The Boyfriend List: A Closed Door, Friends to Lovers Romance (Love in L.A. Book 2) by Nicole Lam

Author:Nicole Lam [Lam, Nicole]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2025-08-08T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty: London

Ijust gave Gloria Romero her first kiss?

"How is that possible?" I splutter.

My mind spins. I don't think it's stopped spinning since we got in the car and drove away from the Greek restaurant. Between my jealousy and the emotional corkscrew of our conversation just now, I may never find solid footing again.

Hurt flashes across Gloria’s face. "First, you read my list, and now you're mocking me for never being kissed?"

"No!" The word explodes from my lips with more force than I intend it to. "Not at all. But I don't see how any man could look at you and not want to kiss you."

She shrugs. "Most of them never got past a first date. The ones who did were… Well, I didn't want to kiss any of them."

"And did you want to kiss me?" My heart pounds. Her first kiss. My own, all fumbling hands and unsure lips, was nothing like this one.

Gloria shoves at my chest. "Did it feel like I was fighting you off?"

"Well, if you're going to grab my pecs like that, you can fight me off any time."

She gives the most frustrated sigh I've ever heard. "Yes, London. I wanted to kiss you, and I want to do it again. But preferably on my couch.”

I scan the dingy parking garage. "I accept your conditions."

As we walk hand-in-hand toward the elevator to her apartment, she asks me, "Why did you call Giorgio tonight? Why now, after everything?"

Such a simple question, yet I don't think I could pinpoint a simple or easy answer for her. It wasn’t mere jealousy. She's not a possession to be fought over. She’s… Gloria. The best parts of my life and the bright star that makes the darkest parts a little lighter.

"I couldn't stand the thought of losing you forever. Not just as a friend, but as… as everything. Everything we could be together. I know it’s selfish of me, because I don't want kids, and you do."

She blinks, not saying anything, just taking my words in.

"I've always felt guilty about dating. Like I'd be selfish for getting married and having kids. Because that would mean I was leaving my family. And someone has to be there to hold everything together."

The elevator stops at her floor, and we get out. After we walk the mercifully short distance to her apartment, we sit down on her couch in the living room.

"London," Gloria murmurs, gazing up at me with her wide, dark eyes. "You can't do that to yourself. You can't just sacrifice your happiness—your future—your life to be your family’s unpaid therapist. They can take care of themselves."

I take a deep breath, drawing in her words more than the oxygen. They settle into my mind, but my heart is still weighed down. “But I have to. No one else will.”

“Who takes care of you?”

I pull her into my arms. “You, Gloria. It’s always and only been you.”

“Kiss me,” she whispers, looking up at me. “Please.”

Knowing she's never been kissed before fills me

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