Page 28 of Next in Line
“I know I’m not. Don’t worry about it, all right? I usually have breakfast at Mom’s on Sundays mornings, so I’ll crash here.”
“Oh,” I reply quietly.
“It’s nice to know you care, though,” he states, and I look over to see a sexy grin on his face.
“Whatever,” I reply immaturely but then slowly pull my lower lip into my mouth because with just that one smirk, the whole car has filled with sexual tension.
We’re quiet for a moment. The only sounds in the car are the idling engine and our soft breaths. Today has been a crazy, unexpected day. Boulder seems to be full of the unexpected, and Sam is at the very top of that list. I can feel him looking at me for a beat, and when he lifts his hand, I suck in a sharp breath because I think he’s going to reach for me…until he pulls out his phone.
“I’m texting you my address,” he says, his voice all business. “Pick me up tomorrow, and I won’t tell Miles what you’re doing.” He opens the door to get out but then pauses to look back at me. “I have to hand it to you, sparky. This sounds like the worst plan I’ve ever heard, but you’re committed, and I kind of like you more for it.”
Caught On The Hook
“Hey, where ya going?” Kate asks, catching me at the front door as I’m gingerly slipping my feet into my Sorel wedge boots.
I plant a smile on my face as I glance down at her bare legs sticking out of my brother’s giant T-shirt. Kate moved into Miles’s fixer-upper in Jamestown a few months ago, but this is the first time I’ve witnessed them cohabitating. It’s pretty damn cute if I’m being honest. I’ve only been here a day, but I already watched them argue over Kate’s short dress last night with big, goofy smiles on their faces the entire time. If that’s how most of their fights go, then I’m pretty sure I’ll be calling Kate a sister sooner rather than later.
I’m just glad Miles found someone worthy of him. Miles had brought Kate back to Utah with him a few months ago so she could meet my parents before they moved in together, and it was love at first sight for all of us. Though admittedly, his ex, Jocelyn, was so vile, Miles could have brought home a blow-up doll, and we would have been over the moon with the step up.
But Kate is creative, funny, kind, and just the right amount of crazy for him. She takes on his overbearing nature like a champ. I wish I had just an ounce of her moxie.
“I’m…um…just going for a drive,” I stammer and shove my foot into my other boot as Kate pads barefoot over to me.
She eyes me curiously and crosses her arms over her chest. “A drive to where?”
“The mountains?” I reply, and my face screws up in horror.Why did I say mountains?“I mean…shopping. I was going to go shopping.”
“The shops around here don’t open until noon on Sundays, and you have mountains in Utah,” Kate states with a suspicious twinkle to her eye. “Where are you really going?”
I roll my eyes and exhale heavily. “Somewhere that Miles would not approve of.”
A Cheshire cat grin spreads across her face as she leans against the wall. “Miles is overprotective, overbearing, and possessive—believe me, I know it,” she replies with the chastising click of her teeth. “As his girlfriend, it just so happens to be my favorite parts about him…but I totally understand how having a big brother like that would be hard on a single little sister.”
“What are you talking about? I’m not single!” I exclaim, my voice rising in pitch as I lie through my teeth.
Kate’s chin drops. “Meg, on Christmas day, you ate an entire bowl of cookie dough without even pausing for a drink of milk. That type of Olympic-style binge-eating can only be the result of a broken heart.”
I groan and press my back to the front door, chewing my lip nervously. “Are you going to tell Miles?”
Her eyes flash with interest. “Not as long as you tell me who you’re going on a date with.”
“What makes you think I’m going on a date?”
“You have a date look,” she replies, looking me up and down. “I mean, c’mon, your hair is even curled.”
I glance down at my appearance for a moment. My cream sweater has a lace underlayer that drapes over my stretchy faux-leather leggings. Obviously, all of this will be going under the snowsuit currently stashed in my trunk, but I do admit I’m probably a tad overdressed for ice climbing. Maybe I need to invest in some outdoorsy activewear?
I look up and give Kate a serious look. “It’s not a date but an outing that Sam has agreed to take me on.”
“Sam? I knew it!” Kate exclaims, and I quickly put my hand over her mouth to shush her. “Sorry…but I did know it,” she mumbles against my palm.
“There’s nothing to know!” I reply, shaking my head and pulling my hand away from Kate’s face. “Sam is just being friendly.”
“No way,” she retorts with narrowed eyes. “I saw how he watched you last night.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, flipping my hair casually and ignoring the butterflies taking flight in my belly.
Kate shakes her head knowingly. “He watched you like a man watches a filet on the grill.”
