Scored(30)

“Oh, no,” Layton says in a rush. “It’s not like that… I’m happy Joe took the job at Daddy’s firm. You two keep talking. I’m beat anyway.”

“Go relax,” I say softly. “Dallas and I are waiting on his Uber.”

One of Layton’s perfectly arched brows rise. “I thought you drove.”

Dallas tilts his head toward me. “She got me drunk and tried to take advantage of me. I told her I wasn’t that kind of guy.”

“What? That’s not what happened.”

“Don’t worry, bright eyes. I’ll let you make it up to me on our third date.”

Oh, he is soooo good.

A genuine smile chases away the worry from Layton’s face, so I don’t bother to give him a hard time for his smooth ways.

“That’s so nice of you,” I reply instead.

Dallas smirks. “It is, isn’t it?”

Layton’s phone rings, and she whimpers. “I have to take this. More wedding planning and lecturing.”

“Night, honey.” I give her a quick hug before she disappears into the bedroom.

Dallas checks his phone. “The Uber is only about eight minutes away.”

“I’ll wait with you on the porch. I’m sure you can protect me from bad guys until I go inside.”

We go outside and I wrap my arms around my middle, trying not to let the cool night air make my teeth chatter. The concrete is cold and rough under my feet, but I do a little side-to-side dance to keep my blood pumping.

“Are you really that cold?”

“I’m a hothouse flower. I don’t do well with cool temps.” However, I love my A/C when it’s pushing eighty and above. A contradiction to be sure, but that’s how I’ve always been.

“It’s like summer out here.”

“Only a guy from Michigan would think that.”

He stares at me, his muscles bunching like he’s going to make a fire or give me the shirt off his back. I’d like either to be honest. “Your friend going to be okay?”

“I don’t know,” I say. “She and Joe have been officially together since middle school. Their parents are friends—same country club, same junior league… golfing buddies. You name it… their parents do it together. Don’t get me wrong, Layton’s parents are super nice, but she’s like me, the middle child, but unlike me, she’s the only girl. So they over-worry, over-schedule, and over-prearrange her life. It was like an act of congress to get her up here. The only reason they agreed was because I moved here to live with my sister when she decided to start her own public relations firm.”

He scratches his jaw. “You do have a trustworthy face.”

“I’ve been friends with Layton since kindergarten.”

“Loyal, too.” There’s admiration in his voice. Like the middle child I am, I crave more compliments and attention.

“I’ve also been told I’m a great listener.”

“Really? I find that hard to believe.”

My mouth drops open, and I uncross my arms to smack his shoulder. “I can tell you everything you’ve told me.”

“I’d love to hear it.”

The Uber driver pulls up, and I grin. “Your ride is here. Maybe next time.”

“Convenient timing. Are you good at that, too?”

I laugh.

Dallas focuses on me, his sexy eyes intent. “When’s your next day off?”

“Next Tuesday. Nolan and I switched days so he could take his wife to the Asheboro Zoo to see the new baby panda twins.”

“Consider yourself booked for the rest of the day. I’ll pick you up at six so we can make it to the airport in time. Bring your bikini, bright eyes, because we’re heading to the Keys with some friends for the day.”

My heart speeds up. He wants to spend more time with me. Oh… with friends. “You want to make sure Aiden knows we’re legit. Gotcha.” I give him an over-exaggerated wink, clicking my tongue against my cheek a couple of times and pretending to shoot at the air with finger pistols. “I won’t let you down, partner.”

He shakes his head, biting back a laugh—I just know it—while remaining completely serious. “Not asking you for that reason. All right, so I’m not asking you for only that reason.”

“You’re not?” I reply faintly. “What other reason would you have?”

“Beyond that hot as fuck make-out session in your kitchen?”

“I admit that it was exactly that, but with my rule and all…” Oh, God. I sound like a prude and an idiot.

“Guess you’ll have to wait and see, then.” He kisses me quickly. “Night, bright eyes.”

He strides to the waiting car, his long legs eating the distance.

Even after he gets inside, the car doesn’t move an inch. It dawns on me that Dallas is waiting for me to go inside as well. Waving, I open the door and step inside, warm air greeting me, then shut the door behind me and lock it for good measure.

Finally, I hear the car take off.

“How was your not-a-date number two?” Layton asks.

I open my mouth to answer, but realize I have no idea what just happened. Moving to the living room, I plop down on the sofa, pull a soft blanket into my lap, and stare at the television without really seeing anything.