by Laura Brown
They dropped the table, Levi’s eyebrows furrowed low while he investigated the two-inch crack between the ends. He knelt, angling under the table, but she placed a hand on his shoulder. Her mother was in the kitchen, fortunately, so she pulled out her phone and squatted next to him.
Gaby: There’s a trick to separating the two sections. They need a slight push when being pulled to get it to release. It usually makes a sound, but I know that won’t help you.
Levi read her message, then looked under the table, investigating the ends. He pointed to something, and she crouched down lower and watched as he flipped a latch open.
Gaby’s jaw dropped low enough to catch dust. Levi shifted to the other side and opened another latch. Gaby stared, suddenly realizing how her father used to do this on his own.
She looked at Levi and pointed to herself but didn’t even know what she would say in English. Levi grinned, his eyes creasing at the corners, the two of them still under the table. He picked up her hand and brought it to her mouth, before moving it outward. Her heart beat fast but then realization dawned. He wasn’t flirting, he had her sign “thank you.”
“You bastard.” She laughed and lightly pushed his shoulder. Those blue eyes shone like a sunset over a lake, and she had the urge to lean in and mesh her lips to his. Bad idea, Gaby, bad. And yet, it somehow felt right.
They stood, and with the latches taken care of, the table moved easily to its full length. The insert was placed, the table pushed back together, and, what do you know, the latches secured it. No more random table earthquakes and falling silverware.
“Huh.” Gaby placed her hands on her hips, wondering how in eight years none of them had managed to figure this out. Levi placed two fingers under her chin, bringing her gaze to his.
He pointed to her, followed by, “O-K” and a weird bouncy finger thing at the end.
She nodded, trying to figure out what to say next, when her mother entered. “Oh, good, the table is set. I’ve got this place clean from all things yeast related, should we go out to dinner?”
Gaby turned to Levi. “Food. Out.” Or at least, she hoped she gestured out appropriately. Levi nodded, but she suspected he’d go along with the flow. Not like Tom, who needed to micromanage and analyze everything. And why was she suddenly thinking of that no-good ex of hers?
“Let’s go.”
Chapter Eight
Levi studied his menu at the small pizza place where Anne had brought them. Nothing fancy, just a simple dinner and relaxed atmosphere. Gaby and Anne had their heads together, pointing and talking. For all of Gaby’s nerves on coming home, the two women across from him didn’t act distant or estranged. They were any mother and daughter with a good relationship.
He’d turned back to his menu when Gaby scooted his way, angling close to gaze over his shoulder. He breathed her in, her berry aroma tickling his nose, making him want to bury his nose in her hair. She pointed to a plain cheese pizza, then garlic bread, then to herself and her mother.
So the cuddling wasn’t an act or a ploy; she simply needed to discuss dinner. And why did that deflate his ego? He paid no attention to his messed-up thoughts and gave her a thumbs-up. Pizza worked for him anyway.
She fumbled for her phone.
Gaby: You’re welcome to get your own, but if you want to share, we should have plenty.
Levi: You don’t want leftovers, right? I’ll share.
Gaby nudged his shoulder, her warmth seeping through their shirts, more tempting than the thought of yeast the night before Passover. Then her presence was gone as she leaned back, and he called himself a fool for wanting more of her. Before he could get his phone back to the home screen, the waitress showed up. Gaby placed their order, and Levi pointed to his beverage of choice, a soda. The menus were collected, and then the three of them stared at each other in virtual and real silence.
Awkward.
He felt like a third wheel. The ASL teacher in him sought to turn this into an impromptu class, but he had no clue if Anne had an interest in learning. He wanted to tell them to just chat, since he knew the situation to be a difficult one, and he appreciated being included, but clearly that wasn’t going to work here.
The app. His one small experience with the app claimed it would be less than perfect, but at least it was something. He woke up his phone and loaded the program, showing it to Gaby. Her lips twitched, mirth sparkling in her eyes, those amber orbs capturing his as the joke passed between them as if they were a real couple and had secrets far beyond a speech-to-text mix-up.
Time to see if it happened again.
Levi placed his phone in the center, facing him so he could read, and caught the end of Gaby explaining to Anne.
It will type up…say to Leave I can read.
Leave I, that was an interesting assumption of his name. Is that really what his name sounded like? Did his parents name him as if someone was always leaving the room?
Anne’s mouth moved, and Levi glanced at the screen.
Oh, that’s interesting. Does it really help?
Levi shrugged, realizing a problem with the app. He didn’t speak, how was it going to help him? He noticed a keyboard icon at the bottom of the screen and clicked it to type.
Guess we’ll find out.
Anne smiled and turned to Gaby.
He really is cool. They have that type of technology.
Gaby checked the screen and pointed to the he. She moved to finger-spell, but he bounced his eyebrows a few times. Let her tell him that he wasn’t cool.
She shook her head, but a smile graced her lips. Would now be a good time to squeeze her arm?
Anne began talking again, and Levi focused on the app.
Your uncle hairy is enhanced and bringing the nude toy. Two the sea, can you believe it?
A bubble of laughter rumbled deep inside Levi. He didn’t know whether to be horrified or impressed or really skeptical of the app’s recognition skills.
Gaby had started to respond, but Levi scrolled up then tapped her on the shoulder, careful not to have his actions mistaken as a squeeze. She glanced at the screen, her eyes going wide and her shoulders rocking forward in laughter. She showed her mother, whose face blanched in horror. She shook her head and waved her hands.
No, no stroking!
Gaby doubled over in laughter, and Levi felt an odd sense of pride, as if he’d created that laughter. She picked up her phone, her mother still looking horrified, and set up a text.
Gaby: My Uncle Harry is dating a much younger woman. We call her the new toy. She broke up his marriage, so we weren’t expecting her to be brought for Passover.
Levi: So no nude hijinks I should be aware of?
Gaby’s gaze roamed over his face, the laughter morphing into something far more potent.
Gaby: Sadly, not at the Seder table.
Her gaze heated on his for a moment, then she turned to her mother and he worked at steadying his breath.
Anne pushed her phone into the center of the table.
Anne: Why don’t we type before that app makes you think I’m running a brothel.
He had half a mind to point out she’d forced him into the same room with her daughter but kept those thoughts to himself. After all, he was supposed to be dating Gaby, so sharing a bed shouldn’t be a big deal.
He started to fear it would be, though, especially if this simmering attraction continued.
…
“Uno!” Gaby shouted, holding up a single finger—the sign for one, as Levi had confirmed—and fanning the backside of the lone card remaining in her hand. The dog barked, her mother groaned, and Levi signed something, probably complaining about Gaby’s competitive gaming skills.
After dinner they’d returned to the house. Since regular chatting was a bit complicated, they broke into the old game closet for something accessible to all.
<
br /> Her mom put down a yellow three, and Gaby resisted the urge to do a little dance in her seat. Her remaining yellow card was so going to win the game.
Bengi placed his head on her lap, all but confirming her as the future champion.
Levi studied the five cards left in his hand, eyes flickering from his options to Gaby’s remaining competition, as if he had x-ray vision. A slow smile crossed his lips, and she had to squeeze her thighs together when the barest hint of laugh lines appeared.
He placed his card on the pile, but her eyes were still on his face. It took her mother’s chuckle/cough to pull Gaby from the Levi-induced trance.
The card he’d placed killed the simmering lust. Yellow, draw two.
Gaby scowled and pointed a finger at Levi. His eyes creased further, but coming off as cocky now, when it had been sexy moments earlier. He moved his hand, running a closed fist in a circle on his chest, accentuating the hard pecks she knew he’d have. She grew lost in the thought of how he’d feel if it was his hand over her chest, just as the word he signed registered: “Sorry.”
Her lust-filled bubble burst, and she replaced it with her need to win. “No,” she signed, hoping to make her movements sharp and crisp. At least it worked on the dog, who switched back to Anne. Gaby grabbed two new cards, her impending win slipping away.
Her mother laughed as she petted the dog’s head. “You never did learn how to lose graciously. Shame Levi hasn’t taught you a thing or two yet.”
“First game together, give it time.” She pressed her lips tight at her little slip and quickly put down a wild. “Green.” She finger-spelled to Levi, and at his nod realized she’d gotten the letters right, or close enough to right to work.
She waited for her mother to take her turn, looking at her chin instead of the beady eyes trained on her face.
“You haven’t played a game together before?”
Gaby forced her gaze to her mother’s eyes. “Been busy with other things.” And now she wanted to slap herself. Other things sounded far too much like sex. “You know, movies, picking up ASL, dinners, that kind of thing.”
“Uh huh.” Anne’s tone did not vote for any confidence in Gaby’s words. Granted, only the single ASL lesson and dinner held any sort of truth.
Gaby glanced at Levi, unsure how to quickly catch him up. If she grabbed her phone it would be a bit too obvious, and anything she finger-spelled would take forever. Unless… She pointed to herself, then spelled, “W-I-N.”
Levi leaned forward, right into her personal space. He signed something, but she could barely focus on his hands when those blue eyes held her captive. His signs involved positions around his face, and his hands nearly grazed her cheek, until he flicked a finger against her nose. Not in a bratty brother way, but—oh, she was in trouble—in a seductive way.
He must have picked up on the tension between her and her mother, but right about then she barely registered her mother’s presence, staying focused on his eyes, on his closeness. So close, an inch shifted here and there, and their lips could touch.
Her body tightened at that thought, and she wanted his hand on her arm, giving her two quick squeezes so she could sink her lips into his. But he leaned back, and she sucked in some air, wondering if anyone else thought the room had grown warm.
They went around a few more times, Gaby’s hand of cards growing instead of shrinking, before the table banged and Levi held up a single finger.
Gaby scowled.
The dog set his head on Levi’s lap.
Levi leaned forward and touched one of her cheeks, forcing her lip from a downward turn to an upward one.
“Oh, this one is onto you, baby girl,” her mother said.
Gaby studied her hand, ignoring the teasing grins from the other two players, and placed the best chance she had at turning the tables. Reverse.
So, it was a gamble. She figured she had a fifty percent chance of this working out, perhaps a little more, based on her own odds with the game.
Levi’s eyebrows shot up. “Sure,” and that bouncing thing, as if he, too, questioned her sanity.
She nodded.
He shrugged and, dammit, put down his final card.
Her mother laughed, Bengi barked, and Gaby glanced up at the ceiling. Then two strong hands settled on her shoulders, and Levi gave her a side hug and all her game-related irritation evaporated. Poof, up in the air, thanks to one gracious winner.
Anne stood. “One of these days you’ll learn how to play courteously. Tell your boyfriend he’s got his work cut out for him.” She collected the cards and settled them back into the box.
“Now, why would I do that?” Gaby called as her mother headed down the hall to put the game away, the dog trailing behind.
When she faced Levi, he had his phone in his hands.
Levi: Not much of a game person?
Gaby took it from him, brushing his skin in the process and ignoring how ungrumpy she suddenly felt.
Gaby: Love games. Losing, not so much.
Levi read, and his face warmed.
Levi: Next time ask me to throw the game.
Gaby: What did you think I finger-spelled “win” for?
A soft sound of laughter came from him.
Levi: You have to ask nicer than that.
She could ask nicely. She could ask really nicely with lots of purring and…that would be completely lost on his deaf ears. So much for that idea. Her mother returned then headed into the kitchen, and Gaby knew to do some nighttime prep. After her game-scowling, she needed to step into the dutiful daughter role. She pointed to herself, then the kitchen, leaving Levi to get ready for bed on his own.
…
After brushing his teeth, Levi took off his shirt, rummaging around in his bag for his night clothes. The room distracted him, a bit like being wrapped up in a Gaby sandwich. Her vibrancy thrived here, more so than in her apartment, almost as if she had been cut off from all the colors that made her shine. He knew he needed to bring that out, allow her to be comfortable being herself. Because the person he was beginning to know was so special, and he suspected she didn’t see it.
She was also a sore loser, but somehow that just made him smile.
He’d changed into his lounge pants when he felt a breeze and found Gaby standing at the door. Her eyes widened and her mouth moved, awkwardness etched over every part of her. Was he supposed to be somewhere else? He thought the guest room option had been removed. Then she pointed to his chest, then the door, asking if she should leave.
He glanced down and realized he still didn’t have a shirt on, and his pants were perhaps slung a little lower than decent. He grabbed his T-shirt and pulled it on, waving for Gaby to come in. She pulled out her phone.
Gaby: Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt. Do you need more time?
Levi: No, I’m fine. Do you need me to leave you alone?
Gaby shook her head and collected her bag before slipping into the hall. Alone again, he grabbed one pillow from the bed and the blanket folded at the end and tried to settle onto the floor. It had been a while since he’d gone camping, and the last time he splurged for an air mattress, so the carpeted floor felt extra stiff. Levi shifted onto his side, then his back, then side again and realized sleep would be a long time away.
Two nights. He could manage.
He set up his phone to charge and had settled back down with it when Gaby entered. She wore a long gray sleep shirt that read “I like naps,” and he couldn’t help the smile. Then she shifted, and he had to look away before he lingered too long on her breasts and how they swung unconfined under her sleep shirt. The woman was sexy as hell, and he bet she didn’t realize it.
He kept his eyes on his phone while she settled into the bed, working at calming his rising libido, when a new text came in.
Gaby: Thank you for coming here with me. I know this
isn’t ideal, and me thinking a fake date would be a good thing is very different from having someone here, stuck with me and my family for two days.
He smiled and quickly fired back a response.
Levi: No problem. I agreed to this, and I’m happy to help.
Gaby: But pulling you away from your job, this isn’t a simple thing.
Levi: I’m a teacher, and I don’t have any classes on Fridays. The rest was an easy fix. College students love a bonus day off.
Gaby leaned over the side, phone still in her hands, dark hair hanging behind her.
Gaby: What do you teach?
Levi: Deaf Studies.
Gaby: And here you are, stuck with my ignorance and lack of signing.
He put down his phone and sat up. “You’re learning.” Then he slowed down and finger-spelled.
Her cheeks filled with her smile, and he couldn’t stop himself from typing the next words.
Levi: I’m not sure what your ex did, but you’re a beautiful woman, inside and out. Don’t ever let anyone make you feel like less than that.
When he looked up her smile had vanished, and he tried to read between the lines to see the reason why. But her eyes found his and they were filled with warmth and something he couldn’t identify. “Thank you.” Then she gestured to the light. After his nod, she stretched toward her nightstand, giving him a spectacular view of how her shirt clung to her body. The light flicked off, and he could do nothing but imagine her settling under the covers.
He had the urge to join her, and that had nothing to do with this growing attraction they had, or the image of her nightshirt rising as she lay down. He wanted to hold her, chase away whatever sad memories lurked behind her eyes. Not your job. All he had to do was convince her family he was the doting boyfriend.
Scary how easy that would be to pull off.
Chapter Nine
Levi couldn’t get comfortable. The hard floor wouldn’t give, and no combination of back, side, or stomach positions eased the discomfort. Or maybe it was the lure of the woman sleeping mere feet away. He tried to fool himself he wanted the comfort of the bed, but his hard-on knew better, and even stomach sleeping against the stiff floor didn’t seem to make a lick of difference.
