Page 11 of Reckless
Leave it to me to attract the one man in the world who seems to be unoffendable. The one man in the world who won’t leave me alone when I feel ready to join Wonder Woman on her women-only island.
“Which one?” He shoves the two glasses of wine in front of me, interrupting my daydream.
“What?”
“Red or white? You said you needed a drink. I wasn’t sure which one you like better, so I poured both. I’ll drink whatever you don’t.”
I am struck dumb. I want to make a jab about how I’m not surprised at all that he’ll drink whatever he can.
He seems like the type. Cocky. Handsome. Thinks far too highly of himself. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know a man like him gets around. He reeks of experience, something I am sorely lacking.
Because I had stars in my eyes over Rob—until I didn’t.
I eye the wine speculatively. Is this considered having a drink with a man?
Rob would have brought a specific bottle of wine from a specific region and had it chilled to an exact temperature. And then he’d shove a glass of it at me and whisper some ostentatious comment in my ear about how the hosts have the cheapest wine out to share.
I reach forward, tentatively taking the white wine. Red will stain my teeth, and I already feel self-conscious enough being here.
I’m about to say thank you, even though it pains me, but the tips of my fingers brush briefly against his and a static shock passes between us. It has my eyes shooting up. My hand darts back from the wineglass as I cradle it to my chest.
“You okay?” His brows knit together.
Okay?I almost laugh. It’s just the dry prairie air. Everything is staticky. It’s not like I got shot. But he’s genuinely concerned, and that is...unnerving.
A word I keep coming back to tonight. Word of the day. My life is nowSesame Street, and I am Oscar the Grouch.
Pretty sure Elmo just brought me my wine.
I snag it and walk away, planning to try my hand at mingling. Because much as I hate to mingle, I think I hate standing there staring into Theo Silva’s deep, dark eyes while basking in his citrus and ginger scent even more.
* * *
“Any news on Beau?” Summer asks from beside me at the huge family-style dining table.
Harvey clears his throat and sits up a little taller. “Yeah, yeah. He’s doing well, actually. There are third-degree burns on his feet. They had to do a skin graft and were monitoring pretty closely for infection to flare back up. But the update yesterday is they’re impressed with how quickly he’s healing.”
“Leave it to Beau to be fucking good at everything,” Rhett murmurs, shaking his head.
He gets a chorus of laughs for that one. I haven’t met this other brother. The gist of what I understand is that he’s in the military and something happened during his deployment. He’s now in a military hospital.
Burns are nasty business. I’ve seen my fair share in the emergency room. Wouldn’t wish them on my worst enemy.
Well, okay. I would Rob. I’m notthatnice.
“We’re gonna have to get him set up with some docs when he comes back home.”
I shrug as I spear a brown sugar-glazed carrot from my plate and the offer leaps from my lips before I even have a chance to shut it down. “I can help with that.”
“Yeah?” Harvey’s face brightens from across the table, and I wonder if being nice is infectious somehow.
It wasn’t covered in med school. But science is always evolving.
My eyes lock onto Theo’s. He’s sitting right across from me and I’m finding it hard not to stare. The way the candle between us flickers against his lightly stubbled face is distracting. And blinking away quickly like a child caught peeking is immature.
But I do it anyway. Like I’m reverting back to my teen years with some popular boy who sits across the class from me.
Everything about me tonight is so out of character. I opt not to analyze it with a microscope.
