Page 64 of The Fall

He laughs and reaches across the console to squeeze my thigh. “You like me and you know it.”

I shrug. “Maybe I do. Maybe I don’t.”

“You don’t moan someone’s name the way you moan mine if you don’t like them.”

I feel my cheeks heat. I have noticed that I’m uncharacteristically vocal when we’re in bed together. I just can’t help it. He makes everything feel so good.

“I just don’t want to damage your ego.”

“Oh yeah? We’ll circle back to that later. You’d be surprised how far I’m willing to go to prove I’m right.”

Actually, I don’t think I’d be surprised at all. Logan is determined. It’s obvious how much he’s already achieved in life at such a young age. Not that I’m willing to admit that or anything.

“Yeah, we’ll see. Anyways, what are we cooking tonight?”

“The website said the theme is ‘A Night in Rome.’ I think we’re making homemade pasta and gelato.”

Butterflies fill my stomach. I’m excited. I’m excited about an activity that isn’t skating. I can’t even remember the last time that happened. But I won’t admit that to the man sitting next to me. Instead, I do my best to keep my cool.

“That sounds fun. I’ve never been to Rome. Have you?” I ask, keeping my gaze out the window as if I’m super nonchalant about all this, even though this is by far the best date I’ve ever been on and it’s not even over yet.

“I have. It’s beautiful. Maybe we can go together someday.”

I bite my bottom lip to keep from smiling. “Maybe we can.”

The cooking class is fairly intimate with only four other couples. We start by prepping our gelato and making a focaccia flatbread that we snack on while we make the homemade pasta.

Logan is meticulous about following instructions. He listens carefully and imitates the chef step by step. It’s adorable. I want to call him out on it, but he’s so focused that I let him keep going without any of my sarcastic quips.

At the end, we get to eat our pasta, which is covered in a homemade tomato sauce, at a table with the rest of the group. We finish with our gelato, and by the time the table is cleared, I feel completely stuffed and elated.

Logan leans back in his chair across the table and looks at me. I get nervous when he looks at me like this, although I’m not sure why. Maybe it feels like he’s looking directly into my soul. Maybe it’s because it makes my heart rate speed up. Or maybe it’s because I can see that he actually likes me. Like, really, really likes me, and I think I really, really like him too. It’s terrifying.

“You are so beautiful,” Logan says.

The girl next to me says, “Awww,” which makes me want to crawl under the table. Somehow, I manage to stay in my seat and say thank you instead.

Afterward, Logan holds my hand the entire way back to my apartment. He walks me up to my door and then stops outside as if he’s not going to come in. But I think we both know he will.

“Are you ready to admit that you had fun tonight?” he asks.

“No, I don’t think that I am.”

He smiles as he cups my cheek with one hand. “Of course not.”

“But if you come inside, I can show you how much fun I had.”

He raises his eyebrows. “I’m trying to be a gentleman, Savannah.”

I huff a laugh. “You literally started the day by eating me out.”

“I’m trying to be a gentleman now. Earlier didn’t count. This is technically our first date.”

“And it’ll be our last if you don’t get in my bedroom right now.”

“Well, when you put it that way…”

I unlock the door, give a quick wave to Kelsey, and then proceed to lock my bedroom door and show Logan exactly how much fun I had on our date.