“You about gave me a heart attack,” I breathed.
“Sorry, I really didn’t mean to startle you, but I got in my car and realized I left my phone charger plugged into your wall. I saw you were still here and I was hoping I could grab it, if it’s not too much trouble.”
“Oh, sure.” I shut off the car, and Danny stepped back so that I could get the door open. I shuddered the moment the chill crept back in. I’d only just gotten warm. I hurried to the door of the shop, having to go through the process of running back to the alarm, which was on the wall just outside the office, and disarming it then re-arming it, all while Danny retrieved his charger.
“Did you find it?” I hollered.
“Yep. Got it. Right where I left it.”
I set the alarm and then we were both forced out into the cold again. I made quick work of locking the door and then meant to dart back to my car, but instead spun around and into Danny’s chest. I hadn’t felt him hovering so close behind me. His hands on my shoulders steadied me and kept me from bouncing back into the glass of the door.
“Sorry,” he apologized for the second time tonight.
“It’s okay, my bad for not realizing you were there.”
He stuffed his hands in the pocket of his hoodie. “Well thanks for letting me go back in for my charger. I just didn’t want someone else coming in before me in the morning and getting away with it.”
“No problem. Have a good night Danny, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He made no move to step back and let me pass. He shifted on his feet, only slightly, and cast a quick look over his shoulder, before swinging his gaze back to me. His face was scrunched up in what looked like worry, and the odd behavior started to make me nervous.
“I need to confess something. I left my charger behind on purpose.” He swept a hand back through his hair, and his eyes darted in each direction. An uneasy feeling started to come over me.
“Why would you do that?” I asked carefully, shifting my body so that I wasn’t backed into the door. The more nervous Danny appeared, the more nervous I began to feel.
“I wanted to talk to you alone tonight, but your friend was hovering. I get the feeling he doesn’t like me much.”
“Will’s just protective. Like an annoying big brother.”
“That might be it; I just get the feeling that it’s more than that.” He leaned in and hushed his voice as if he was afraid of someone overhearing us. “He seemed quite upset and jealous when he came in today and witnessed your, um, display with the human action figure.” If I wasn’t a little weirded out by this whole conversation, that would have pulled a chuckle from me.
“You don’t need to worry about Will, he just thinks he’s looking out for me; same as you are now, but he’s with Cassie.”
“Oh,” his shoulders slumped slightly as he breathed out. He seemed to register that bit of information then process it, a puzzled frown still tugging at his features. Then they relaxed and he took a small step back. “Then I suppose I was mistaken.”
“It’s alright, was there anything else?”
“Oh, right yes. The reason I wanted to talk to you alone,” he curled his hand around the back of his neck and ducked his head, kicking his foot at the cement before reluctantly meeting my curious gaze. “This is a little embarrassing for me, and I wouldn’t normally come to you with it, but, well there’s this girl,” he let out on a heavy sigh. My lips pulled into a faint smile as the slight tingles of unease that had been creeping up my spine relaxed and I started to breathe easier.
“A girl?”
“Um, yes.” His cheeks turned a light shade of pink. “I was hoping to get your advice on the matter. I very much like this girl and have for some time. I’ve done everything I can think of to show her, and yet I don’t think I even exist to her in that capacity. I’m not sure what else I can do to get her to see me in a different light.”
“Oh, well have you tried coming right out and telling her you’re interested? Maybe ask her to get coffee sometime.” I felt incredibly out of my depth giving dating advice, but I felt for the guy.
“No, I was hoping you’d have a more subtle suggestion to find out if she’d be receptive before I attempted such a bold move. I’m hoping to avoid an embarrassing rejection that could make things awkward for us in the future if she’s uninterested.”
“Then maybe start with something that has less pressure than a date. Try spending time with her in a group setting and see if there is chemistry between the two of you. Small but thoughtful gestures are also a way to get her attention without putting yourself out there too much, but at some point I think you’re just going to have to decide if taking your shot with this girl is worth the risk, and then go for it.” His brow was scrunched up but he was nodding his head to everything I was saying as he weighed it.
“Right. Of course. Thank you. I appreciate your input.”
“I hope it works out.”
“Yes. As do I. Again, thank you for the advice and I apologize for inconveniencing you tonight. I also hope you don’t think I was prying into your personal life before. I just worried that something unrequited with Will could prove troublesome for you given his dominant and aggressive personality.”
This time I did chuckle. “No harm done. Have a good night Danny.”
“You too, Nora,” he said softly and stepped aside as I brushed past him. I made quick strides to my car, hoping the heat hadn’t already seeped out. I tossed a final glance over my shoulder as I reached my car. Danny stood watching me. He lifted his hand in a wave. I returned the gesture before sliding into the driver’s seat. He turned his back and then made his way to his own car.
At home, James was sprawled out like a big, lazy cat on the couch, eyes shut, mouth open and he looked close to drooling on one of my throw pillows. And yet somehow it wasn’t the least bit unattractive. The bottle of Jack Daniels that sat on my coffee table was another story. Jack was a familiar guest in my house since James started staying here. My heart clenched. What this must be like for him. James was a protector through and through and Em was his baby sister. I breathed out a worried sigh and then tugged the pillow out from under his head and then tossed it on him. He bolted upright and then eased back into a relaxed position when he heard my snicker. He grabbed the pillow and threw it back at me. I caught it and then dropped down onto the sofa beside him, hugging the pillow to my chest.
“Looks like you’ve had an exciting day.”
He stretched his neck a little, letting out a tired groan. “Not that I’m anxious to leave, but this doing nothing all day is driving me crazy. Today I went to the gym, and stopped by my parents’ for a bit, but still I feel like I spent most of the day right here on the couch. It’s too fucking cold outside to do anything else.”
“I know. I’m ready for winter to be over,” I agreed. “Have you heard anymore from Monroe?” I was curious if they’d turned up anything new. It had been more than a week without any updates.
“Not a damn thing.”
It was the answer I’d expected, but still a bit of disappointment settled in my gut. I was trying desperately not to give up hope, but with each day that passed, it was getting harder to hang onto. But I had to, not only for my sake but for James’ and Emily’s as well.
“She’s going to come home,” I said softly, trying my best to believe it so that he would too.
His head jerked in a single nod and his gaze drifted down. For a long moment he just stared at the coffee table, but I knew he wasn’t really seeing anything. He was lost inside his own head. I knew how helpless I felt to do anything; it had to be so much worse for him.
I grabbed the bottle of Jack and lifted it to my lips taking one long pull. His head turned and I simply held the bottle out to him. We both needed it tonight. He took it, and I slumped back into the couch. He tipped it to his lips before returning it to the coffee table and sinking into the couch as well. We both just sat there, letting the minutes tick by in silence.
My knee bounced anxiously while mutant butterflies did gymnastics in my stomach. I fought the impulse to check the time on my phone. I’d checked it only moments ago. It was five-thirty. He wouldn’t be here for another half an hour. This was our second date; I shouldn’t have been so nervous. But now that I knew what he could do with his lips, I was really hoping he would do it again.
“You sure you don’t want to blow him off and I can take you out?” James tried to sway me, not for the first time since I got home from work and began the date prep, which I kicked off with a shot of the whiskey from last night, in hopes that it would help me relax. It didn’t. I’d had two shots now in two hours and I was still all aflutter.
All day James had been affecting an amused interest in my date, but I couldn’t ignore the slight niggling in the back of my mind that said he was very much against me going out with Spencer. Every time I tried to broach the subject and get him to spill the reason for his dislike, he’d brush it off. My gut said Spencer was a good guy, and if I couldn’t rely on my own instincts, I might as well curl up in my closet and hide from the world. And if James couldn’t give me a legitimate reason to call off my date, I was going, and I was going to have a good time.
“I think I’ll take my chances with him. I saw how much fun you were last night. You passed out before ten.”
“That was the alcohol you were plying me with, trying to get me drunk so you could take advantage of me.” The accusation rolled off his tongue playfully.
My brow arched. “I think you were plenty plied before I got home from work.”
“Just trying to help you out.” The impish smile that quirked his lips was a nice change from the sullen guy trying to lose himself in a bottle.
“Help me out? I think you’ve got things a little mixed up.”
He shrugged, his smile still in place. “So what do you say? Ditch him and spend the night with me.”
“This would be a very different conversation if you were still going to be here on Monday, but you’re not. You’re the one who said you’ll always be leaving. You come home, but one foot is always already out the door, so what would that look like for us?” A part of me wanted to be mad at him for even going here again, even if he’d only meant to tease.
“I know.” The smile faded and he blew out a deep breath that turned to a half-hearted chuckle. “Never thought I’d meet a girl who would make me re-think my career.” All pretense of joking was gone.
“We both know once you’re back in it, you won’t be thinking about me.”
One side of his mouth turned up, but it was forced. “I’m not so sure. Maybe it’s time I think about a new career.”
“Uh-uh,” I stood. “No. You don’t get to start talking about this right before I’m about to go on a date. We’ve been doing the flirting game for a few years now, but the reason it’s never been awkward is that we both know nothing else would ever work.”
“Maybe I don’t know that anymore.”
I shook my head furiously and held up a hand as he stood. “No. We’re not doing this two days before you leave again. I don’t know what’s going through your head. I can only imagine what you’re feeling right now, with Emily missing and wanting to be here for your family when your job is taking you away, but you can’t put this on me, not when it makes no difference. I know you’ve still got a year on this tour.”
He rose to his feet. “Ten months. And what if that’s all I had left? What if then I was out?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted softly. “I guess we’d have to see what happened then. But are you really asking me to wait a year when neither one of us knows how we’re going to feel then?”
He looked away and raked a hand through his hair, then dragged his troubled gaze back to me. “I don’t know what I’m asking.” His chest heaved when he let out a heavy sigh. “Fuck, I think maybe I’m just jealous. I don’t like you going out with that guy. He’s not good enough for you and I’m man enough to admit I don’t like seeing you with him or knowing you’re going to be with him.”
I softened. “You’re killing me, James. You can’t do this to a girl. Not now. If this was Nathan, I’d have kicked him to the curb in a heartbeat. Hell, I probably fantasized about that, which I think says a lot about my relationship with him, but now . . .”
“You like the guy,” he muttered.
“I do. And I want to see where it’s going, unless you can give me a real reason why I shouldn’t go out with him.”
“I’m not enough of a reason?” he deflected, reverting back to teasing.
I didn’t bother with a response. Like I said, if he’d done this when I was with Nathan, I would have jumped ship in a heartbeat, even if the only thing James was offering was maybe someday. It would have been enough then. Nathan was a mistake, and even though he cheated, I was just as much at fault for the mess we found ourselves in. But now . . . now Spencer was going to be knocking on my door in about ten minutes and I was going with him, so all this– it did no good.
“Just promise me one thing.”
I didn’t have it in me to deny him when I could already see in his eyes how dejected he was feeling. “What?”
“When it doesn’t work out with this guy–”
“If,” I butted in.
“Whatever, if you figure out that this guy isn’t the one for you, promise me you’ll keep December thirteenth in mind.”
“What happens on December thirteenth?”
“I go back to being a civilian and figure out what the rest of my life will look like without having to report to Uncle Sam. Then I get to start thinking about who I want to share that life with.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. Dammit, why did he have to make this so hard?
“Hey,” his fingers brushed over my cheek and I pried my eyes open to peer into his baby blues. Big mistake. It was a trap, one I wasn’t in any hurry to escape. “All I’m asking is that you’ll keep it in mind.”
All I could do was give him a single nod, and then I was saved by a knock.
I had to tear myself away before James got what he wanted and I didn’t go anywhere. I hurried to answer the door, breathing out all the tension and confusion before I pulled it open. A soft smile tugged at my lips when I did. Spencer’s eyes took me in; just a quick perusal from head to toe; they didn’t linger suggestively, but his gaze didn’t lack appreciation.
“Hey.” It was one word, but that man could pack a lot into one word. It was as if it was laced with sweet champagne. The same warm, bubbly feeling spread through my body.
“Hey.” I snuck a quick look of my own. Hair perfectly mussed, jaw shadowed by a couple days’ growth. A dark blue ribbed thermal hugged his torso beneath his black jacket and those long legs were encased in dark denim, bunched up around his signature black, made-for-kicking-ass, boots. The overall image was no more or less than he looked every day, but damn it was still an impressive sight.
One corner of his mouth quirked just slightly. “You ready to go?” His eyes flashed behind me and took on a slightly darker look. A quick glance told me James hadn’t stayed in the living room. I ignored their macho stare-down and quickly retrieved my purse and coat from the hook just inside the door.
“I’m ready.”
His attention returned to me and I didn’t spare another look at James. I wasn’t sure that I could without feeling guilty about leaving with Spencer, even though I had no reason to feel guilt.
I shoved my arms into the jacket and then followed Spencer out to his truck.
“So, you going to tell me where we’re going tonight?” He pulled the door open for me, but I didn’t climb up right away.
“You’ll just have to wait and see.”
“Going to be hard to get us there if I don’t know where we’re going.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll get us there,” I assured him and put my foot up on the running board, but before I even had a foot in the cab, a car door down the drive slammed and my da
y got even more complicated.
“Nora!”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered and stepped back down, preparing to face my ex. Spencer took on an aggressive stance when he turned and saw Nathan moving toward us. He stopped a few feet away from the truck.
I crossed my arms in front of my chest. “What are you doing here?” I’d actually dared to hope he might go away.
He wasn’t even looking at me. His glare was fixed on Spencer, probably remembering the last time Spencer interrupted his attempt to forcibly win me back. When he finally swung his gaze to me, he had the nerve to give me an accusing look, as if I was somehow doing something wrong here. “What are you doing with him, Nora?”
“You don’t get to ask the questions, Nathan. You showed up at my house uninvited.”
“I didn’t expect to find you with him,” he sneered.
“Then what did you expect to find?” I cried. “How many times do we have to do this?”
“Until you quit playing games and let me make things right.”
“I promise you I am not playing games. There is nothing you can do, except leave,” I spoke through clenched teeth.
“You don’t mean that. I know you’re still hurt and you’re trying to get back at me for what I did.”
I swear I could feel my blood pressure rising with every ludicrous word that came out of his mouth. I didn’t know it was possible for someone so intelligent to be so dense. I was utterly lost as to how I could make him see reality. Unfortunately, Nathan took my lack of argument as confirmation that he was right and he tried to take another step closer to me. Up to this point, Spencer had remained silent, letting me handle him, but it seemed he was done standing back. He countered Nathan’s step forward with one of his own, cutting him off.
“She let you say your piece, now you leave.” I guessed that was him asking nicely and that if he had to ask again, it wouldn’t be so nice. Unfortunately, Nathan didn’t seem to be picking up those vibes, or he chose to ignore them.
Red Red Rose Page 15
