Page 109 of Devil in Disguise
“No way, buddy.” She pulled his head down and kissed him real good, and when he got his hand on her ass this time, it went right under that skirt.
Hey. It wasshort.Plus, she was on her toes.
Harlan said from behind her, “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Too much information. Nick’s too young to see this.”
“Go away,” Dyma said, but since she said it against Owen’s mouth, he wasn’t sure if Harlan heard it. “And we’re not skipping dinner. Do you realize I’ve gotten to watch three games in a row, and you’ve won all of them? And now I get to go out to a fancy restaurant with my super hot boyfriend and show off that he’s the best, and I’m the one who’s got him. I’m not skipping any part of that.”
Well, yeah. That worked, too. And then she added, “Besides, you owe me. I almost wet my pants, you took so long to win. My bladder cramped likecrazy. Or maybe that was my kidneys. Can your kidneys cramp? I about had to go the ER for urine blockage.”
How could you resist a girl like that? One who heated you up and still made you laugh that hard? They went out to dinner, he ate most of his weight in steak and she didn’t, she was Dyma-bubbly and Dyma-happy and told him a whole lot about how strong he was, and then they went home.
She said, as he pulled into the garage, “I’m not going to be sad that I’m leaving tomorrow. I’m going to be happy that you’re driving me up there this time, and that I get to go to—wherever it turns out to be—next weekend for the AFC Championship, and see you again then. Also that Pavani’s parents say I can still room with her.”
“Seriously? When did that happen?”
“Yesterday. Talk about leaving it until the last minute. I thought I was going to be living in some rent-by-the-week motel. Pavani said they haddiscussions.I can only imagine. Maybe it’s you again, huh, swinging the balance? I mean, your X factor? Good thing you won. Whoops, I’m not supposed to say that as a supportive girlfriend, because it puts pressure on you. See? I know that now. Also, I never realized my personality was such a problem.”
“Hey.” He leaned over, took her chin in his hand, and kissed her. “Your personality’s not a problem. I’m kinda crazy about your personality. And you can tell me you’re happy I won. I’m happy I won, too.”
“Well, good,” she said. “Because I think my personality’s probably formed. I can try to hold it back, but it just keeps bubbling out, you know?”
“Yeah,” he said, smiling out of his whole heart. “I noticed. So, hey, come inside.”
“You going to let me use you for sex?”
He laughed. “Probably. Also, I think all this talking’s not just about my game. I think it’s got something to do with you being worried about me, and not wanting to show it.So come inside.”
She was still saying, “I am not worried about you. I trust you!” when they got into the house. And then she stopped.
“Uh, Owen,” she said, “there’s a saddle on your dining-room table.”
“Yep. There is.”
“Are you getting a horse here or something?”
“Nope.”
“Mom’s old boyfriend used to work on his truck in his apartment,” she said. “I mean, he’d have an engine taken apart on the living-room floor. That’s why he was always hanging out at our place, because his was basically a garage. Also, he couldn’t really cook. That was another reason.”
“That’s interesting,” he said, “but not really. And, nope, the saddles stay in the barn. Nobody’s working on their truck in my house. Or their saddle, either. You met my mom. The woman had standards. Now, she doesn’t need standards, because we’re all too scared of her not to do right.”
“Then …”
“Yeah, see …” He scratched his cheek. Now that it came to the point, this was surprisingly difficult. “See, I thought going back to school might make you nervous. There I’ll be, finishing up the season and heading back to the ranch, and thereyou’llbe, all the way up in Seattle until the middle of June. And then … maybe not knowing what comes next.”
“Except for spring break,” she said. “And the wedding.”
“Yep. One week in the next five months or so. And I never did get you out to the ranch. So maybe I thought you needed some … proof.”
She had hold of the back of a chair like she needed support. “So this is … is it …”
“Well, yeah,” he said. “It’s your real Christmas present.”
* * *
She’d have saidOwen wasn’t expressive, except that right now, he was. To her, he was. That meant he was standing more solid than usual, and his face was even less mobile than usual. Like he was afraid to feel too much, or more like—afraid to show what he felt, because that could be scary. Even in somebody as strong as he was, asbraveas he was, feeling too much, and showing it, could be scary. She said, “You bought me a saddle.”
“Yep. I did.”
