Deadly Promises (Tracers #2.5)(9)

She blinked, coming out of her daze to look at the light. “No?”

He angled his head around to look at the fixture. “Acting like a transformer.”

“Figures,” she grumbled. “Because replacing a bulb would be something I could do instead of bothering Miss Betty.”

Jeremy smiled in agreement. He never bothered their landlord with repairs either, just took care of everything himself.

“I’ve got some spare parts from fixing one of mine,” he offered, then added casually, “Why don’t you get a shower and I’ll swap out the transformer?”

The indecision in her face was beating the hell out of his ego. One minute she had eyes that called to him like a sultry siren and the next she was clearly backing up.

Then, bright as a ray of sunshine, CeCe broke out a smile that drew him in faster than a suicidal moth to a flame.

“That’s a great idea. I’ll get cleaned up quick.” She’d clearly made some decision. The siren was back when she gave him a smoldering look that ran all the blood in his body south.

His cock twitched in response.

But did her response mean she’d go to dinner with him tonight? He had two days. Tick, tick, tick…

When she spun away and opened the door to her mudroom, he stopped her with, “CeCe?”

She paused and looked over her shoulder. “What?”

He didn’t know why he had to constantly push limits, but that had been his nature since speaking his first words and Jeremy wanted a straight answer now. He couldn’t take guessing any more. He had to know he wasn’t misreading those heated looks.

If all she wanted was friendship, he’d fix her light and leave her alone. Forever.

“After I get this done,” he said, pointing up at the lights, “you can see your girlfriend… or have dinner with me.”

She chewed on the corner of her lip, another moment of indecision that rankled him so he decided to push all the limits at once. “Dinner… at my house.”

Her lips parted in surprise then a clash of thoughts conflicted in her face before she finally settled on a decision that cranked up the wattage on her smile. “I’ll bring the wine.” She disappeared inside.

Jeremy stood there a moment, not believing she was really going to have dinner at his house.

Tonight. Alone with CeCe.

When the fog cleared from his mind, Jeremy jogged back over to his vehicle and pressed his garage opener.

He heard opportunity calling with her enthusiastic rush to shower. Jeremy was not one to pass up any opportunity that looked like CeCe Caprice.

DINNER… AT MY house.

Jeremy’s words played over and over in CeCe’s mind like a favorite tune.

She could have said no, should have said no. But all she could think was Why not if I’m careful?

When she finished toweling her hair she lifted a hair dryer then changed her mind. Drying the wavy mass never helped so why waste that time?

Cece brushed her teeth, smiling over her luck. He’d solved her dilemma. She hadn’t wanted to risk inviting him to dinner in her house for fear of an unexpected guest—Vinny—showing up and couldn’t very well have suggested to Jeremy she’d love to have a date on the condition of it being after dark and inside his house with the doors locked.

Jeremy would have thought she was psycho or way too forward.

She’d heard enough around the gym to know Jeremy didn’t accept dates from female members who asked him and none of the girls she’d spoken with mentioned him having been in a serious relationship. Sounded as though he didn’t monopolize a woman’s time, which would normally be a positive trait for her situation.

What would it be like to have a man like Jeremy wanting to monopolize her time? Heaven.

Stop dreaming about the impossible and just live in the moment for once.

She leaned close to the mirror, inspecting her face where scrubbing the makeup off had left her skin red-blotched in places. She could take the time to put on new makeup once she told him she’d come over after dark. But if she didn’t get back to the garage soon, Jeremy might finish fixing the light and go home. She didn’t have his phone number and didn’t want Vinny to show up with her standing at Jeremy’s door.

Vinny would come over to meet Jeremy. Bad move.

She wasn’t expecting her brother, but he hadn’t been around the festival or at least she hadn’t seen him. Her sixth sense warned her he was due to drop by unexpectedly.

Vinny was one of those insane people who got up before daylight so he normally stopped by early. If she orchestrated it right, she’d run out and get Jeremy to agree on the time then scoot him home before anyone saw him inside her garage.

She brushed her damp hair back and grinned at the mirror.

Tonight with Jeremy. She couldn’t believe it. Chills skittered over her skin at the possibility of kissing him… just as an appetizer.

She pulled on a knit-and-lace top that stopped short of where her white running pants hit her hips. The lace was too much, too girly. Yanking that off, she dug out a powder blue sleeveless top, eyed it once in the mirror, and hurried to the garage.

When she opened the mudroom door to the garage, the last splash of sunlight had disappeared. She could just see Jeremy’s hands moving. He stood two rungs up on a stepladder and was snapping the plastic cover back over her light fixture when her feet touched the cool concrete floor.