Leaning back in his chair, he closed his eyes and blurted, “I slept with her.” He opened his lids to see the corners of Wolf’s mouth turn down. “Not likethat,” he was quick to add, filling Wolf in on the book, the reading, and waking up all hashtagbodies entwined.“And now I’m afraid she’s thinking I’m something I’m not.”
“Which is?” Wolf prompted.
“Boyfriend material.”
“Ah.” Wolf nodded solemnly.
“I mean, she’s smart and sophisticated and rich and cultured. Everything I’m not. And even though I’mdefinitelythe man for the job when it comes to priming her pump—”
“Anyone ever tell you your relationship with humility is passin’ at best?” Wolf interrupted.
Romeo continued as if Wolf hadn’t spoken. “I’m definitelynotthe man for anything more.”
“Do youwantsomethin’ more?” Wolf arched his eyebrows.
“Wants got nothing to do with it.” Romeo refused to even consider the question. “I want to get ridden by a middle-aged woman in pigtails and a cheerleading outfit, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.”
Wolf’s expression flattened. “Just when I think you might be evolvin’, you go and say things like that and I’m reminded of how much of an asshole you truly are.”
“Oh, yeah? Well if I’m an asshole, then you’re the King of Asshole Mountain.”
Wolf’s chin jerked back. “How do you figure?”
“What happened that night at Schooner Wharf Bar?”
“Oh, hell on earth, no. We’re not goin’ there.”
“And why not?” Romeo lifted one eyebrow, which was the grown man equivalent of a juvenile shoulder poke.
“We’re talkin’ about you and Mia, not me and Chrissy.” Gone was Wolf’s agitation. He was back to being freakishly calm as he regarded Romeo through unreadable eyes.
“Fine.” Romeo sighed. “Go on and say it.”
Wolf’s tone was purposefully neutral. His words left no room for interpretation, however. “Mia isn’t the type of woman you fuck around with, figuratively or literally.”
“Iknowthat.”
“Which means if you don’t have honorable intentions toward her, you need to nip this thing in the bud sooner rather than later.”
“I know that too,” Romeo grumbled miserably, finally admitting to himself what he’d only suspected all morning long.
Somehow, through no fault of his own, he’d stumbled his way into a goat fuck of a situation. Or maybe it was more correct to say he’dsnoozedhis way into a goat fuck of a situation.
Not that he was a stranger to goat fucks. They were pretty much standard operating procedure for Navy SEALs. However, inthoseinstances, he’d always had a group of men ready and willing to back him up.
In this situation? He was all on his own.
And I have no clue how I’m going to get myself out of it without hurting or embarrassing or otherwise upsetting a perfectly lovely woman.
“Enough about me.” He swiped the air as if to shove aside the subject. But there it sat in the corner, like an 800-pound gorilla.So fine. The best I can do is ignore it.“Let’s talk about you and Chrissy. What happened last night?”
Wolf must’ve decided Romeo’s blurt-it-out approach worked well. He said without preamble, “I realized I’ve fallen in love with her.”
Romeo sat there blinking for a full five seconds. Then, “Damn, man. Way to bury the lede. Why didn’t we start withthat? That’shugenews!” He slapped Wolf on the shoulder, and then reconsidered his words. “Well, notnews, exactly. Anyone with working eyeballs in their head can see you’ve been falling for her for a while. But still. Now you’ve admitted it. Congratulations. When’s the wedding?”
Wolf’s mouth formed a straight line. “There’s a problem.”
“What’s that?”
