, if she stands me up, my night will turn into me sitting on my couch, staring at a wall, with a patty melt from the diner in a takeout container on my lap—I’d be too goddamn mad to eat in the diner.

Mad and upset.

Probably more upset than mad, because hell, Luna has done something I was not expecting. She’s made me want to give a relationship a try.

Yeah, a relationship.

I’ve had a few, but nothing that made me really want to buckle down and make things work, to put everything on the line and give love a shot.

Luna is different. She’s seen me at a low, and instead of walking away, she pushed past our original animosity and helped me.

She looked past our differences and got to know me on a different level.

She flipped open that cover, and now that my book is open, I can’t seem to close it, no matter how much my scared heart wants to.

“Hey.”

I look up from my shoes to find Luna, smiling and dressed in a cute red romper. Her hair cascades in waves over her shoulders, and her lips match her outfit perfectly.

Hell, she looks good.

“Hey, you.” I internally wince at the relief in my voice.

She must notice, because she says, “Sorry I’m a little late. On the way out, the strap on the sandals I was wearing snapped and I had to change, which then made me rethink my outfit decision, but I thought to hell with it if my shoes don’t coordinate perfectly.”

I take her hand in mine and entwine our fingers. “You look stunning, Luna.”

She smiles before pressing her hand to my forest-green button-up shirt. “You look pretty good yourself.”

“Just pretty good?” I tease. “I pressed this shirt myself.”

“Well, look at you, all domesticated. Can bake cakes and press shirts.”

“Not just any cake. Wedding cakes. There were tiers involved. Tiers and layers.”

“How long are you going to talk about the cake?”

I wish she would close the space a little bit more so I could kiss her, but I have no idea what’s appropriate and what’s not at this point. I’ll settle with hand-holding.

“I’m going to hold on to that win for a very long time.”

She sighs and bumps her shoulder against mine. “Are we going to get something to eat? I’m starving.”

I open the door to the diner and let her in. I follow close behind, her hand still in mine. Fay is carrying a tray of sodas when she spots us. “Take a seat anywhere.” Her eyes fall on our hands, and she stops, tilting her head to the side. “Why did I have a feeling I would see you two in here together at some point?”

Before we can answer, she walks away, toward the loud table in the corner. I nod toward the opposite corner, where it’s quiet and secluded. Luna agrees, and we walk over to a small two-person booth next to the window and slide in on either side.

“I don’t normally sit on this side,” Luna says, looking around.

“Neither do I. I feel kind of weird about it, actually.” I look around as well. “I don’t feel like I’m in the same place at all.”

“Are you going to need to sit on the other side?” she asks.

I shake my head. “Nah, I’m good. This can be our side.”

“Confident enough to claim a side of the diner we frequent as our side?”

I nod. “Yup.” I pick up the menu and peruse it, even though I know exactly what I’m going to get.

“What makes you so confident?” She folds her arms over her chest.

“You’re the one who felt up my nipple last night.”