Page 23 of Wedding Bet

Not ready for more?Who the hell was he to say something like that?

I let the brief burst of anger simmer inside me, pulling in a long breath through my nostrils. I looked away from him, out toward the fairgrounds as the Ferris wheel finally made its last descent toward the ground.

“Well, you’ve known me for somewhere a little over 48 hours, so I don’t think you’re necessarily the best judge,” I said, trying but failing to keep an acidic tone from my voice.

“Hey. Jamie. I didn’t mean it like that,” Landry protested. “I was trying to be empowering, actually. Shit, I think I put my foot in my mouth.”

I turned back to him and saw a genuine apology in his eyes.

Christ, he looked good. I still couldn’t believe I was sitting next to him—this absurdly handsome man who had somehow gotten me all emotional in the span of just a few minutes.

I felt bad for my strong reaction.

I took in a deep breath of air as the Ferris wheel came to a stop. Both of us stepped off and I turned to Landry.

“It’s fine,” I finally said.

He looked dubious as he stepped off onto the ground. “Are you sure?”

I swallowed. “Yes. I think I just freaked out a little bit when I realized how long it’s actually been, and… well, I feel like a loser, and I’m pretty convinced I’m going to be alone for the rest of my life—”

I cut my words short when I realized Landry was trying to hold back a laugh. I watched as he failed miserably, laughing openly now, his head tilted back.

He looked so damn good in his light, tan-colored coat, even as he was laughing at me.

“You are not going to be alone for the rest of your life,” he finally said. “I’m sorry, but that was the funniest thing I’ve heard all day.You?Alone? Come on, let me buy you another spiced wine.”

“Why is it so laughable that I would be alone?”

“Because you’re hot, funny, smart, and one of the most charming people I’ve ever met,” he said. “You won’t be alone.”

My heart did a little backflip in my chest.

We started sauntering back over toward the booth. “That’s very kind of you, but you have no idea how bad I usually am on first dates.”

“Jamie, I’ve noticed at least five people, both men and women, staring at you like you’re the cutest thing they’ve ever seen—and that’s just beentonight. I promise you, you are going to be fine. I’m the one who will be alone forever, and I’ll probably be better off for it.”

I struggled not to roll my eyes. He was the one who was crazy. I knew Landry was a bachelor by choice, but he’d have no problem having whoever he wanted in his bed, anytime he wanted.

We moved through the line for more drinks quickly, and once the cinnamon-spiced wine was in my hands, we sat down at a nearby picnic bench. I found myself guzzling the wine down. It was delicious, it warmed me up, and I was feeling continually worse about how I’d gotten angry with Landry.

“I forgive you, by the way,” I finally said to him from across the table. “For telling me I’m incapable of love.”

Landry’s mouth twisted into a wry smirk and he reached across the table to swat the arm of my puffy coat. “That is absolutelynotwhat I said.”

I puffed out a laugh and took another sip of my wine. “Okay, for telling me I might not bereadyfor love. I feel ready, and feel like I crave it more than anything in the world, but some part ofme doesn’t feel likeI’mready. I still have a high-stress job that’s very low-paying. I don’t live alone. I don’t own property. How could I start a life?”

Landry’s expression became serious so quickly that it took me by surprise. “That’s no reason not to find love, Jamie.”

A breeze blew through the air. I looked down at the ground, moving a little pile of snow with my shoe.

“Yeah,” I finally said, unable to find the words for more.

“And what do you mean,starta life?” Landry asked. “You already have one. And it sounds like a beautiful one, even if that’s hard for you to see.”

A strange mixture of emotions coursed through me as I sat there, watching Landry’s soulful honey-colored eyes.

He had really meant what he’d said, and it shifted everything on its axis.

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