Page 34 of Burn Bag

I didn’t get the reaction I had hoped for, which was for everyone to go back to their dates and forget about us, but I shoved that aside for now and focused on the woman in front of me.

“Here.” I guided her over to our table and snapped my fingers at the waiter, motioning for him to bring us food. I didn’t care if it was fucking bread. She needed food, and she was going to get it. “Are you sure you’re feeling alright?”

“Totally,” she said, waving me off. “It’s been happening since I was a kid.”

That didn’t sound right. “You just randomly pass out, and this has been happening since you were a kid?”

She shrugged like it was no big deal, snatching a slice of bread from the basket the waiter just placed on the table. “What can I say? I like to be adventurous.”

“That’s not fucking adventurous,” I scowled, pissed at how nonchalant she was about the whole thing. “You could hit your head or?—”

“Yes, I’m aware, and usually, it’s fine. If I feel it coming on, I just lay down and it passes. But I was sort of distracted. You know, you had just kissed me and all.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” I argued.

“Well, I didn’t recognize the symptoms because…” She cleared her throat and a blush stained her cheeks. “The kiss was very good. Dizzying.”

I gaped at her in horror. “I did this? I made you dizzy?”

“No, silly. The kiss was so good that I mixed up the feelings of the kiss with the beginnings of the syncope.”

Oh. Well, that made it a little better, but still, I couldn’t help but feel a little responsible.

“Relax, Will. I’m fine.”

Maybe she hit her head when she fell. “My name isn’t Will.”

“I know, but I’m not calling you Bradford. It sounds too pretentious.”

“Then call me Kavanaugh. Everyone else does.”

Her nose wrinkled at that and she shook her head. Those green eyes of hers reminded me all too much of another woman with green eyes, but I tamped those old feelings down and focused on the woman in front of me.

“I can’t call you Kavanaugh. That’s like…like calling a dog or something.”

“It’s my name, and I’m hardly a dog.”

“No, Will will do the trick.” She snorted and bounced her head around as she talked. “Will will…maybe Willy.”

“Donotcall me Willy.”

“So, what’s on the menu for dinner? I’m starving!”

“When was the last time you ate?”

She thought about it for a moment, and that instantly let me know it was too long ago.

I sighed in frustration. “You know, I didn’t think I’d be marrying a woman I’d have to watch over.”

“Oh, you do not have to watch over me,” she snorted. “I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it all my life.”

“Are you kidding? You pass out at the drop of a hat?—”

“That’s not true?—”

“And God knows the last time you ate. Do you ever take care of yourself?”

“I always take care of myself. Either way, this is going to be good. Trust me. You’ll barely notice I’m here. You can do your thing and I won’t get in the way.”

---