“She does, doesn’t she?” Addison asked, grinning.
“I... yeah. Wow.”
Okay, so I didn’t dress up that often, but was it really that much of a change? The more I thought about it, the more I realized yes, it was. What if he liked this me more than the real me? What if he expectedme to dress like this and employ witches to craft my face and hair all the time? I couldn’t do that. I wouldn’t even want to. This was all a huge mistake. “Thanks.”
“You ready to go?” he asked.
We both hugged Addison, and then Asher grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze. He and I had held hands lots of times as kids but it had been years, and I sure as heck didn’t remember the contact causinglittle bolts of electricity to shoot up my arm. Opening the passenger seat of his well-equipped BMW 750i, he waited while I slid inside and melted into the soft leather. My car was a beat-up twenty-year-old Honda Civic with more miles on it than my great-grandma, whereas Asher’s car had probably cost more than my lifetime salary. He took me to the Portland City Grill, where he apparently had a windowseat reserved. I’d come to the PCG a few times with Addison, but tried to avoid it since my monetary restrictions were more in line with grilled cheese sandwiches than crab stuffed halibut. I felt my eyes bulge at the prices on the menu.
“My treat, Dylan. I invited you.”
I wanted to argue, but I could tell this was as important to Asher as it was to Addison—my crazy, generous friends. “Okay.But only if I get to treat you next time. Not to somewhere like this, of course, but I’m tellin’ you the Grilled Cheese Grill is way underrated.”
He chuckled. “Deal.”
Eating was difficult because of the way my stomach kept reacting to Asher’s proximity, but I made it through. We talked about upcoming movies we wanted to see, Asher’s job, sprucing up my resume, pretty much everything we couldthink of without mentioning the murder case. The whole day felt like a much-needed break from reality, and by the time we got back to Asher’s car, my stomach was borderline calm.
“I had a really great time tonight,” he said, parking in Addison’s garage.
“I did too.” I unbuckled my seatbelt and climbed out of the car before Asher could object. I needed out. Now that dinner was over and we wereback home, I felt like a little girl dressed up in adult clothes. Nothing fit.
I made it to the elevator bay before Asher caught up to me, a secret smile on his face. The doors to a car opened, and he followed me inside. As the doors closed, he slid his hand to my waist and covered my mouth with his. I was so unprepared for the kiss, I could do nothing but participate. His tongue touched mylips and I opened my mouth. Heat spread throughout my body. Needing to be closer to him, I looped my arms around his neck, slipping my fingers into his hair.
He deepened the kiss and the hand around my waist slipped to my bottom while the other explored the back of my neck, tangling in my hair.
All too soon my stomach realized what was happening and freaked the hell out. The elevator dingedand the doors opened. I pulled away from Asher and blurted out, “Thanks again!” Then I sprinted for Addison’s door.
I unlocked it and threw it open, waving good-bye to Asher before I shut the door. Worried he was going to come in after me, I leaned up against it and looked out the peephole. Confusion crinkled his brow, but then he shrugged and smiled. As he turned and headed back for the elevatormy stomach stopped flipping, but my heart was still racing. I put my back to the door and slid to the floor.
* * *
Addison
My bedroom door wasopen, so I heard my front door slam, and I smiled as I set my Kindle on the side table. As much as I hated to leave the biker world of Tack and Tyra, I figured Dylan must be home, and I was dying to hear how it all went. I called out, “Uh... howdid it go?”
No one answered, and since I was still amped up from Jake’s warning earlier about someone trying to come here for evidence, I grabbed my gun and slinked down the hallway. Dylan sat on her butt, back against the front door, looking as though she’d seen a ghost. I set my gun on the kitchen island and flopped down beside her, worried she didn’t have a good time. “You okay?”
She turnedwide eyes to me and breathed out, “Ohmigod, Addie, we need to figure out who the hell killed Kirk and clear my name because I cannot go back to jail. Cannot.”
I raised an eyebrow. “That good, huh?”
She dropped her face in her hands and groaned. “I can’t live without him, Addie. He kissed me and I... I really want more of that.”
I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “We’re going to figurethis out, honey. I promise.”
She raised her head with a sigh. “I wish I could believe you.”
I giggled. “If we don’t get you totally cleared before you go to trial, I’ll get you a fake passport, we’ll grab Daddy’s plane, and head to some country that doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the U.S.”
“I’ll go if Asher goes.”
“Of course he’d go. F-Y-information, he can’t live without you either.It’s just nice to see your head is finally out of your butt enough to do something about it.”
“...it’s nice your head is out of your butt,” she mocked.
I grinned. “Come on, let’s have some wine.”
“I have to get out of this dress. It’s cutting off my circulation.”
