His brother’s brows rose, and it was easy to see the nosy in his brother’s expression. “Blondie?”
Dallas sighed. “Yeah. She’s been away for the weekend.”
“Why didn’t you say so? I’ll clear out and give you lovebirds privacy.”
“No, it’s okay. We’re meeting tomorrow night.” All night, he told himself. They’d sleep together after making love, so he could feed his Laura fix.
“Who is she? Why the mystery? You usually tell me about your women. Wait, you haven’t hooked up with Maria again? I heard she was back in town.”
“Maria, no. She’s not blonde. It’s someone else, and I can’t talk about her.”
“Sounds serious.”
“Yeah.”
The ringtone of Dallas’s cell phone made him glance at the screen. A smile burst to life. “I’ll take this while you order the pizza. Do you want a beer?”
“Sure.”
“There’s some in the fridge. Grab one for me too.” He felt his brother’s curiosity buffeting him as he answered his phone and walked into his bedroom. He shut the door after him to guarantee privacy. “Hey.”
“Have I caught you at a bad time?” Laura’s voice was a cool balm to his ruffled composure.
“My younger brother decided I needed cheering up and he’s staying for pizza.”
“I can ring back.”
“No, I have a few minutes. How was the wedding?”
“Everything went without a hitch, and I’m now officially at the top of the list to fire off next.”
He laughed at the horror lacing her dry voice, but it wasn’t a joke. He knew Mrs. Drummond, knew the extent of her determined manner even though he’d never spoken to her in person. “And the dress was as ugly as you remembered?”
“Worse,” she said. “I spoke to James. I’ve arranged a meeting with him and his boyfriend later in the week. I wondered if you’d go with me.”
“Me?”
“Yeah. I’m not interested in anyone but you. If you can’t handle that we shouldn’t go any further. I thought about you the entire weekend and decided it was best if I told you upfront so you know where the lines are drawn.”
Dallas was silent for a moment, equal parts admiring and horrified. But damn it, wasn’t he thinking the same way? “What if James talks?”
“I don’t think he will. We spent time together this weekend to appease my mother, his parents. I told him there was someone else. Besides, it will set his boyfriend’s mind at rest and make him realize I’m honest when I say I’m not interested in James. And a purely personal reason—I want to introduce you to someone as my boyfriend. Does that sound stupid?”
God, she was brave, so brave. She was risking a lot for him, for them, and he owed her the same level of loyalty. “As long as you think he’ll keep his mouth shut.”
“He’s a lawyer. We’ll engage him as our lawyer and pay him a dollar or something.”
Dallas laughed at her ingenuity. “I missed you.”
“I was a good girl, Dallas. I behaved myself, even through the long, lonely nights, and now I have the worst case of sexual frustration. You’re going to fix it, you hear?”
His laughter rang out this time. “I hear, sweetheart. I have good news. The real estate agent rang to say I can collect the keys since the tenants moved out sooner than expected. Can you meet me tomorrow night?”
“Yes.” She never hesitated, and it warmed him through. “I have another temp job tomorrow and won’t finish work until five. Do you want me to meet you at the house?”
“Yeah, that sounds good. I’ll sort dinner.”
“I missed you, Dallas. I can’t wait until tomorrow.”
