"I almost ducked, hearing the flirty comment sail my way, like an errant volleyball. I looked over at Brady, expecting a told-you-so smirk, but he was frowning. "She can't make it." He scratched his head. "She just had a pre-cancerous mole removed. A great big one on her back. It was all hairy. And lumpy. She has to stay out of the sun unless she's totally covered up."
My mouth dropped open and I glared at him. Who did he think he was-me? And why was he shooing off the very men he'd been trying to set me up with? I excused myself to hit the"
"restroom and jerked my head, signaling him to follow me.
As he caught up to me outside the bathroom, I pretended to fan myself. "Gosh, Mr. Quinn, how could I have forgotten my great big sunbonnet today to shield me from the venomous rays of the sun?" I crossed my arms. "And did you have to make the mole hairy? God. Did I miss the purpose of today's little exercise?" I tried to sound mad, but he flashed these puppy-dog eyes at me that would undoubtedly get him out of any jam.
He grabbed my shoulders. "I know. I'm sorry. He definitely seemed interested, but he's no good for you."
I swatted away his hands. "I'll decide that for myself once I see if he has six-pack abs or not. And I suspect he does."
He looked at me, incredulous. "And you say men are the ones after looks."
"Without money or power, six-pack abs are a nice consolation prize."
"He shook his head. "He's got the abs-and three ex-fiancées. He left each one within the month before the wedding."
I leaned back against the wall next to the kitchen. "Cream of the crop you've got here for me today. Thanks, Brady."
"I kind of forgot about that. Normally, I don't think about all that bullshit. But with you, I have to."
"Compliment or put down? I just can't decide."
"You deserve better than that, Jane. Plus, I'm a little scared of you."
I slugged his arm and pushed past him into the bathroom. Truth was, none of his friends would do. Not while he was hanging around. But I had to face the facts-if he was trying to set"
"me up with his buddies, he must not be interested in me. Deal with it.
He was waiting for me when I came out. People were clearing away from the table and he dropped a few twenties by the check to pay for our share.
"Thanks," I said.
"I'm lucky I could cover it. I got lousy tips last night because someone was distracting me all night."
My first thought was Miranda, but then I realized he meant me.
"Hey, I could have set you up with Miranda in exchange. She was definitely interested. It's not too late." How much did it suck, saying that?
He looked down at me, and his eyes locked on mine. "I'm not interested."
I sucked in a little breath. "You're going to have to explain that to me one of these days."
He just shook his head. "Maybe one of these days you'll figure it out for yourself."
"We stopped walking when we reached my car. "So, day one and no success. I'm still dateless. That T-shirt is going to look so cute on me."
He ignored me. "Good news. My buddy, Dave, is having a barbecue this Wednesday night. Kind of a hump-day thing. How 'bout I pick you up at six?"
"Should I bring anything? Nothing homemade. I'm not that kind of girl." Just wanted to get that out in the open.
"Nope. Just your acerbic wit. I'm sure you'll be serving up"
