Page 65 of What Started In Deception

She huffed out another laugh. “Oh, please.”

He struggled not to grin as he met her gaze as they both opened their doors. “It’s definitely the copilot’s job to make sure that the driver is properly fed. What if I’d gotten low blood sugar or something?”

“Oh my goodness,” she said as she sat in her seat and rolled her eyes. “We need to call you a whambulance.”

He got in and threw his head back with his laugh, enjoying the hell out of her. “A whambulance?”

She laughed, too. “Yes. You’re ridiculous.”

He chuckled as he pressed on the ignition, then buckled his belt. “I don’t know about you, Lyd.”

She buckled up, grinning at him. “Take me to dinner, Special Agent Corddry. It sounds like you’ll have plenty of time to complain on the drive over.”

He laughed again, driving off, heading toward one of his favorite places.

Two hours later, Lydia bit into a massive taco shell overflowing with shredded beef, cheese, vegetables, and sauce, frowning when a huge portion of the contents fell back to her plate with a soggy plop.

Ty grinned at her from across the table as music blasted from speakers in the dive of a place, but every seat was full in the decent-sized restaurant. “That stuff’s supposed to go in your mouth.”

She grinned as a chunk of grilled white fish and cabbage fell from his taco onto his plate. “I’m sorry, what was that?”

He chuckled, then bit in, groaning as he rolled his eyes and chewed. “So good.”

She nodded, biting into her dinner again, noting that both of their hands were filthy with grease and sauce. “It’s so messy.”

He shrugged. “It’s delicious.”

“Yes,” she said, sampling again, laughing when more of her food fell on the table. “There’s no grace with this meal.”

“Definitely not, but it’s fun.” He looked down as chunks of chorizo, green pepper, and onion from the second taco that he picked up landed back on their variety tray. “I’ve never understood why dates have to be all prim and proper. I’d rather laugh and have a good time instead of worrying about whether I’m impressing the person I’m out with.” More of his meal fell with a splat.

She raised her brow. “That’s certainly not a problem here.”

He grinned as she did. “Do you like the food, Lyd?”

She set the taco down, wiping her hands with another napkin. “Very much. You picked a good spot.”

“What do you want to do after this? Walk around for a while or head back to my place?”

She picked up a shrimp taco next, eager for a taste. “I’m having a ton of fun, so I’m game for walking around.” She darted her tongue out, trying the spicy sauce, finding that she loved it, then took a decent-sized bite. “Mmm.”

“Do you have any place in particular that you want to go?”

She shrugged as she chewed, then swallowed. “I imagine we can’t go to your office.”

He paused with his taco at his lips. “To Headquarters?”

She nodded.

He shook his head. “If the brass knew that I brought you in, they’d shit a brick.”

She frowned. “I’m certainly not dangerous.”

“No, but our situation is complicated. You’re not just my girlfriend coming to see where I work.”

“Actually, that’s exactly who I am, but I also understand that your bosses won’t see it that way.”

He shook his head again. “If I didn’t think that they would hand me my ass, I’d bring you there in a heartbeat.”