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He can joke all he wants, but I’m not letting this go.
Me: Either talk to me now or come over so we can do this face to face. I need to know what happened tonight.
Dempsey: Can’t. Almost asleep.
I hit the FaceTime button on his contact before I can stop myself. He answers on the third ring. At least he wasn’t lying. His eyes are closed and his lips are in a lazy curve of a smile.
“You bailed on that guy’s bike after the game without saying a word to anyone. Did you not hear me calling after you?”
He groans and releases a heavy sigh. “Wasn’t in a talking mood. Kind of like now.”
“You’re being a dick, Dempsey.”
His eyes pop open and he frowns at me. “Sorry. I’m just…I’ve had a bad fucking day, okay?”
Hurt needles its way into my heart. Considering I was a huge part of his day, I’m feeling stung. As though I’m responsible for his sour mood.
“Because I went on a date? Because I showed up at the pool hall?”
“What? No.” He curses under his breath. “Sloane, can we talk about this tomorrow, babe?”
Babe?
A shiver tickles its way down my spine, settling in my pelvis.
“No,” I bite out. “We’re talking about this now. Tell me what happened. Did you get into trouble with those guys?”
His blue eyes turn electric with fury. “I handled it.”
“Handled what?”
“Is this going to go on for fucking ever?”
“Yup.”
“Fine. You want to know what has my panties yanked all the way up my ass crack?” He sits up in bed and glowers at me through the tiny screen. “They wanted to play for my fucking sister.”
“They what? And you agreed to it? Just for the possibility to win a stupid bike? Those guys were most likely criminals! My God, Dempsey, you’re a child playing dangerous adult games!”
He flinches as though I’ve slapped him across his beautiful face. “Fuck all the way off.”
The phone beeps and I realize he’s hung up on me. Wow. That was…intense. I can’t believe I just yelled at him. I feel like a total bitch for it, too, even though he was wrong for putting Gemma’s safety on the line.
Kaden peeks his head in my door. “You okay, Aunt Sloane?”
“Yeah, bud. I’m fine. Just yelling at Dempsey for being stupid.”
He walks over and sits down next to me. “I’m sure it was an accident. Dempsey’s actually really smart. I like him. You’re not going to break up with him, are you?”
His words have me jolting.
Break up with him?
“We,” I choke out in exasperation, “are not together. He’s not my…boyfriend. I went on a date with Oliver, for Pete’s sake.”
Kaden pats my knee and shrugs. “You don’t have to lie. Gemma told me we were tagalongs on a date for you and Dempsey.”
She did what?!
