Page 13 of Falling for Red
“Snark?” I feign innocence.
“All of your compliments have had little digs in them so far.”
I sip my Negroni, smiling back. “So, tell me …doyou have a thing for single moms?”
“Deflecting is a tell for you, in case you didn’t know,” he cooly says, tapping his glass with mine.
“You’re smarter than I was anticipating,” I tease, taking another sip of my drink, giving him that snark.
“Why do you think I’m smart?” he asks with a sly smile.
“Because you know how your acting works.”
“I’m not acting.”
“Time will tell.”
“Acting hard to get is very sexy.”
“I’m not acting.”
“Time will tell.” He chuckles, clearly amused with himself. But I’m amused too, laughing, smiling. “I go to High Five a couple of times a month. I’m surprised I’ve never seen you.”
“I work weekday day shifts. On weekends, when my daughter is with her dad, I’ll pick up a shift or two.”
“I’m not much of a day drinker. Really, not that much of a drinker. Just here and there.”
“Same.”
“Carpaccio,” Anna’s voice breaks through.
“If you make a raw meat joke, you’re losing some points,” I tease, staring at the dish.
10
“You wish I was that simple,” I tease back, stunned—in the best way—by how this date is going. Claire is fucking gorgeous, but there’s more to her than looks. She’s challenging me at every turn, and I’m loving it. There’s something refreshing about a woman who doesn’t hold back, who pushes and prods like she’s testing what I’m made of.
“Do you want another one?” I ask, eyeing her empty drink.
“After we’re done eating, yes.” Then a sly smile grows on her face. “If you have one more drink, are you going to be more or less inclined to break your rules?”
I nearly grumble.Is she teasing me, or does she seriously want to hook up?“It wouldn’t matter. Rules are rules.”
“Another hard habit to shake from the military?”
“There are plenty of lingering habits from the military … like waking up super early. The Marine discipline is drilled into me.”
“So, you never break the rules?” she flirts.
“Who are we without our principles?” I say, leaning forward. She smiles down at the food, avoiding my gaze, and I watch her cut her appetizer into small bites. “Are you hoping that with another drink, I’ll objectify you?”
“Hoping?” she mocks, looking up through her lashes. She knows exactly what she’s doing, and I’m here for it.
“If you want me to tell you that you’re the sexiest fucking woman I’ve ever seen, I’ll just tell you.”
She bites her thumbnail, her blue eyes staring deeply into mine.
“If you want me to tell you that your action-figure aesthetic is working for you,” she says, with a growing smile, “then I guess I will.”
