“And drink,” he added.
“Let’s definitely drink.”
THERE WERE TWENTY AUTHORSparticipating, but I only recognized a handful of them. Nathan and Bree were obvious. There was a blonde seated across the table next to Bree whom I recognized as well. I missed her name when introductions were being made, but I’d seen her at events before. I maintained my cool throughout the brief meet and greet, smiling at each face in turn. I even managed to fake a smile for Bree. Then she was seated across from me in what felt like a cruel joke.
“I’m getting the fried catfish,” Bree’s friend announced.
I was annoyed I couldn’t remember her name. Hannah? Heather? It started with an H. I was almost certain of it.
“I like catfish too.” Nathan had a smile at the ready for the blonde. “It’s a favorite.”
The blonde eyed him. “You write horror, right?”
“I do,” Nathan said. “Do you like horror?” He asked it in a lascivious way.
Nathan had his flirt face going, and it made me cringe. Sometimes his flirting wasn’t targeted. He just flirted with anybody in the general vicinity because it alleviated his boredom. Other times, however, he took it to the next level. He was notorious for having one-night stands with other authors. He was always up front that he wasn’t looking for anything serious. That didn’t stop some of his temporary bed partners from holding grudges. The last thing I needed was him firing up Bree’s friend, because that meant Bree would get fired up, which wasn’t a good thing.
Two seats down, a petite science fiction writer with full tattoo sleeves and a short crop of violent-purple hair sat up straighter. “I like horror.”
Nathan gave her a friendly smile before turning back to the blonde. “What do you write again? I apologize, but the introductions were really rushed. I missed your name.”
Thank you.I was so grateful he’d gone there I almost cried out in relief. Bree’s narrow-eyed stare from across the table told me she was suspicious of my reaction. Had I jumped in my seat? I wouldn’t put it past me. I slapped a cool, flat smile onto my face to pretend there was nothing amiss.
“Hayley Clifton,” the blonde replied. “I write clean romance.”
The light in Nathan’s eyes went out. “Oh, bummer.”
For some reason, his response had Hayley grinning. “I’m also a lesbian, and your reputation precedes you.”
Nathan turned sheepish, although there was a twinkle in his eyes. “I’m actually grateful that you’re a lesbian. You’re hot. I feel I need to be ‘on’ when there’s a hot woman around.” He used air quotes. “If there’s no way I can possibly get you into bed, that allows us to be friends.”
I expected Hayley to balk, but she didn’t.
“You’re pretty honest, huh?” she said.
“I believe the word isblunt,” I said before realizing I was going to say anything.
“I happen to like blunt people,” Bree fired back.
I lifted my eyes to glare at her. She glared right back.
“Whoo-ee,” Nathan said in exaggerated cowboy fashion, fanning his hand in front of his face. “Is it just me or are there undertones happening here?”
I wanted to kick him under the table. Maybe with a knife attached to my boot. I couldn’t risk accidentally kicking somebody else, though. My luck was such that I would crash my shoe into Bree’s shin and hobble her for the rest of her life. While I didn’t really care about injuring her, the last thing I needed was the author community talking about it. They’d never met a story they didn’t want to rehash three million times over the same seasonal conference circuit.
“There are definitely undertones,” Hayley agreed.
The look Bree shot her friend told me she didn’t like the teasing any more than I did. That was … well, a relief. Maybe Bree and I had common ground after all.
“I don’t like catfish,” I announced like an idiot.
Bree’s full lips twitched in amusement as she slid her gaze to me. “Well, that was quite the transition,” she drawled.
I ignored her teasing tone. “I don’t like fish at all, if I’m being honest. Well, actually, I can stand fried cod. I don’t hate that.”
“Cod is the mildest of all the fish,” Nathan said. “I can see why that would be your thing.”
There was an insult buried in there under the teasing. The problem with Nathan was that he never meant it as an insult. He just said whatever came to mind.
