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He spots me and waves me over cheerfully.
“Okay, guys,” he says to the people crowding around him, “my girlfriend is here and we need to chat, so I’m going to sign these and then I’ve got to run.” He very quickly signs five more autographs and then stands up. He slings his arm around my shoulder and guides me to a booth in the far corner, which is separate from the other booths and tables.
I place an order for a burger and fries, and he gets a Philly cheesesteak sandwich.
“I’m not sure I like the way you’re holding that fork,” he says, as I turn the piece of silverware over in my hand.
I nod, examining the tines. “It’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye.”
“You look very nice today, by the way.”
Do I? I glance down at my clothes. It was girlfriend hangout afternoon, so I dressed accordingly. Baggy pink T-shirt, leggings, Teva sandals, hair in a black scrunchie.
“And now,” he adds, “it’s your turn to compliment me.”
I shoot him a glare. “You look like someone I probably won’t murder today.”
Paxton grins at me. “That’ll do for now.”
I set the fork down. “I have to say something, and it is very painful for me to say this, so don’t make a big deal of it.”
“You’ve finally realized that you’re passionately in love with me and can’t survive without me? I get that a lot.” He nods sympathetically. “You’ll learn to live with it.”
I grimace in disgust. “I was going to say... thank you for covering for me. I was actually alone in my dorm room that night and didn’t have an alibi because Clair spent the night at her boyfriend’s.”
Paxton nods. “Ah. Clair’s boyfriend. The guy with the handcuffs.”
The waitress sets down two glasses of water on our table, gives Paxton an appalled look, and scurries off.
“How did you know about Clair and her boyfriend?” I demand indignantly.
“Detective Ahearn told me. We’re old friends now.”
I grimace, take a gulp of water, and then continue. “Okay. So, again, thank you for covering for me. Although I know you did it for entirely twisted reasons as yet unknown to me, it was still a lifesaver.”
“Twisted reasons, eh?”
“Yes. So. Why did you do it?”
His light brown eyes fix on mine and hold my gaze, keeping it prisoner. I can’t look away, and suddenly a strange heat sweeps over me. My face flushes and my nipples harden. There’s a dampness between my legs.
“Because until this criminal case is resolved, you’re all mine. And I’m going to prove a point.”
Does he know the physical effect he’s having on me? If so, kill me now.
“What point is that?” I demand irritably.
“The point that you made a terrible mistake when you dumped me for a football player.”
Uh, dumped him? I think his history is a bit revisionist, but whatever.
“How are you going to make that point?”
“You’ll find out.” He smiles lazily. “But for at least the next couple of months, you’re going to have to play the part of the perfect girlfriend, and play the hell out of it. Nick is sticking to his story. He’s lawyered up and he swears that if he has to sit on a witness stand and repeat his story under penalty of perjury, he will.”
“How do you know that? Detective Ahearn, I assume?” I shake my head.
Paxton nods. “We chatted this morning. Supposedly he just wanted to keep me abreast of the case, but I suspect it’s more that he wants the excuse to chat with a celebrity hockey player.”
