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“Better than you? Come on, Rainey, you used to make me laugh all the time in high school. I always enjoyed talking to you.”
“No, you didn’t,” she replied.
“I did.” I sighed. “Well, may I at least walk you to your stateroom?”
“Fine.”
“Okay, and on the way, we should take the scenic route so we can view the ocean at night.”
I put my hand to her lower back and led her to a door that went outside. That intense energy was back as my hand hovered just millimeters from the small of her back. A few couples were walking along the deck, and an older couple stood at the railing. I let my hand drop to my side and then tucked it into my pocket to keep from reaching for her as we strolled along the deck.
The waves were crashing into the side of the ship, and I detoured to the railing to look over. Rainey followed me and stood with her hands on the varnished wood, staring out at the sky.
“Are you married? Or seeing someone?” I blurted the questions out after a moment of silence.
Her gaze cut to mine briefly, and she shook her head. “No. I’m not very good with relationships.”
“Oh, come on. You can’t be that bad?”
She turned to me, her hip leaned against the railing. “Oh yes, I’m awful. I’m awkward in social settings, and I get very stressed around a lot of people. I’m never comfortable about talking to anyone, and the only time I am comfortable is if I’m talking about my work.”
“So talk about your work.”
She laughed. “When I talk about my work, it freaks people out.”
I grinned. “You didn’t freak John out at dinner.”
She rolled her eyes. “Because he’s a doctor and understands it.”
“So, you are saying that if you talked to me about it, it would freak me out.”
“Quite possibly, yes. Then you’d think I was even more of a nerd than you used to.”
“Rainey.” I studied her, taking a small step closer to her and clenching my hands at my sides to keep from touching her face. “I never thought you were a nerd.”
