The two of us ducked into an all-night café, squeezing into a tiny booth and ordering hot espressos to escape the cold. Nicholas was clearly thrilled beyond all belief, but he didn’t gloat. In fact, he didn’t say a single word. He simply watched as I took my first warming sip and perched on the edge of the bench with patient, eager eyes.
“There would have to be some ground rules,” I began cautiously. “If this thing has even a shot in the dark at getting off the ground, we need to get a few things straight.”
He set down his cup deliberately and folded his hands upon the table.
“Fire away.”
I bit my lip, considering for a moment, before blurting out the first thing that came to mind. “You don’t cheat on me.”
His eyebrows lifted in surprise, and I blushed to high heaven. Whatever he had
