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“Safe?” Billy had heard of girls dating guys because they were rich, funny, good looking, even because they were assholes and some women were into that. But safe…
She didn’t expand on the word so he asked a follow up. “So why did you break up with him?”
Her gaze lifted, meeting his and he saw her lips turning up in the corners. “How did you know I broke up with him?”
“Simon didn’t strike me as particularly crazy and the only way any man would break up with you is if he had lost his damn mind.”
She shook her head in dismissal of his praise, but her grin widened.
“So, why did you break up with him?” he pressed on.
With a shrug, she sighed. “He was safe.”
“I thought you said that’s why you dated him.” He’d joked before that she’d given him mixed signals, but this was seriously confusing the hell out of him.
“Yeah,” Maxi nodded slowly. “The thing about safe is, sometimes it’s boring.”
“Is that a pattern with you? Dating guys that are safe and then breaking up with them because they’re boring?”
In all the years that he and Maxi had known each other, all the time that they’d spent together, they’d never had a conversation like this. Historically, these were the kinds of talks that he’d avoided like the plague. With any other woman, whenever subjects like these came up he’d run so fast the Road Runner wouldn’t be able to keep up with him. But now he found himself holding his breath, waiting to hear the next words that came out of her mouth.
“Yes.” She shifted so that her feet were curled beneath her and she was facing him. “Kind of like your pattern of dating women that you’re attracted to, but have no interest in getting to know. Once the lust wears off you get bored and move on.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “That was my safe.”
Her eyes widened in shock at his admission. Maybe she’d expected him to deny it, but why would he. He knew his behavior was ridiculous, that’s why he’d changed. He wanted more than just a one night, or three-night stand. He wanted more than just P.B.C.’s. He wanted something real.
As they stared into each other’s eyes the air between them changed. It grew heavier. In the last few minutes their dynamic had shifted. He knew that Maxi felt it too. Her lips parted and her breathing became shallow.
If it were anyone else sitting in front of him, Billy wouldn’t hesitate to act on the buzz of arousal that surrounded them. But this wasn’t anyone else. This was Maxi and right now her entire world was upside down. There was no way he would take advantage of that.
Thankfully, his phone vibrated. Never in his life had he been happy for an interruption when things were going in this direction, but now he was. Glancing down he saw that it was Nate telling him that Jana was at the door. Just as he read the message the doorbell rang.
“It’s Jana,” he told Maxi as she jumped up at the sound.
“How do you know?”
He turned his phone so she could read Nate’s text. “Cameras. Remember?”
“Right,” she mumbled as she walked to answer the door.
Jana came bearing gifts in the form of movies to watch and snacks to eat. The next few minutes were a blur. Popcorn was popped, soda was poured, and chocolate was distributed.
As they all sat watching the new Coen brothers’ comedy, Billy’s mind wandered. All he could do was play and replay the last twenty-four hours in his head. He hadn’t been exaggerating when he’d said that last night was the most fun he’d had in a long time, whether Maxi wanted to believe it or not.
Just like she had a rule not to date fighters, he had a rule never to sleep with women. Actually sleep. To him that was more intimate than sex could ever be. Being unconscious next to a person took trust and he didn’t trust easily. Not to mention it tended to send the wrong signal. Spending the night together was kind of a relationship thing. He didn’t do relationships.
But last night when Maxi had fallen asleep against him, he’d done everything in his power not to wake her up. The feeling of her curled up at his side was more than just nice…it was color. She brought color back into his black and white world. As exhausted as he was he’d fought his own sleep because, just like Aerosmith, he hadn’t wanted to miss a thing.
This morning when she’d stirred beside him, he’d had to fight the overwhelming urge to kiss the top of her head. He’d also had the impulse to pull her on his lap and kiss her other places, but strangely enough the desire to simply press his lips to the crown of her head was more intense. She must’ve felt something too because she’d shot out of his arms like a lit firecracker.
When they’d gone on their run he’d spent equal time grinning like an idiot and scowling as he scanned for possible threats. Between the endorphins that were coursing through him just being near her and the adrenaline that was racing through him to protect her, he felt bi-polar.
And then there was whatever moment had passed between them that Jana had interrupted.
He still wasn’t sure what it was, but it was something. Something that felt very close to real.
