“For my timekeeping?” he laughed.
“And the patch job,” he winked as if they had some kind of inside joke. We thanked the bartender and turned back to the table. Donovan held his glass up to toast, and everyone joinedhim. “To a hero!” I shook my head no. No way was I calling myself that, and I hated that everyone was looking at me. “Ok, white knight?” Another head shake. “Role model?” I gave him a funny face. “Night Shift Ninja? Triage Trooper? Bedside Buccaneer? Lady Lifesaver? Nurse Nifty?”
The table was roaring with laughter as I caught my breath. “Holy shit, stop. How are you coming up with these on the fly?!”
“I guess I’m feeling inspired,” he laughed, looking at me. “Fine, I give up. What are we toasting to here?”
“A good night?”
“Nah, a great night,” he said with an easy confidence, and his eyes didn’t break from mine as we all clinked glasses and took a drink. My stomach was flip-flopping with a thousand butterflies as I felt the intensity of his gaze. Tonight was even more electric than last, and I was sitting on his damn lap then.
When it was the last call, I was not completely surprised to see Theo appear at our table. He was doing some kind of weird possessive thing right now, which was equal parts infuriating and amusing. He couldn’t have his cake and eat it too. Not that I had any cake left for him.
“I can give you a ride home, Audra?”
Our entire table fell silent as all eyes turned to me. For as confident as I was in emergency situations, I was terrible on the spot, and really at any kind of confrontation in general.
“No, thank you. I have a ride.”
“It’s just that I saw your car in the parking lot, and I saw how much you’ve had to drink after the seizure. It’s not safe for you to drive. I’ll just take you, Audra. Come on.” And he grabbed my wrist. It was gentle, but even so, he didn’t have the right to touch me. To boot, everything about the situation rubbed me the wrong way, just like the hospital parking lot. The way hetried to pull me away, the way he admitted he was watching and tallying what I was drinking, and the way he touched me to tell me he was taking me home without waiting for a response. For the first time ever, Theo’s touch made me recoil. I jerked my arm away from him with a force that surprised even me. “No, thank you,” I said, more forcefully this time.
His eyes narrowed at me. “What’s your deal, Audra?”
“I have no deal with you, Theo. You asked if I wanted a ride, and I said no because I have one. I’m not going with you.” He then glared at Donovan, and Donovan didn’t back down from the stare. What the hell did I miss there?
Maverick cut in, “Theo, we’ve got her. Have a good night, man.”
With five large men staring at him, he got the hint and retreated to his table. But I could feel his eyes still on me, and I didn’t like it.
“I can give you a ride if you need one, Audra.” Donovan put his hand on my arm and pulled me away from my thoughts. The warmth immediately replaced any unease I had from Theo. “I live over on Stonemill, so it’s not out of my way.” He would have to pass my place to get there. I was going the opposite way of everyone else who was heading home, so this would be convenient and I wouldn’t have to do the bar time Uber drill.
But at the same time, my heart dropped when he told me where he lived. How did this not come up when he was at my house for dinner? No “Hey, I live that way ten minutes up the road where all the mansions are. Fun tiny house with a cutesy lilac door, though.” I hung my head while thoughts raced through it.
That neighborhood was considered Millionaires’ Row, butyou needed a hell of a lot more than a million to live there. Damnit. I knew he was wealthy, but not Stonemill wealthy. The knowledge boomeranged into me. This man gave me tingles, goddamnit, but there was no way I was going to set myself up for another Theo. Those words aboutnot having the right pedigreehaunted me, and I couldn’t do that again. It’s not like I was in too deep yet. Yes, he was the most gorgeous man I’ve ever seen, and yes, something was swirling between us the last month, but it’s not like I’ve been pining over him forever. Disappointing but necessary. Cut my losses before I got in over my head and got hurt again.
But a ride? I could definitely take a ride.
Tracking Theo, I saw him storm out the door while we said our goodbyes. Soon after, Donovan put his hand on my lower back and guided me out. There was a chill in the air, and I made a foolish move by not having a jacket. I knew better. Springtime in South Carolina had the most pleasant days, but nights got chilly. Goosebumps were all over my arms, and I tried to rub them away. He opened my door on his Navigator and helped me up, but before he climbed into the driver’s seat, he opened the trunk to grab something.
“You’re good to drive, right?” I shouted to him in the back, realizing it was a little late in the game to be asking that question. He shut the trunk, hopped in, and handed me a sweatshirt. What a sweet, observant man. I didn’t mention I was cold, he just noticed and acted on it; should I say cared enough to grab me something. It took all of me not to bury my face in it. I knew he smelled good, but this sweatshirt right in front of me was heavenly. What cologne did he use? Goddamn. He made sure I was looking at him before he spoke his next words. “Audra, I would never put you, or anyone, in harm’s way.” Hespoke those words with such conviction that all I could do was nod back at him.
“Thank you for the sweatshirt.” I debated using it as a blanket, but I was super chilly, so I hoisted it over my head. Safe to say, I was swimming in it, but my goodness, it was cozy. He turned on the music, and we settled into a comfortable conversation as I punched in my address, and he drove me home.
When we parked in front of my house, he turned to me. “Thanks for letting me crash dart night tonight. I’m really enjoying the time I’m spending with you and your friends. Plus, I can add experienced timekeeper to my resume now. I’m not sure if you want to hear it, but what you did tonight was amazing.”
This kind of talk always made me uncomfortable because I didn’t expect accolades or anything; I was just doing what I could at that moment. “I didn’t do much, but thank you. In other news, you fit in here, Donovan. It’s been a lot of fun having you come out with us. Since you haven’t been around too long, you should know that getting an invitation to the poker game was a pretty huge deal. That doesn’t just happen, so it says a lot about how much everyone else enjoys you, too.” Realizing I was blabbering, I reached for the door handle. “Anyway, thank you for the ride. Oh, your sweatshirt.” I went to take it off.
“Just keep it until the next time I see you, which I’m sure will be sometime this week, either in the office or if I crash a Savvy Sips coffee date,” he smirked at me like he wanted to say more.
“Deal. I will drop it by the office next week.”
“If it happens to come in a bag with home cooking, I wouldn’t be mad about it,” he threw out.
“Donovan Wright, are you trying to ask me something?”
“I mean, I told you then, and I’ll say it again, those were the best fajitas I’ve ever had, and the carbonara could have passed for one I’ve eaten in Italy. I had a dream about those damn chicken sandwiches, so I can only imagine what else you have up your sleeve,” he replied with a grin. The compliment rolled off his tongue with such certainty, it was impossible not to believe him. I bet this kind of unwavering confidence was an asset in his business. “Have a great night’s sleep and a good day at work tomorrow, Audra.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” I smiled back at him.
