Page 28 of Unraveled

“A dichotomy, I’m aware.”

“In a way,” Gian agreed.

Cara reached for the bottle behind the bar, and a clean glass to go along with it. She poured Gian’s drink with a smile that he returned.

Soon, her smile faded.

“I’m sorry about your grandfather,” she said quietly.

Gian let out a sigh. “Thanks.”

“The funeral was a couple of days ago, right?”

“It was. I didn’t see you there.”

Cara shrugged as she slid the drink across the counter. “Don’t take offense, but I try to stay away from family business, you know.”

“So you told me in bed.”

At the mention of their hookup, Cara’s cheeks flooded with a pretty red. It wasn’t quite the same shade as her hair, but it was damn close.

Gian chuckled. “How—after that—can you be shy with me?”

She shot him a look, her lips curving with amusement. “A gift, I guess.”

“Well, speaking of that night,” Gian started to say, reaching for an item he had in his pocket. “I have something for you.”

Cara’s brow lifted. “Oh?”

“You forgot it. Or I broke it and you probably didn’t think much about it after that.”

Gian pulled the thin, double-wrapped choker with a small bow from his pocket. He had taken it to a jeweller to have the velvet fixed, and the small piece of the chain that had broken repaired as well.

“Here,” he said, holding it out and letting it dangle on two fingers. “Ready for you to wear again.”

Carefully, Cara plucked the item from his grasp. “You didn’t have to—”

“Of course, I did. I broke it; it’s only right that I fix it.”

“It’s just a cheap necklace, Gian.”

“Maybe. I liked the way it looked around your throat. I might like to see it on you another time.”

All over again, Cara’s cheeks reddened.

“Huh,” she said quietly.

“You do still owe me coffee, mon ange.”

“I figured you would have forgotten about that by now,” she admitted, glancing up at him.

“Why?”

Why on earth would he have forgotten about her? She was not easily forgotten, even with the sudden craziness his life had become. Gian fully intended on learning more about Cara Rossi, even if he knew that he had zero business doing so.

“For starters,” Cara said, “because we hooked up and that’s all it needs to be.”

“Tell me that’s all it is, though, and then and only then, will that be all it needs to be, Cara.”