Third time really was going to be the charm.
The drive through downtown Atlanta felt surreal, like I was floating somewhere between dream and reality. My mind was a complete blur, replaying that kiss on the porch over and over until I was pretty sure I’d worn a groove in my brain.
“So how was your day?” I asked, regretting the idiocy of the question while trying to sound casual with my heart hammering against my ribs.
“Better now,” Theo said. To my complete surprise, he reached over and placed his hand on my leg, just above my knee. And—miracle of miracles—he left it there.
I nearly drove into a car parked on the side of the street.
“Careful there,” he said with a grin that suggested he knewexactlywhat effect he was having on me. “I’d rather not become a traffic statistic on our first real date.”
“Right. Focus. Driving.” I gripped the steering wheel tighter, hyperaware of the warmth of his hand through my jeans. Our first real date. I hadn’t thought of it in exactly those terms. It felt like we’d known each other for a while, despite the newness of everything. Still, if I kept a strict score, he was right. Every other attempt at dating had failed or broken or simply fallen apart in our hands. This was our first actual get-out-of-the-house date. Rather than calm my fraying nerves, that thought sent my overactive mind into, well, overdrive. “You were saying about your day?”
“Right. I had lunch with Mike and Mateo today. Turns out they know you.”
“Yeah, they’re good guys. Wait, did they give you the third degree? Because Sisi warned me they might—”
“They may have asked about my intentions,” Theo said dryly.
“Your what?”
“Intentions. Do I plan to treat you in an honorable way, or am I going to knock you up and leave you with eight children and no job?”I snorted, somewhere between a laugh and wheeze.
Theo merely grinned. “But the real news is that Mateo got engaged.”
“What the fuck?” slipped out. “Sorry, potty mouth. My bad.”
Theo rolled his eyes. “Watch your fucking language.”
I glanced his way. The annoying man was grinning.
“Fucking asshole and your fucking rules.”
“Damn straight. Well, not straight. Still . . . fuckwad.”
I couldn’t hold back a laugh.
Theo’s grin widened.
“So, Shane finally proposed? It’s about time. That man’s been carrying that ring around for weeks, waiting for the perfect moment.”
“You knew?” Theo sounded shocked.
I nodded. “It was hard to miss when a guy that size starts acting nervous around jewelry stores. Plus, Mike’s been practically vibrating with excitement every time someone mentioned weddings. Even he knew what Shane was up to, just not when or how he would ask.”
Theo groaned.
“What?” I asked, my eyes darting from the road to him and back. “Oh, shit. Please tell me he didn’t propose in a gas station.”
“It might be worse.”
“Oh, shit. Tell me,” I said.
“Pizza Hut. In front of Ms. Pacman.”
The car fell silent.
“That’s actually perfect.”
