“I did.”
Riley sighed. “Guess half the world’s heard about that by now, huh?”
“I think most people know not to trust what those gossip sites say,” Briggs said. “Including me.”
She smiled. “Really?”
“Yeah. But also, I want you to know, there’s no judgement. I’m here for you. Whatever is going on.”
Riley knew he meant every word of that. But she was happy to tell him she wasn’t struggling with old habits at the moment. She explained what had happened, and he looked a bit relieved.
“Everyone just assumes I’m drinking again,” she finished. “And that’s just the thing: my agent wants them to! I’m pretty sure she’s feeding the narrative to generate headlines.”
It was obvious Briggs was struggling to make sense of it all.
“I don’t know either,” she told him. “Sometimes, this town sure can be crazy.”
“It sure is! But I’m just glad you’re okay.”
His smile was warm, and she instantly wanted to hug him. She was halfway there, though, when he held up his hands.
“As much as I’d like that, Riley, if you hug me right now, you’re going to get paint all over those nice clothes.”
“I don’t mind. It’s just jeans and a shirt,” she told him.
He finally lowered his arms and allowed her to come in, but even then, she could tell he wasn’t pressing against her hard.
That small hug was enough to fuel her imagination about what it would be like to be held by Briggs.
All night long…
Emboldened by those dreams, she said, “You know, the other part of those rumors from last night aren’t true either. I’m not dating anyone. I’d never met Rowan Keene until last night. I was just trying to help him before he hurt himself or someone else.”
“Because you’re a good person.” Briggs’s statement was accompanied by an overtly affectionate gleam in his eyes that had Riley blushing.
“I’m not sure about that.”
“I am,” he stated very matter-of-factly.
They stood there a moment, simply looking into one another’s eyes.
“Well, you’re not dating anyone yet. How about we change that tomorrow night?
The words caught Riley off guard and she laughed. “What are you suggesting?”
“Just thinking I take you out to dinner. Let’s see, I’ve already played the In & Out card, which was a mistake. I set the bar too high right out of the gate. I should have saved that for an anniversary or something.”
Riley laughed even harder. “So, you think we’ll have anniversaries to celebrate?”
Briggs shrugged. “What can I say? Women find me irresistible.”
“Oh?” Riley inched closer. “And who are these women? I want to know so I can find them and tell them to back off.”
“Take your pick. They’re everywhere.”
“My, my. You’re a legend, huh?”
Briggs chuckled. “No. And maybe I’m trying to cover up for the fact that I’m self-conscious about asking you out. We don’t exactly run in the same circles and I’m afraid I probably can’t give you the experience you’re used to.”
