The Proposal(32)

“Are you sure she doesn’t need us to stay and help?” Carlos asked as Nik got back into the passenger seat of his car.

Nik shook her head and put her seat belt on. Okay, this was it, right? She didn’t remember how to do this kind of thing. She hadn’t been at all interested in the past few guys she’d dated until well after they’d asked her out . . . and sometimes, not even then. Should she ask him if he wanted to get that drink after all, on her? Should she just invite him up to her apartment when they got to her place and pounce on him? Or should she just wait to see if he made a move?

“Oh, she definitely doesn’t need us. Courtney is the ultimate micromanager when it comes to her cupcakes. She only let us carry the boxes tonight out of sheer necessity.”

Carlos nodded and turned the car on.

“Well, she’s done a great job so far doing it all herself,” he said. “I get the impulse.”

She could put her hand on his leg or something? Why was she so bad at this? She was usually great at flirting with men. Had she lost her mojo?

“I do, too, but I wish she had more reliable help. Thank goodness I live close by and could race down to the store today.”

Carlos touched her hand.

“You’re a good friend. She’s lucky to have you.”

Nik felt her cheeks get warm.

“Oh, well—”

His phone rang, and he pulled it out of his pocket.

“Oh shit. I’m going to have to take this. Sorry about that.” He pulled over under a clump of trees and turned the car off.

“Hey,” he answered the phone. “Is something wrong? What’s your blood pressure?”

Really? His cousin, right now? She tried not to let out a frustrated sigh. She was pretty sure this meant the universe was against this whole rebound idea.

She sat there silently, trying not to listen. Which was impossible because he was two feet away from her. She pulled out her phone to text Dana so she wasn’t too obviously eavesdropping.

Sitting here, next to Carlos, I think I’ve forgotten what to do with men, all I can talk about are cupcakes and I keep laughing too loud, help—erase erase erase erase. Just because he was facing out his window didn’t mean he wouldn’t turn around at any moment and be able to see everything she was typing.

“Don’t give me this ‘I just wanted to talk to my cousin’ bullshit—you know I’m going to worry whenever you call me from here on out. And I already told you that engagement party was fun, and that I think two of Alexa’s friends secretly have the hots for each other. Did you forget that phone call? Oh! I get it! You’re bored stiff. You’re used to talking to people at work all day and now you’re stuck at home. I get it, bed rest would bore me to tears, too. We have to find more ways to entertain you. What about those books I got you?”

Carlos turned to her and smiled, and she smiled back. He reached up and tucked that annoying curl that kept falling out of her ponytail behind her ear. God, she loved it when he touched her like that.

He moved his hand down from her head to her shoulder. His fingers moved gently, up and down her bare shoulder. She sighed.

Suddenly he let out a bark of laughter. It made her want to laugh along with it.

“You’ve read how many?” He looked down at Nik with a huge smile on his face. “Which was your favorite?”

Oh good, she could stop pretending she wasn’t listening.

“You loved them all?” He held eye contact with Nik, and his smile got even bigger. She could feel a matching smile spread across her own face. “I’ll be sure to tell my friend who recommended them how you felt about them.

“I guess I’d better buy you some more. In the meantime, I’ve heard there’s this thing called Netflix. You should look into it.”

He kept smiling at Nik. It took all she could to resist leaning against him. His eyes crinkled with the laughter she could tell he was holding in.

“As a matter of fact, people do tell me that I’m funny. I’ll bring more books on Saturday, okay?”

He hung up the phone and tucked it back into his pocket. He pushed his hand through his hair and smiled at her.

“As you heard, Jessie loved the books.”

She bit her bottom lip. Good Lord, this man was more attractive by the second.

“I’m glad.” She leaned toward him and willed him to start playing with her hair again.

A car shot past them on its way up the hill, and they moved away from each other.

“We should get you home.”

He turned the key and gunned the motor to get them back onto the roadway. The engine sputtered and stopped.

“Uh-oh.” Carlos turned the key again, and nothing happened. “Shit.”

“Did you run out of gas?” she asked him.

“What? No, that’s impossible. I never run out of gas. I went to the gas station tonight, right after I went to the grocery store . . .” He trailed off, then looked at her in horror. “I didn’t go to the grocery store. I didn’t go to the gas station! I was on my way to the grocery store when I got your text. Shit. I did run out of gas.”

She patted him on the shoulder.

“It’s okay; it’s no big deal. We can call Triple A. You do have Triple A, right?”

He nodded, but made no move toward his phone or wallet.