Page 57 of Temptation

“Still at work, I guess.” She shrugged and met B.R.’s gaze. “He doesn’t usually get off until six.”

“I see.” His eyes flicked restlessly between the two of them. “Is this -” He waved his hand in a circle over the two of them. “- another Bishop and Rilla thing?” Linda sat down next to him and watched the interaction, looking taken aback by what her husband was suggesting.

“No.” Quinn shook her head and glanced at Tenn, wordlessly asking him if it was okay to tell them. He gave her a go-ahead motion as he finished signing the book. “Tenn came to see me last week because he had hired a private investigator to follow his wife. She was cheating on him with Joel. We've spoken to a divorce lawyer, and they'll be served next Friday.”

“So, when did this happen?” He waved his hand in the “wax on, wax off” motion over them again.

“For me, it was when I walked into the room to tell her that her husband was cheating on her with my wife,” Tenn said as he passed the signed book back over to B.R. “But that was the first time I gave in to the urge to kiss her.”

Quinn practically glowed with happiness when he admitted that he’d wanted to kiss her from the beginning and gave him a huge smile. “After he showed me the proof of the affair, I wanted to both get back at Joel and get to know Tenn better because I thought he was really cute. I asked him if he’d be interested in messing with Joel and his wife, Viki, until we figured out the lawyer thing and had them served. I had been trying to get in touch with him about the lecture series anyway, so he offered to help me with it.” She paused in her explanation for a second and looked at B.R. quizzically. “Speaking of the lecture series, did you get my email?”

He nodded. “I was going to call you; yes, I'm available.” He leaned forward, steepling his fingers together and surveying them over the tips. “Normally, I'd say end one relationship before starting another, and two wrongs don’t make a right, but in this case, since you’ve already started the process for filing for divorce, I don’t see an issue here.”

Tenn felt instantly relieved. He kind of thought B.R. was more willing to overlook things because it was Quinn, and he hadn’t missed the quick flash of anger on his face when Quinn said Joel was having an affair, but he wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Linda nodded, still looking a little surprised by everything she had just learned. “I agree. Will you be staying for dinner?”

Quinn smiled and raised her eyebrow at Tenn. He nodded quickly. Have dinner with one of his favourite artists? Yes, please. “As long as B.R. gives Tenn a tour while I help you cook.” She gave Tenn’s hand a gentle squeeze. “I definitely moved too quickly when we walked through; he couldn't look everywhere fast enough.”

B.R. chuckled. “Come on then; I have some pieces I know you'll like.” He stood up and started to leave the kitchen. Tenn stood up quickly, kissed Quinn's cheek, and followed B.R. as he began the tour of his home.

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Later that evening, after a delicious meal of barbecued chicken, twice-baked potatoes, and grilled asparagus, Tenn and Quinn said their goodbyes and headed back to the ferry.

“I'm sorry our date got hijacked.” Quinn apologized as she drove. “Bishop said they would be in Vermont until June first.”

“Are you kidding me? I had the best day ever. Best first date ever.” Tenn leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I got to spend a full day with you, kiss you, meet one of my favourite painters, one of the few still alive anyway, have dinner with him and his wife, have them approve of us dating, and he gave me one of his paintings! I don't know how I'm going to plan a date that's even going to come close to that for you.”

“I only planned the beach day. Everything else was just luck and coincidence.” She laughed. “Don't worry; energy and effort are all I want.”

“See, I don't know if I should be mad or grateful Joel put the bar on the ground for me.” Tenn frowned. When they got off the ferry, Tenn got in the driver's seat and drove back to Boston, letting her relax. “What's the plan for tomorrow?”

“Joel and Viki are going to the airport at seven. Our appointment with Deedee is at nine. Then I have to go grocery shopping and make the snacks for the Mario Kart Tournament, and everyone will be at your place for six.” She yawned and put the seat back a little. Tenn couldn’t blame her for being tired; it had been a very full and exciting day.

“Why don't I pick you up at eight-thirty? We'll go to the appointment, then go grocery shopping. You can cook at my place while I clean and get everything ready.” He hesitated for a moment and then figured it was better to know ahead of time. “Are they going to sleep over?”

“If we're drinking, they usually do. I make breakfast, and they help me clean up.” She glanced at him. “Is that okay?”

“Yeah, absolutely.” He smiled at her. “I would actually prefer it if they’re drinking. I may have to fumigate the spare room, but that's fine. We can put Bishop and Rilla in there, and Quill can have the couch in the basement; it pulls out into a bed.”

“Where am I sleeping?” Her tone was teasingly innocent, and he glanced at her quickly.

“You can share with Quill or me.” He paused. “I would prefer me.” She giggled but didn’t say anything, and he let it go, not wanting to push her into something she may not be ready for. The rest of the drive home was spent discussing video games to see if they could find a PC game they could play together, with Quinn promising to check out some of his suggestions since she preferred simulation games.

When they reached the museum, he parked next to his car, got out and hugged her tightly, but didn’t try to be any more physical than that. “I guess we'll have to be more careful in Boston than we were in Martha's Vineyard.”

“Yeah, we all know a lot of people. It's only a week.” She smiled at him as he frowned. “And you get me all to yourself from Saturday afternoon to Sunday evening.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Home Again

Tenn

Tenn pulled into the driveway and just sat in the car, dreading going inside and potentially talking to Viki. It just seemed like such a shitty end to what had been an amazing day. Her car hadn’t moved, and the windows were still up, so he could only imagine the smell in there. It only reached 63 degrees, but their driveway faced south with no shade, so it would have had the sun beating down on it all day. Sighing, he slowly got out and went inside, hoping she was nursing her hangover in her bedroom.

Unfortunately, he opened the door just in time to see Viki dragging her suitcase down the stairs to the front door. “Where were you all day?” She snapped when she saw him. “You’re late.” His good mood evaporated, and he had to actively bite his tongue to keep from just telling her to fuck off.

“Work?” He raised an eyebrow and feigned confusion. “It's Thursday.” He ignored the part about him being late, simply because this woman hadn’t been home when she told him she would be in close to three years.

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