I beam back at him.“Exactly.”
“Or, uh, what’s that other car?A Volkswagen Beetle, perhaps?Also known as a…Bug?As in, June Bug?All the curves in all the right places?”
I bite the inside of my cheek, unwilling to give in and laugh even harder.“Man, you really had to work for that one, didn’t you?”
“Hey, you gotta work with what you got, and you, my dear June Bug, have it all.”
“Seriously?Is there an off-switch on you?”
His eyes brighten.“Yeah, but you gotta spread your legs to get to it.”
“Ford!”I screech.My face is on fire, and my mastication muscles are screaming from grinning so hard.I can’t help it, though.Is this guy for real?
“Come on, you gotta admit you walked into that one,” he argues.
He’s right.I did.I don’t know how he does it.How he has a way of being so over the top, it would be annoying if he wasn’t so…I don’t know, down to earth or self-aware or…charismatic at the same time?It’s…I don’t know.I don’t know what it is, but?—
My phone vibrates in my pocket, so I set down the sandwich.Brushing off my fingers, I pull out my cell and read the message.It’s from Bryan.
Bryan
Looking forward to tonight
I peek up at Ford, then look back at my phone as my heart picks up its pace.The question is, did the text cause it to rise, or are the glowing emeralds pinning me in place the culprit?I shove the thought aside and type my response.
Me
Me, too.
“Bryan?”Ford assumes.
I set my phone face down on the counter.“We should probably get started.”
With a slow nod, he scoots closer to me and grabs the edge of my laptop, turning it to face him a bit more.“All right, let’s see what we’re working with.”His tongue clicks against the roof of his mouth as he scans my notes, his head bobbing up and down.“All right, well, that’s wrong.”
I gasp.“What’s wrong?”
“Shush.Let Daddy do his work.”I roll my eyes but stay quiet while he continues mumbling things under his breath.“You almost got that part, but, hmm.Let’s see.”
He smells good.Like shampoo and deodorant.I peek over at him.He really is a good-looking guy.It’s like Brad Pitt, the main character ofSons of Anarchy,and Ryan Gosling all got together to make a baby.Sandy brown hair left a little longer on top and trimmed at the sides.Golden-green eyes that I swear change color depending on his emotions.Sunkissed skin with not a single freaking pimple, and any hint of a blemish or a scar only manages to make the guy look more attractive.And his jaw line?
Any girl would be lucky to nibble on that thing.
Whoa, there.Where the heck did that thought come from?
My neck jerks to the side and back to the laptop screen.Still, we’re kind of close.Proximity-wise.Should I move away a little?Give us some more space?His forearm skims against mine as he reaches for the touch pad on the keyboard.Has he realized how close we’re sitting?I mean, he started it.He’s the one who sat next to me, not the other way around.Or maybe I’m overthinking it.Maybe it’s normal to sit like this.If he were Violet, would I care?Would I think we were too close?
I blink, attempting to focus on the computer screen, but I swear it’s like looking at Egyptian hieroglyphics.“Any idea how to do this stuff?”I ask.
His chuckle is low and throaty as he meets my gaze.“Yeah, June.Yeah, I think I can help you out.”
“You sure?Because if you can’t, it’s not a big deal.”
“Pretty sure I can handle it,” he returns dryly.I’ve always known the guy is cocky, but with the way he says it?It makes me feel like I’m the butt of a joke, and I can’t put my finger on why.When he reaches across me for my things, his forearm brushes against the arm closest to him again, and I swear he put something in my sandwich because in all my life, I have never been so intrinsically aware of a person’s movements.Was that intentional?It wouldn’t surprise me.He probably loves seeing me spiral out of control like this.
Seriously, this guy’s like a drug.No wonder he sleeps with every girl he meets.One sandwich with the guy, and I’m practically panting.
He grabs my notebook and my pencil, then clicks down some lead.“All right, so the biggest potential issue with this is our order of operations.If you don’t do the right steps in the right order, you’re going to get the wrong answer.”
