Falling Into Love with You (The Hate-Love Duet Book 2) by Rowe, Lauren (grave mercy .TXT) 📕

degrees, and eat them with a nice aioli sauce. “Reed must be a lot nicer behind closed doors than he seems, huh? I mean, if you like him so much.”

“Reed is a prince among men and also a shrewd businessman. A man can be both.”

“I wouldn’t know. I’m neither.”

She chuckles. “I don’t know about that. You seem like a prince to me. At least, a prince in training. I’m sure Laila would agree.”

I smile shyly. “Laila calls me The Beast, actually. You know, like in Beauty and the Beast?”

Amalia’s dark eyes sparkle. “I’d bet anything that’s Laila’s highest compliment.”

“Yeah, when she says it, she gets a naughty little gleam in her eye that gives me a little zap where it counts, if you know what I mean.”

“Adrian. That’s not what I meant.”

I laugh. That’s exactly how Mimi used to say my name when I’d said something kind of naughty. I ask, “Will you say that again for me, Abu?”

“Say what?”

“My name. Like I’ve gravely disappointed you.”

Amalia pauses, looking lovely. But, finally she humors me and repeats my name. This time, looking positively charmed by me.

“Thank you. I like hearing you say my name like that. You sound just like Mimi.”

Amalia lays her hand on mine. “I’ll always be here for you, Adrian.”

“Thank you.” I look down at my mug of tea. “I realized something after Mimi died. Even if you’re lucky enough to leave this earth with white hair and wrinkled skin, there’s still far too little time. And I don’t want to waste mine. Not a second of it.” I run my fingertip over the rim of my mug again. “Last week, I was able to sell a house I’d bought for Mimi for a tidy sum. So, I’ve decided to use that money to buy a place of my own and ask Laila to move in with me, when the show is over.”

“How exciting. Congratulations.”

“Hopefully, I’ll get the courage to say the magic words to her before then. If not, that’d be pretty awkward, huh?”

Amalia chuckles.

“I don’t want to ask if I can move in with Laila at her condo. That’d feel like me mooching, you know? Like me asking Kendrick if I can sleep on his couch, rather than The Beast turning into The Prince and inviting Belle to live at his castle.”

Amalia puts her palm on her heaving chest. “Maybe you’re not a prince in training, after all.”

I shrug. “I’m a little nervous Laila will turn me down, only because she loves the little condo she bought herself. She’s super proud of it. So, I think I should buy a place that’ll knock Laila onto her ass, you know? Some place that’s a huge step up from her condo, where she’ll be excited to live with me.”

“I’m confident Laila will say yes to you, and it will have nothing to do with the house itself. She’ll say yes because she wants to be with you.”

“Well, that would be preferable,” I admit. “But I’m not taking any chances. You should have seen her excitement when she saw the fancy mansion we’re living in now. I don’t want a place as big as that. I don’t like big spaces. But I do want whatever house I get to have some kind of ‘wow’ factor. Maybe an ocean view. Laila said she loves the ocean. I’d want a home gym and hot tub, too. Oh, and a living room that’s big enough for a baby grand piano.”

“You play piano?”

“No, but Laila does.”

Amalia smiles. “That sounds lovely.”

“So I guess what I’m asking is will you help me find a house like that? My manager gave me the number for a real estate agent, but the whole thing feels overwhelming to me. I’ve never bought a house for myself, and certainly not one I’m planning to surprise my girlfriend with.”

“Oh, you’re not going to ask Laila to help you look for the perfect place?”

“No. Going house hunting with my girlfriend feels like way too big a thing. I just want to find the perfect house and surprise her with it. And when she’s feeling blown away by my new digs, I’ll surprise her by asking her to live there with me.”

“That sounds wonderful. But I’m not the right person to help you buy a house. Reed, however, is an expert when it comes to real estate. I’m sure he’d—”

Movement at the entrance to the kitchen attracts our attention, and speak of the devil, Reed enters the room, along with his fiancée, Georgina, both of them dressed to kill.

“Savage,” Reed says, sounding surprised, but not upset, to find me sitting at his kitchen table.

“Adrian needs a place to stay for a few nights,” Amalia explains. “His grandmother passed away recently and Laila is out of town. He’d rather not be alone.”

“Of course, you’re welcome here,” Reed says. He and Georgina offer their condolences about my grandmother and take seats at the kitchen table.

Amalia says, “Adrian, do you mind if I tell Reed about your house hunting?”

“Feel free.”

Amalia gives Reed the scoop, after which Reed enthusiastically offers his assistance, even without any prompting by Amalia.

“Wow, Reed, thanks,” I say. “I appreciate that.”

“Don’t look so surprised,” Reed says. “I told you in New York I’d owe you a personal favor if you appeared in Alessandra’s music video. Well, consider this that favor.”

“Don’t tell Laila about this, okay? I want to get a kickass place as a surprise and invite her to move in with me when the show is over.”

“Aw,” Georgina says. “That’s so sweet.”

I bite my lip. “Hey, Georgina, I feel like I should mention . . . I didn’t actually hit on you at that party. I mean, I did. But on a dare. It was Kendrick’s birthday, and Kendrick, Kai, and I have played ‘Birthday Truth or Dare’ for years now. We all knew Reed wanted you, even back then, so Kendrick thought it’d be funny to make Reed want to murder me.”

Reed chuckles.

“Sorry,” I say to Georgina. “That’s in