“Will my age be a problem?” He inches back, rests against the leather, and slides his arm over the back of the bench seat. His muscles flex and ripple beneath his shirt.
This man works out, and I . . . don’t. “It hasn’t been so far.”
“Not into guys on campus?”
“I didn’t say that, but no, college guys aren’t my type.”
“What is your type?”
You. Tall, dark, and sexy AF. I bypass his question. “Does my age bother you? I’m still in college.”
“It depends.” His heated gaze zones in on my eyes before dipping to my mouth. I squirm in my seat.
“On what?” I ask, breathless from his intense focus on my mouth.
“On whether we’ll see each other again. Will we, Ever?”
6
EVER
He smiles knowingly, and I can’t look away. Did he realize his play on words? Will we ever? Or is it Will we, Ever?
“A comma would make a difference, wouldn’t it?”
He chuckles. “It sure would.”
“Can we talk more, and I’ll give you an answer before I leave?”
“That’s a fair ask.”
The server returns with our drinks. Bobby points at my glass. “My place is near if you’d rather sleep off a stronger drink than make the drive home.”
“My brother would kill me. But a beer does sound good.”
“On me.” He lifts his hand to signal for the server.
I shake my head. He puts his hand down, and the server moves to a different table.
“I have work in the morning. Saturdays are our busiest. My boss loves to do these specials as we get closer to the holidays. Sometimes, he gets the specials and orders for the McMillan bakery mixed up with the one in Delridge. I check the inventory and match it with the theme. If it’s off, I’ll call the bakery in Delridge and we’ll switch themes. He also does price specials, so I check the prices with his list. Mornings are hectic, and it’s important I have a clear head.”
He stares at my mouth. The silence stretches on. My face heats, and I mutter an apology. “I must’ve bored you with the details.” It’s been forever since I’ve gone on a date, and I’ve forgotten how to talk to a man. Not that this is a date.
“I wasn’t bored. It’s cliché, but the devil is in the details.” He shrugs his muscular shoulders, drawing my eyes to the bold ink on his neck.
A skull tattoo with angel wings is set in a bouquet of roses in full bloom. The stems are snakes that disappear below his collar. The devil is in the details, and I suddenly want to press my mouth on the symbol of death and kiss along the wings of a fallen angel after he tells me the meaning behind the ink.
No one’s put up with me going into detail. And when they do, their eyes glaze over. Bobby doesn’t look at me like he’d rather be elsewhere. That’s what the college guys do at the parties Arie drags me to. Bobby does the opposite. He leans in and takes in every word. His attention stays on me rather than flitting around the room.
“You think so?” I look away from his tattoo and chug down my water.
“I do. You left out the name of the bakery.”
“For a reason. No giving out personal information to strangers.” The server returns with my cheese sticks. “It’s one of my brother’s many rules.”
He smiles. “Stranger danger. It was right of him to warn you. Your brother is a good guy.”
“He is.” Faults and all.
