Page 44 of Daddy By Design

“Need a baby wipe?”

“Wrong town to find that in a purse.” I flagged down Cordelia with wiggling fingers.

She hustled over with wet wipes, which we all used on wing nights, as well as his IPA. “I got you, girl.”

“Thanks. Can we have more of the bonfire sauce too?”

“Got it.” She set the glass down beside Nolan. “Anything for you?”

“I’ll take some of that bonfire sauce too,” he said, giving her a tight smile that looked very wrong on his face.

“Sure thing.”

After Cordelia left and I cleaned up, I took a long drink of my cider to wash away the burning tickle. “So, where did you live before here?”

“You didn’t Google me?”

That had been the first thing I wanted to do, but something kept me from researching into his life. Something inside me wanted it to come from him, which made me the bigger idiot, probably. His idea of sharing was offering ketchup, not words. “Nope.”

Slowly, he chewed, his gaze never wavering.

I shrugged and went back to my burger. If he didn’t want to talk, I could handle that.I noticed many a gaze swinging our way. Nolan was an imposing man, and he took up space. His presence was a special kind of interesting to me. He seemed to want to blend into the background, but he naturally drew attention. As if he was used to being the center.

And he’d assumed I would Google him, clearly implying there was something to find.

By the time my burger was gone, and Cordelia had refilled our drinks, we were companionably munching our way through the basket of fries and rings. It was a Tuesday and the tables started to thin out while the bar itself remained hopping.

“You’re an interesting chick.”

I paused with the fry in front of my mouth. “Thanks?”

“I didn’t know you knew how to shut up.”

“You keep thinking you can insult me into leaving you be, but I’m not that woman.” I brushed my fingers over my plate and peeled open another wet wipe to clean my hands. “I’m just about done with the proposal.”

“You’re actually working on that?”

“I wasn’t kidding when I said I love that house. Are you done with what you had to do out of town?”

“For now.”

“Want to come see what I have so far? My place is across the street.”

His eyebrow spiked. “Did you actually just ask me back to your apartment to see your drawings?”

“I think I did.” Impulsive wasn’t usually my bag when it came to showing my plans, but something told me to grab him while I had him.

“You know, I’m a stranger for all intents and purposes.”

“You are. But you’re also related to Macy. If you did anything to me she’d?—”

“Tie me to a rock and toss me in the lake?”

“That was oddly specific, but probably about right if the rock was a very large boulder that would keep you down.”

He grunted. “I should get back to the house.”

“You and the Airstream have a date? C’mon. I’m sure you’ve been sitting in that tin can for way too long.”

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