Coming Home(41)

“Oh my God with your judger bullshit.” He laughed, and Leah smiled just as she heard him lay on the horn and mumble, “Stupid motherf*cker.”

“Everything alright over there?”

“We’re about to pass the accident, and this f*cking moron rode the shoulder all the way up here, and now he’s trying to squeeze in. He almost clipped me. Fucking *.”

Leah sighed. “I’m going to get you a swear jar.”

“A swear jar?”

“Yep. Every time you curse, you have to put money in it.”

“Okay,” he laughed. “And how would that stop me from cursing again?”

“Because once it’s full, you have to take all that money and buy me something pretty.”

Danny chuckled softly before he said, “Well, there’s a flaw in that plan, because buying you something pretty wouldn’t exactly be a punishment for me.”

Butterflies burst through her stomach as a pleasant tingling prickled its way over her skin.

“Your turn,” he said casually.

“Oh…okay,” she said, trying to pull her thoughts back together. “Um…what would you say your best quality is?”

“I’m loyal,” he answered without missing a beat, and Leah closed her eyes.

He couldn’t have answered more perfectly if he tried.

And she was pretty sure he was telling the truth. He knew nothing of her past with Scott, nothing about her hang-ups and fears regarding relationships, so it wasn’t as though he was just trying to appeal to that. Plus, she’d seen the proof of it herself, the way he took care of Catherine, who wasn’t even his family. Not to mention the fact that he had just spent over twenty-four hours helping out a friend in need.

“My turn,” he said, and she could tell by his tone of voice that it wasn’t going to bode well for her. “Where’s the weirdest place you’ve had sex?”

“Oh God.” She laughed nervously. “Pass, pass, pass.”

“Really?” He clucked his tongue. “Shame on you.”

“Shame on me?”

“Don’t you realize you’re saying more by using your pass than if you actually told me the place?”

She sighed. “You’re so annoying.”

“All kidding aside,” he said, “my imagination is probably much worse than your reality, so leaving that question up to me to piece together probably isn’t the wisest move.”

“I’ll take my chances.”

Danny whistled long and low. “Wow. That bad, huh?”

“Moving on,” Leah said with a laugh, nibbling on her thumbnail before she blurted out her next question. “When was the last time you had sex?”

“Damn,” he said after a moment. “You give it as good as you get it, huh?”

“You started it,” she said, trying to sound playful, but the truth was, it had taken every ounce of courage she had to ask that question. She knew it would tell her a lot, and she wasn’t necessarily sure she wanted to know what it would reveal.

“Shit,” she heard him say under his breath before he inhaled deeply. “Pass.”

Leah felt her stomach drop a little, but she forced a smile, trying to keep it light.

“Wow, really? Are you sure you want to do that? You’re out after this.”

“Yes, I’m fully aware,” he said. “Still pass.”

“Okay then, have it your way,” she said airily, but the entire time, her mind was racing, wondering what his reason could be for not wanting to answer. Maybe it had been a while for him and he felt embarrassed telling her that. Of course, he had no way of knowing that she hadn’t had sex in nearly two years, and that his dry spell was probably a drop in the bucket by comparison.