Page 10 of Sweet Passions at Bayside
Rick gave Desiree a quick kiss and swatted her butt as she pushed to her feet. “Go, have fun.”
“She’s right,” Drake said to Dean, eyes tracking Serena, who had stopped to talk to a guy by the edge of the dance floor. “You should dance with Emery. You know you’re into her.”
“Look who’s talking.” Dean chugged his beer. He wasn’t sure if Drake was bluffing or if he was as transparent as his friends made him seem, but he’d never admitted his feelings for Emery to either of them. And if he was that transparent, then Emery must be the only one wearing blinders.
Drake scoffed. “Not even close. Besides, I don’t dip the pen in the company ink.”
“Neither do I,” Dean said, silently reminding Drake that next week Emery was on their payroll. “I just don’t want her getting hurt by some jerk.”
He watched the girls dance to a few more songs, every minute more painful than the last, as Emery amped up her dirty dancing, catching the eyes of the few men who hadn’t already been leering at her. Maybe he should fire her before she started working for them and make a move after all.
Shoot.The whole friendship thing would still be a problem.
Drake and Rick began planning the group’s next tubing adventure. They’d enjoyed just about every water sport available on and off the Cape since they were kids. The three of them were always planning one adventure or another, but Dean could no more concentrate on their conversation than take his eyes off Emery.
“Dean?” Drake said sometime later. “Can you make it? Tubing a week from Thursday?”
He was only half listening. “Yeah, count me in. Are the girls coming?” If the girls were going to be there, chances were, Emery would be there, too.
“Yes. That’s why we’re going in the afternoon. Des has to be at the inn in the morning.”
“Perfect.” Dean’s phone vibrated, and he took it out of his pocket, saw his father’s name on the screen, and sent it to voicemail. He wasn’t in the mood to deal with his overbearing father’s bull about getting serious and going to medical school. Not today.Not ever.It was bad enough that he’d have to spend the night of the benefit dinner pretending to have a pleasant relationship with his father.
Dean gazed out at the dance floor, struggling to push those harsh feelings aside. By the time the girls made their way back to the table, hanging on to each other and giggling, he’d come out from under his father’s shadow.
Emery sat down beside him and took a drink of his beer. He struggled to resist the urge to drape an arm around her and send the message to the rest of the jerks in the bar that she was taken.
But she wasn’t taken.
And if he made a move, she’d probably give him a hard time for putting a damper on their friendship.
In other words, he was trapped.
“Emery has a date tomorrow night,” Violet announced while pouring herself a drink.
Dean felt Rick’s and Drake’s eyes on him, but he was too busy grinding his back teeth to react. “Adate?”
Emery pointed across the dance floor to the guy he’d mentally slaughtered. “I’m going out withhim. He’s pretty hot, right?”
Dean wanted to wipe the floor with the guy’s arrogant grin. “You just met the guy.”
“So what?” Emery said. “He’s a pretty good dancer, and it’s not like I have anything better to do at the moment.”
“Don’t you mean anyonebetter to do?” Violet waggled her brows. Then her eyes narrowed and she pointed at Emery. “I had to move out of the big house because Desiree and Rick kept that headboard banging at all hours of the night. If you’re staying with me, just keep that kind of noise to a minimum.”
“I’m not a skank, Vi.” Emery reached for Dean’s beer again. “Besides, you’re the one who told me to bring earplugs.”
“I was kidding,” she said unconvincingly.
“Sounds like mixed messages to me,” Serena said.
Emery took another sip of Dean’s beer. He filled a glass and set it in front of her.
She wrinkled her nose, looking adorable. “I hate beer.”
“You could have fooled me.”
She put her hands around his glass and flashed the sexiest smile he’d ever seen. “It tastes better because it’syours. It’s like eating a salad you make yourself and taking care to use all the same ingredients that they use at your favorite restaurant. No matter how you cut the lettuce and veggies, it’s never as good as the salad you get at the restaurant, because someoneelsemade the other one.”
