“Here you go, Brynlee,” I say. “Sorry it took so long.”
“That was sweet of you, Rhett,” Tim says. “I can take it from here. He’s such a goodfriend,isn’t he?”
If only he knew just how badly I want to punch him in his perfect nose right now for that comment.
Brynlee turns and gives me a look that screamshelp me. “Timothy has been telling me how many reps he does at the gym. Many, many reps. More than I could possibly count in my pretty little head.”
“Tim does like the gym. And it shows,” I say. “To be fair, he’s not the greatest counter, so I don’t think it’s as much of an insult to you as it is him.”
“Hey, screw you, Dillon!”
She turns to Tim with a smile. “It was very nice meeting you, Timothy. I’m sure we’ll talk again at another town function sometime.”
His jaw drops as she loops her arm with mine and turns her back towards him. Spinning on his heel, he storms away to find his consolation prize of the evening.
“Is he gone?” she whispers.
I laugh and nod. “Yeah.”
“He is… a lot.”
“Do you want somethin’ to eat? I can go order somethin’.”
“You cannot leave me alone again. I almost yanked my earring out trying to signal you.”
I think I’m in love. “We can sit down and let a waitress come to us. And if you want, I can be your date for the evenin’. You know, ward off the others.”
We sit at a table, and she locks eyes with me. “I was kind of hoping that’s what this was. I couldn’t really tell if you were asking me out or bringing me as just a friend. You are a difficult man to read, Rhett Dillon.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, stunned. She wants this to be a date?
“I can’t figure out if you like me or not. I mean, I think you’re the type of guy who likes most people in general, but it’s impossible to read if you’re interested in something more than friendship. With me, anyway. It’s perplexing, if I’m honest.”
Brynlee Carmichael, Miss Ohio, is interested in me? Inme?
Chapter Seven
Brynlee
Sitting at a table makes me feel less on display compared to when we stood by the bar. It seems that every single person here stops by to chat. I’m not delusional enough to think it has nothing to do with wanting to check out the new kid in town, but I can see that most of them genuinely want to speak to Rhett.
“I’ll let Hardy know you’re still waitin’ on that package,” Rhett says with a laugh and turns to me. “My younger brother works at the post office.”
“It’s still crazy to me that you’re from a household of ten. That’s so many people,” I say, unable to tear my eyes from his chocolate brown ones. They look as warm as he is.
He smirks. “It wasn’t too bad. By the time I got to high school, we were down to about half.”
“But still. Please tell me you have boisterous and large holidays. You said everyone’s married, right? Are there kids, too?”
A shadow crosses over his face, but he smiles regardless. “Yes, they’re crazy. Not everyone has kids, but holidays and family gatherin’s are pretty much the definition of chaos. But I love it. I don’t know anythin’ other than it, I suppose.”
More people stop by and interrupt us to talk to Rhett, and I pat his arm when the newest group walks away. “You’re everyone’s friend in town, aren’t you? The one they know they can call for help whenever they need it.”
“That’s me,” he says with a resigned sigh. “The forever friend.”
“I don’t know why you say it like it’s a bad thing. You’re a nice person. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.”
He snorts and takes a drink of beer, but I can see the muscles in his well-defined arm tense while he avoids my gaze. Clearly, he has an issue with this, but I’m not certain why it bothers him. There’s something to be said about a man who’s kind and caring, but it feels like I’ll make the situation worse if I say that right now.
