Page 37 of An Overdue Match
Going out with Tai ishispart of the bargain, not mine. And I willnotrenegotiate our terms. End of discussion.
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An inkling of regret tugged at Tai’s conscience as he mounted Evangeline’s front porch steps. The wordcoerciondidn’t have a nice ring to it, especially in the context of getting a woman to go out with him. But motives and intentions outweighed means in situations like this, didn’t they? And his motives and intentions, if not completely unselfish, at least came from a good place.
Yes, he wanted to get to know Evangeline better and perhaps have her see past what Hayley called his “wolf’s clothing,” whatever that meant. But that truly was secondary. What he really wanted and hoped to achieve was for her to get to knowherselfbetter because he truly suspected she’d somehow forgotten who she was deep down inside, letting how others saw her distort her self-image. Chalk up the insight to like calling to like or a sixth sense, but he recognized the signs of lost identity in her because he’d traveled down that road himself, first believing he was weak and sickly because of his mom’s view of him, and then that he was the black sheep and not someone to be trusted based on the town’s verdict. It was only recently that he’d been able to get out from under other people’s perceptions, and he wanted that same type of freedom for Evangeline.
Tai lifted his fist and knocked on the storm door, taking a step back to wait for the entrance to swing open. He was under no false impression that Evangeline would like this corner that he’d painted her into, and while the front door swung inward, the storm door’s hinges opened the other way, and he wouldn’t put it past her toaccidentallyuse the frame to bludgeon his nose.
The lock mechanism clicked, then the front entrance opened, revealing one scowling librarian and an owl-eyed feline at her feet. Only one of them appeared as if she wanted to hiss and scratch at him ... and it wasn’t the cat.
Tai grinned at Evangeline, then ignored her completely, lowering to his haunches so he could address the cat at her level. “Hello. Who do we have here?”
“This is Kitty Purry, and she doesn’t take to strangers,” Evangeline said from above him.
Tai lifted his gaze, a sardonic half smile tipping one side of his lips as he held out two fingers for the cat to sniff. “Kitty Purry?”
“It’s a perfectly acceptable name for a cat.”
Said cat, the one who supposedly didn’t like strangers and had been named after a pop star, headbutted Tai’s hand, demanding to be petted.
“Is this when I hear you roar?” He chuckled as he scratched between her ears.
“Out of frustration,” Evangeline mumbled.
Tai suppressed a chuckle. That inkling of regret he’d felt earlier? Yeah, it had completely vanished. Amusement replaced any sort of contrition that had been weighing him down.
He tickled Kitty Purry under the chin one more time then stood, addressing his date for the night. “You ready to go?”
“A deal is a deal.” She met his gaze head-on, a wry slant to her pretty mouth.
Tai searched for anything that would make him call thebargain off. He wasn’t above a little arm-twisting (although a few days ago he wouldn’t have believed it about himself), but he drew the line atreallyforcing his company on a woman.
She lifted her brows in challenge.
Nope. Tai didn’t have anything to worry about on that front. Evangeline may have clouded herself in an air of provocation and offense at his heavy-handedness in getting her to agree to these dates with him, but any sign of wariness or trepidation had been replaced with a defiant tilt to her chin.
“Let me get my jacket.” She turned and walked farther into the house.
Tai watched her retreat. He’d half expected her to answer the door in old, stained sweats, her wig unbrushed, and perhaps food in her teeth for good measure. Would have served him right, although the efforts would also have been in vain. There wasn’t anything she could do to change her physical appearance that would make him find her unattractive.
Although, admittedly, he was glad she’d chosen a flattering dress that hugged her upper body, then flared out over her hips, hitting just above her knees. The skirt swished about her legs as she moved, almost like a hypnotist’s pendulum.
He blinked out of a trancelike state. “You look very nice this evening,” he said as she stepped through the front entrance and locked the door behind her.
She turned to him after putting the house key inside her purse, her hand punched to one hip and her jaw set again at a defiant yet elegant angle. “This isn’t a real date, so you can save the false flattery for someone who’ll fall for it hook, line, and sinker. This fish isn’t biting.” With that, she marched past him and down the steps.
“You’re wrong on both accounts.” He raised his voice toward her back as he hurried to catch up to her and open the passenger door before she could reach for the handle. “This is verymuch a real date, and there was nothing false in my statement. You must know you’re beautiful.”
Looking less sure than she had moments before, she avoided his eyes, chewing on her lower lip as she rounded the opened door.
Tai put out a hand and settled his palm on her upper arm, stopping her from climbing into the car. Reluctantly she turned but still refused to meet his eyes.
She couldn’t really ... could she? But ... why not? His brows tugged to the middle of his forehead. The realization that she had no idea how beautiful she was surprised and confused him. Did she not own a mirror? Had no one ever told her before?
“You don’t know. How can you not know?” He said this last part more to himself than to her. As far as he was concerned, he’d stumbled upon one of life’s greatest mysteries. Or tragedies, really. One he had to rectify immediately.
Lifting a hand, he crooked two fingers under her chin, turning her face so that she could see the sincerity in his eyes as much as hear them in his words. “Angel, you’re beautiful.”
