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About how hot his hands had felt through the relatively thin material of my tank top. About how firm he’d gripped me, how warm his breath had been as it fluttered over my mouth and cheek, how—
“Kali?”
I jerked back to the here and now as Marcie placed the check on the table.
“Are you done with that, honey?” She pointed to my half-eaten dinner.
Crap.
“Oh, yeah, sorry.” I offered Declan a sheepish smile. “I’m so sorry. I’ve been a terrible date.”
He smiled, like he didn’t mind at all.
Hmm. Maybe he was a psychopath?
“No, it’s fine. I’ve had worse dates. Besides, you said you worked today, right? We probably should have rescheduled so you weren’t tired.”
Mhmm. Were they thinking about another man on your date, though? Someone they had no place thinking about?
I bet they weren’t.
Also: he was responding to me way too positively.
Was I nitpicking for the sake of it now?
Ugh.
“You’re right. I’m sorry. Here—I’ll pay my half of the check.”
He waved his hand at me when I reached for my purse. “Absolutely not. If you must, you can pay for date two.” He flashed me a grin and slipped his card in the book without checking the total. “Excuse me—I need the restroom.”
I smiled tightly.
Boy, he was presumptuous.
I peeked at the bill, pulled out cash, and slipped it in the book. And ran—right into Marcie.
She winked. “Your dad called. There was a family emergency.”
“You’re my favorite person in the world,” I told her, squeezing her hand.
This time, I managed to escape the restaurant.
It was still hot and sticky outside, but I’d had the foresight to wear a looser dress, and now, I was glad. Declan had picked me up from my house, which now meant I had to walk home.
Not a bad thing.
If only I’d brought flats in my purse.
Oh, well. I couldn’t win them all. I’d listen to my feet scream at me all night, but for now, I needed to get away from the restaurant.
I made it onto Main Street, away from the seafront where the Coastal was, and heard a car behind me. My stomach dropped—Declan would have left the restaurant by now, and if this was him, it was about to get real awkward, real fast.
I winced and peered over my shoulder. A familiar, black Range Rover crawled to a stop next to me, and the window on the driver’s side wound down.
Brantley poked his head out of the window. “Alone?”
I frowned. “Where are the twins?”
He nodded. “Sleeping in the back. It’s easier to shop when it’s quieter. What are you doing walking through town by yourself?”
“A not so great date,” I replied, tucking hair behind my ear.
Slowly, his bright gaze ran up and down my body, lingering on my bright-red heels for a moment too long. “And you didn’t drive?”
“He picked me up, and I, um…”
He half-grinned. “Want a ride home?”
“No, it’s fine. It’s out of your way.”
“It’s three blocks over. Not Los Angeles.”
“Still, you have to go there and then back.”
He rolled his eyes. “Then at least let me drive you to my house. Walk from there.”
I paused, running my teeth over my lower lip.
“Get in the damn car, Kali,” he said firmly. “It’s getting dark and you’re by yourself. I can’t leave you in the middle of town.”
“I—”
He looked at me dead in the eye and repeated, “Get. In. The. Damn. Car.”
I checked the road and, after seeing it was clear, got in the damn car.
“Thank you.” He smirked at me and quickly looked over his shoulder when one of the kids snort-snored in their sleep.
I peered back at them. Both wearing pajamas with dogs on, they each clutched a stuffed toy—Ellie a monkey, and Eli a blue dinosaur. They both slept soundly, with Eli sucking his thumb.
Brantley reached back and gently pulled it out of his mouth before pulling away from the curb. “Damn thumb sucking,” he sighed. He glanced at me. “A bad date, huh?”
“Not so much bad,” I said slowly and carefully. “More that he was suspiciously perfect.”
“Ah, the decent guy. Terrible bunch of people.”
I rolled my eyes. “Stop it. I didn’t connect with him, that’s all.” Mostly because I kept thinking about you. “I kinda ran out when he went to the restroom.”
“You stiffed him with the bill?”
“No! He’d left his card, but I put the cash for my half of the bill. What do you think I am, cheap?”
“Well, that escalated quicker than I thought it would.” He glanced at me, lips tugging up. “Not at all. I was only wondering.”
I wanted to roll my eyes again, but in the interest of not giving myself a headache, I decided against it.
“He thought I was tired from working this morning and apologized for not rescheduling.”
“And that’s too perfect?”
“Yes. I was being a dreadful date.”
“At least you can admit that.”
“He assumed we’d get a second. Said as much.”
