Wow, she was really bad at that. But I was apparently worse at figuring out what she was doing. So I buttoned my lip and decided to wait. But I couldn’t stop my brain from its calculations. I figured there was a 40 percent chance that she really wanted this date, and a 60 percent possibility that she didn’t, but wanted to chew me out regarding whatever friend of hers I’d hurt. She didn’t seem like the kind of girl to be looking for revenge, but hey, I’d already misjudged her. Maybe her embarrassed flush was righteous indignation.
“Um, right,” she said, and her neck turned a darker pink. “So here’s the deal. I, um, I’d like to go out with you, but, um, I’ve got some rules.”
“Rules?” I echoed. “You mean like no whips for the first hour?” My teammates chuckled because, you know, adolescent boys and all. But I forced my expression to soften. “Ellie, just spit it out. What do you want?”
She lifted her chin. “A real date. I’d like you to take me out to an expensive restaurant, where we can talk about our lives over steaks and decadent desserts. Then you could drop me off at home, holding my hand if you’d like, but going without a good-night kiss. A classic ’50s date.”
“You planning to wear a poodle skirt?” I asked, busy envisioning myself bending her over, lifting the poufy back, and…
Her smile turned into a smirk. “No poodle skirt. Just my chastity belt.”
Okay, there was something strange going on. I could see it, in the raise of her eyebrow and the sideway jut of her hip. She was daring me to say no. But the tenseness in her lower lip told me that she was bracing for it, too. WTF? I couldn’t help myself—I decided to probe a little deeper.
“You know Connor will gut me if I mess with his cousin.”
She rolled her eyes. “Connor still remembers me in pigtails and pink ruffles.”
I took in a few more details of her appearance. No ruffles, but her tee was a soft pink that matched her shimmery pink fingernails. I must have taken too long a look, because her body stiffened and her pulse leaped in her throat.
“God, just say no already. Then I can get back to my regular life.”
This was getting curiouser and curiouser. “Are you asking me to say no, or asking me out on a date?”
Now she was even more uptight. “I know I’m not your usual type.”
True that. She was the complete opposite of the bold, fast fuck I usually enjoyed.
“And with my rules, I’m nothing like the kind of girls you usually date.”
The guys snorted at that, and now I was the one feeling indignant. “I’ve gone on normal dates before.” Just not since the AAs.
“I’ll even help you out,” she said. “Pick an answer:A—Connor would kick your ass if you dared get me alone for an intimate dinner.”
I snorted. “Connor could try.”
“How aboutB, then? You’ve got to train or have an early curfew tomorrow.”
“Nah. Just the game, but we should be done by six.”
“Okay then, what aboutC? You’ve got an appointment with a different lovely lady.”
“Just how many ways have you imagined me rejecting you?”
Her eyes narrowed, but her cheeks pinkened. I could tell she’d run through this scenario hundreds of times in her head.
“Okay, then there’sD. You’re just not into me.”
That wasn’t true. I’d been into her from the moment she’d walked into the backyard carrying a fruit salad. She’d hugged her mother and kissed her father’s cheek while her freckles fought with her dimples for most adorable feature on her face. There’d been absolutely nothing sexual about her, just an overall sweetness, and I had been hit by a wave of lust that nearly ripped through my jeans.
The thing is, she wasexactlymy type, which is why I didn’t date girls like her. Sweet, wholesome girls usually started asking about meeting my crappy family by date three, and I just wasn’t going there—with anyone. It was much better to have my fun with someone who didn’t count on a morning after.
The problem was that Ellie clearly expected me to let her down, and I just wasn’t that kind of guy. There was some stupid genetic thing going on in my firefighter family that made us all want to be heroes. We did our best to save the day in the worst way…which meant I had a nearly pathological desire to make good girls happy. I could no more turn Ellie down than I could let her burn to death in a fire. And that’s why I usually avoided good girls. And why I shouldn’t have come to this family barbecue, even though the entire team was here.
“Then we’re down toE. You’ve been struck dumb with shock.”
Not shock. I was just trying to strangle my better nature. But it wouldn’t be silenced and suddenly, I was answering her in the worst possible way.
“Seven,” I rasped.
