Jaeg groaned. “Cali thinks Ireland needs more excitement in her life.”
“Well, she does.” Cali said.
“Babe, do you remember the last time you helped a friend meet men?”
Bran hid a smile. He’d heard something about that one. Cali had originally tried to set up Jaeg with her best friend Gen. Instead Cali had ended up falling in love with Jaeg. Cali’s romance radar wasn’t the sharpest.
Cali waved Jaeg off. “This is totally different. Ireland is shy, and she’s been working nonstop to pay off her school loans. She hasn’t had the opportunity to meet people. No good people, anyway, and that’s what we’re working on.”
Bran caught the eye of the waitress he’d been casually talking to for weeks. A light smile flittered across her face. She quickly glanced away.
Nowthatwas a shy woman. And just his type. He didn’t need or want aggressive women in his life. “Will you excuse me? I see someone I want to say hello to.”
“Catch you later,” Jaeg said, as Cali continued to talk about Ireland.
Bran tuned out the conversation and made his way across the room. He didn’t want to hear about the “clumsy” redhead. The waitress he’d been talking to for weeks was pretty and sweet. Simple. Of course, Bran hadn’t made a move yet. Hadn’t mustered up the energy to ask her out. Which was how he knew he was safe.
Bran’s mind didn’t cloud over when he saw the waitress, and his libido was never in control when they talked.
His desires would never rule over him again.
Chapter 1
Thanks to a hard nudge from her cousin Cali, Ireland nearly slipped off the wooden stool of the pizza joint.
Cali lifted her chin toward a table across the way. “Check out who’s here.”
Ireland grabbed glasses from her purse and slipped them on.
And promptly pulled them off, shoving them back in her bag. She continued to peel the edges of her napkin. “I’ve met the Cade brothers a half dozen times. I know who they are.”
Cali blinked at Ireland’s purse. “But you didn’tseethem, did you? When I said you should try going without your glasses, I thought you’d wear contacts. You’re going to get yourself killed without them.”
“My new contacts irritate my eyes. And it’s not like I drive without my glasses.”
Cali didn’t look convinced. “You ever think about surgery?”
Ireland frowned. “Do you want someone cutting into your eyeball?”
Cali scrunched her nose.
“Exactly,” Ireland said. “When I muster the nerve to have my eyes lasered, I’ll let you know. Besides, I can’t afford it right now.”
“Well, in the meantime, at least put your darn glasses back on, because two single Cades are in the house, and they’re hot. I think you should go for one of them.”
Ireland rolled her nearsighted eyes. She didn’t need to see clearly. She was well aware of the strapping Cade brothers. “I appreciate you wanting to help me find dates while I’m in Lake Tahoe, because you found Jaeg in this town, and he’s, well,Jaeger, but I don’t have the same luck you do. Besides, I want a relationship to happen naturally. Like things did for you and Jaeg.”
A look crossed Cali’s eyes. “I wouldn’t say things began smoothly with Jaeg, but we figured things out. And yes, my lover is incredible.” She waggled her eyebrows.
Ireland pinched the bridge of her nose. “Too much information, Cali.”
Cali nudged Ireland in the shoulder again. “Speaking of my hot fiancé, he’s friends with the Cades. They’re good guys; you should give one of them a chance. Your let-it-happen-naturally approach sucks. You haven’t gone on a date since you arrived.”
Ireland frowned. “I’ve spent the last half a dozen years around socially inept men while working my tail off. Dating someone isn’t a top priority. Not that I don’t find men attractive from time to time.” Including one Cade brother, who Ireland wasn’t going to mention. It would only rile up Cali.
“Which is why it’s time you get out and date normal guys. Weren’t all the men you worked with techy nerds with no social skills?”
“Not all of them. And if they’re nerds, so am I.”
