“No. I just…” He looked to be struggling.
I was amused despite myself. And because he’d made sure I’d gotten home safely on my own at the last event, I also felt protective of him. He’d helped me, so I wanted to help him.
“How many romance books have you read?”
He didn’t answer.
I prodded further. “You know you don’t have to be afraid of them, right?”
That was enough to earn a glare from him. “I’m not afraid of romance!” he barked loudly enough that Nathan, who was exiting his own Uber not too far up, jerked up his chin.
“Oh, there they are,” Nathan crooned. “I wondered if you two would be having another interlude this evening. You know, since the last one resulted in you going home together.”
Brody’s cheeks turned a mottled shade of red, and he looked as if he wanted to find a hole to crawl into and die. That only made my smile stretch wider.
“Can you not?” he hissed at his best friend. “I told you that wasn’t … whatever it is you think it was.”
I couldn’t stop myself from making things worse. For Brody, not for me. I’d never met a problem that I didn’t want to make worse for somebody. That was simply who I was.
With that in mind, I slipped my arm through Brody’s and tugged him in closer to my side. “You’re just jealous,” I said to Nathan, using my sultriest voice. “You wish someone would rock your world as thoroughly as I rocked Brody’s world last time.”
Brody sputtered. “We?—”
I cut him off by grabbing him tighter. “There’s no need to be bashful, cuddle bear,” I cooed. “It was an amazing night for both of us.”
I was trying to make Nathan uncomfortable so he would lay off Brody. It didn’t seem fair that he was constantly the alpha in their friendship when he idled at douche so often. Nathan, unfortunately, could not be rattled.
“I told him I saw a spark between the two of you, and he claimed I was imagining it.” Nathan slapped his hand down on Brody’s shoulder hard. “You dog. I can’t believe you kept this from me.” He took a step toward the door. “I’m going to expect full details later.” He winked at me then walked away.
“He sucks,” I complained as I released Brody, glaring in his friend’s wake.
“I think you’re just used to intimidating people with your mouth,” Brody grumbled as he rubbed his arm where I had grabbed him. He was clearly unhappy. “Nathan does the same thing, so you have your work cut out for you there if you expect to beat him at his own game.”
“Thanks for the tip. I guess I’ll have to up my game.” I took the opportunity to look him up and down. He was dressed in simple khakis and a polo shirt—the same ensemble he’d worn to the previous event, except for the color of his shirt—and his hair looked freshly styled. “Are you looking forward to tonight?” I asked for lack of anything better to say.
Brody shrugged. “The last one wasn’t as bad as I was expecting, so my anxiety wasn’t as bad for this one.”
“Until you saw it was called Spanky’s,” I teased.
“Yes, well…” He looked at the sign again.
“I’ll find some nice romance books for you that don’t include spanking,” I promised, looping my arm through his again.
Even I was surprised when I did it. He was warm, though, and I liked feeling the firmness of his arm. He wasn’t one of those Hollywood hunks with endless muscles or anything, but his body was solid, telling me he worked out regularly.
“Thanks,” he replied dryly. “I’m pretty sure I can pick out my own romance books.”
“Yeah?” He was so easy to tease. “Who is your favorite romance author?”
His eyes were like heat-seeking missiles when they found mine. “Maybe it’s you,” he said in a low voice. “Have you ever considered that?”
My throat was suddenly dry. He looked so intense. What was happening here? Why did it feel as if we were the only two people in the world? That wasn’t right. This man had deemed me his mortal enemy. There was nothing sparking.
No way.
No how.
Nothing doing.
