Page 90 of Fifth Avenue Flirt

I laugh. “But that’s Worth. That’s not me.”

“You’re a harder nut to crack?”

“The hardest,” I say, resolute. Although, beneath my surface, I’m not sure exactly how confident I am that I haven’t fallen for Ben.

No, of course I haven’t fallen in love with Ben. That would be crazy. And even if it were true, I could never admit it because it would just be too embarrassing, because he was so sure it would happen. It’s just that I do like him. And I think he likes me, and I’ll kind of miss him when I move out.

“I figured.” He makes a face like his plan has been thwarted.

“What do you mean, you figured I was a tough nut to crack? You said I’d fall in love with you in a week.”

“Week’s not over yet.”

I laugh and glance out of the window. “Look,” I say, as the illuminating lights on the Empire State Building change from white to pink. “The color is changing.”

Ben is grinning, but he’s not looking out of the window, he’s looking at me. I glance back to the window and watch as a heart appears on the Empire State Building, just like it did in the movie, and then, more than that, some writing starts to appear.

My name is spelled out above the heart and then, Ben’s below.

I turn to Ben, not quite getting it.

He’s grinning at me. “You see,” he says. “Avril loves Ben. It’s written in the city sky. It must be true?”

I turn back to it. “How on earth did you arrange for that to happen?”

“Well, I had to top the movie, right?”

I laugh. “No, you didn’t, but…” I look out at the message written there. “It’s funny. And really cute.”

“It actually turned out better than I expected,” he admits.

“How did you make that happen?”

“You might not know this about me, but I have connections,” he says.

I can’t contain my grin. “I did know that about you.”

He laughs. “Comes in useful sometimes.”

“If I was ever going to fall in love with you, it would be right here, right now.”

He smiles at me, holding my gaze. He’s so freaking handsome, it’s almost obscene. And somehow he seems to have gotten better looking over this week we’ve spent together.

“If I was ever going to fall in love with you, it would be tonight, too.”

“You really like these shoes, huh?” I ask.

He grins. “Maybe not tonight, actually. Maybe it was…” He trails off.

“What?”

He shrugs. “I think you’re funny and kind and hardworking, and I’ve really enjoyed having you as a flatmate.”

An elastic band twangs in my stomach. I’m going to miss him. Which is ridiculous because this was some stupid bet. But it’s true.

“Are you sure you haven’t gotten irritated by my snoring?” I ask him. “Or the way I leave my shoes in the hallway?”

“I haven’t noticed either,” he says. “But if I did, I wouldn’t care.”