He had no idea what to say to her if they were alone.
Just postponing the inevitable.
Yeah, so sue him.
Blaise wasn’t a procrastinator, but he was doing it now. Being with Hadley brought a cyclone of emotions he wasn’t ready to face.
Who was he kidding? He wanted it to stop.
Bet.
Girlfriend.
Kiss.
The day hadn’t turned out as Blaise planned, but he wasn’t sure how much he regretted doing or saying. He dragged his hand through his hair. What Hadley had to say, however, might change the way he felt.
Iris turned on the dishwasher. “I think that’s everything.”
“You did too much, as usual.”
He envied Dash for having a trusted, loyal childhood friend work for him. Blaise’s only friends growing up had been two employees at his high school. His math teacher, Mr. Penney, helped Blaise apply to college and let him work in his classroom after school so he wouldn’t have to go home. The custodian, a grizzly guy named Coop, caught Blaise using one of the school’s master keys to store stuff in the janitor’s closet so his parents couldn’t sell it to buy drugs. Coop had taken the key, but he offered Blaise a new place to store his things, one that wouldn’t get him in trouble.
Which is why he’d bought each a new car and a vacation home long before Blaise had traded in his old Honda sedan and bought a house for himself. The two men, his only links to the past, still checked in on him, more like surrogate uncles than the mentors they’d once been. Occasionally, not as often these days because of Blaise’s schedule, the three met for coffee or a meal. The way they had when he was in college and working two jobs to support himself. They’d rotated paying back then. Blaise picked up every tab now.
“You hired me.” The determination in Iris’s eyes matched the set of her jaw. “The only way to do a job is to give it your all.”
“Which is what you always do.” Blaise grabbed an envelope from a nearby drawer and handed it to her. Inside was money to pay for her expenses and her services plus a bonus. “Robyn won’t have anything to do when she arrives tomorrow morning.”
“This house is huge. Your housekeeper will have plenty to clean. I never went upstairs.” Iris placed the envelope in her bag. “I didn’t mop or vacuum down here, either.”
“Go before you do that.”
Iris glanced around. “Where’s Hadley?”
That was the question Blaise had asked himself whenever he couldn’t see her. He knew the answer this time. “Out on the patio.”
“I like her.”
That had been a common refrain today. A few had warned him not to mess up with her. Adam, however, had withheld judgment, which must have been difficult since he had an ulterior motive for wanting Blaise to fall in love and get married so the bet would be called off and the money divided amongst the six of them.
So not happening. “She’s nice.”
“Nice, huh?” Iris removed two containers he didn’t recognize from the refrigerator and placed them in a box. “That’s how you describe Hadley after sharing a scorching kiss?”
The kiss had been hot. He wanted another one. “Hadley is nice. Everybody agrees.”
“This should be fun to watch.” Iris laughed. “See you around. And Hadley, too.”
Blaise escorted Iris out and watched her car back out of the driveway before returning inside.
The only sound was the dishwasher running. A big difference from an hour ago with the post-game show playing on the television and people talking over the sports analysts.
He sat on the couch. This was as good a spot to talk to Hadley as any. The only problem? He had no idea what to say to her.
Weird.
He usually wasn’t at a loss for ideas or words. Most often, before others realized there was an issue or a problem, he had a solution figured out. That was why he got along so well with his friends. The six of them were similar. Brett, too. Henry could be when he tried, but the guy kept them entertained.
