She shrugged. “My dad loved the name Kate, but my mom thought it was boring. That was the compromise, though I guess he kind of won, since it sounds the same.”
“You arenotboring. And neither is your name.” He handed her the phone so she could put in her cell number, and took hers so he could do the same.
He was so focused on hoping none of the smart-asses in the pool room sent him a text while she had his phone, he almost screwed up his number, but they got it done and the phones switched back before they could accidentally embarrass him with shitty timing.
“It’s getting late, so I’m going to head home,” she said, and he felt a wave of disappointment. He could sit and talk to her for hours.
But, based on his last glance at the time, he already had. And she’d had an emotional day with her mom. “I could walk you home.”
The two of them leaving together would not go unnoticed by the other guys, but he didn’t really care. It was a way to spend a little more time with her. And, maybe, if he didn’t screw it up, get a kiss goodnight on her doorstep.
“No, I’m good. You stay in here where it’s warm and I’ll see you around.”
She stood up, but after a moment’s hesitation, he decided not to. It would only make the saying goodbye more awkward. “Will you text me to let me know you got home okay?”
“Maybe.” She picked up the coat she’d draped over the back of her stool. “If I’m free.”
Ouch.He stood up after all, taking the coat and holding it so she could slide her arms in. “What I meant to say that day was that I’d like to meet you here, but I work twenty-four-hour shifts, so we’d have to figure out a time we both have off. It came out wrong.”
She zipped her coat and turned to face him, tilting her head back. “A little bit.”
“Totally wrong.” They were so close, he could kiss her and screw what anybody in the bar thought.
Her lips parted slightly, and he stared at them for a few seconds. He didn’t think she cared what anybody in the bar thought at that moment, either.
“Hey, Cait, you heading out?”
The moment was lost, and Gavin slid back onto his stool when Cait turned to face Karen, who had the world’s worst timing.
“Yeah, it’s getting late,” she said. “For me, anyway. I’ll probably stop by again, though. Everybody’s right about this place.”
“Yeah, don’t be a stranger.”
Cait said goodnight and then turned back to Gavin. “Goodnight.”
“I’ll talk to you soon,” he said, and then forced himself to look at his beer rather than watch her walk away, considering how that had turned out last time.
He almost made it. She was almost to the door when he looked up, fighting the urge to run after her and get that goodnight kiss. Because he was looking, he saw her pause and look back at him. After another quick smile, she pushed open the door and left.
Two seconds later, his phone chimed with a text message from Scott, continuing the group chat.Gentlemen walk ladies home, dumbass.
A gentleman respects the lady’s wishes, asshole.
Turned you down? Somebody get a hose because Boudreau’s going down in flames.
He looked up to see if any of them had stepped out from the pool room so he could flip them off, but they were probably huddled around Scott’s phone, laughing at him.Suck my hose, Kincaid.
They for sure laughed then, since everybody in the bar could hear it. Rather than join them, he signaled Karen for another beer and read the closed captioning of a guy on the TV screen dissecting the last Celtics game.
Finally, his phone chimed.I’m home.
Thank you. Goodnight.He added a smiley face emoji at the end.
She sent one back.
It wasn’t as good as a kiss goodnight, but Gavin smiled as he pulled out his wallet to pay his tab. It was a start.
Chapter Seven
