“You never did tell me what happened. Did you end up telling Rory?”
Yes, he had.
It had been one of the most frightening moments of his life, but he’d managed to get the words out of his mouth without making a complete ass out of himself. When the words were finally out, Rory gave him the sweetest smile seconds before all the alcohol she’d consumed during the night before made a second appearance. After that rather momentous occasion, he’d spent the rest of the night helping her to the jail cell’s toilet, helping her drink water and waiting for the moment when the alcohol finally wore off. When that moment came, the look on Rory’s face said it all. She didn’t feel the same way and probably wouldn’t appreciate hearing that he was in love with her, so he kept his mouth shut.
“It was just a childhood crush,” Connor said with a shrug.
It had been a painful and gut-wrenching experience, but one that he’d managed to get over with time and a lot of beer. He’d learned to appreciate their little antics, kept an eye out for her, but the palm-sweating reaction he used to get just from thinking about her was long gone. It probably also didn’t hurt that he’d inadvertently ruined her life that night.
There were a lot of things that he wished that he could change about that night but following her out of that bar was not one of them. If her brothers had been keeping a better eye on her, they would have seen that asshole leading Rory, who could barely stand at the time, out the back door. The only thing that he regretted was not getting Rory out of there before the bastard managed to pull a knife on him. If he had...
Rory’s life would be a lot different than it was now. He knew that much, at least. He couldn’t go back and change things, but he could at least help make her life easier by keeping her safe. He still planned on enjoying himself while he did it and holy hell, was he enjoying himself. There really were no words to describe what it felt like to kiss and hold Rory.
He couldn’t get enough of her. He must have kissed her half the night last night and he’d been surprised to discover that he didn’t want to stop. He’d still love to get her in his bed, but that wasn’t going to happen and he had no plans on trying, either. This was more than enough for him. He’d enjoy kissing and holding her until the project was done and then, it would be time to move on for both of them.
“You don’t really believe that, do you?” Andrew asked, grabbing another bottle of water.
“It’s the truth,” Connor bit out.
“Then, why did you buy the house next to hers?” Andrew asked with a knowing smile.
“Because it was within my price range and it was the only house on the market at the time that wasn’t built in the twentieth century,” he explained, again. The fact that Rory owned the house next door was only a bonus. He loved his house almost as much as he loved giving Rory hell.
“Okay,” Andrew said slowly. “Then, why are you dating her if you’re not in love with her?”
“The last time I checked, you didn’t have to be in love with a woman to date her. Just want her,” Connor said, not bothering to point out that he really wanted Rory since his friend probably already knew that.
“True,” Andrew said, sounding thoughtful. “But that doesn’t explain why she’s dating you.”
“Is it so hard for you to believe that she wants me?” Connor demanded, offended that the man thought so little of him. He was a great catch and the man damn well knew that.
Andrew pursed his lips up in thought as he asked, “Do you want an honest answer?”
“Yes!”
“Then, yes, yes, it is,” Andrew said with a shrug.
“I hate you,” Connor snapped as he turned to leave, but of course, the man wasn’t done yet.
“What did you do, Connor?” Andrew asked, stopping him in his tracks.
“She’s going to kill you,” Andrew said hollowly twenty minutes later when Connor finished explaining his brilliant plan.
“Probably,” Connor easily agreed with a chuckle as he grabbed another bottle of water.
“Normally, I stay out of the weird shit that the two you pull on each other, mostly because it entertains me, but I have to tell you that I think this plan is going to come back and bite you in the ass,” Andrew said, sounding completely serious.
“It’s just all part of the game we play,” Connor said with a shrug. “She’ll understand it.” She’d be pissed at first, but eventually, she’d realize that he’d simply played the game better than her.
“Connor-”
“It’s fine, Andrew. Just let it go,” Connor said, feeling his patience begin to fray. The last thing he needed was his friend getting on his ass about a plan that he knew was going to work.
Andrew put his hands up in surrender. “Fine. It’s your life, but just keep that in mind when you fuck this up.”
“This is a done deal,” Connor replied, heading for the door and knowing that there was absolutely no chance of him fucking this up.
“You’re still not talking to me?” Rory asked, biting back a sigh when Jacob continued ignoring her.
