Page 51 of Temptation

“Oh, sorry, I forgot.” Tenn pulled a garbage bag out of his pocket and passed it to him. Joel nodded his thanks and put his clothes inside, tying it up and tossing it in the backseat. “Thanks for driving her car home, and her too, I guess.”

“No problem,” Joel shrugged. “If she doesn't want a hefty car cleaning bill, I'd make sure she gets it to the dealership to be detailed before it gets hot. She'll never get the smell out if that stuff bakes in.”

“I'll let her know. Good night you two.” Tenn turned and walked into the house as Viki came out of the garage and glared at Quinn's car as she backed out of the driveway and headed home.

Quinn didn't try to make conversation as she drove Joel back to the bowling alley. She could tell her silence was bothering him, so she decided to let it drag. Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore.

“You aren't going to ask?”

“Ask what?”

“I know you could see us arguing. You aren't curious about why?”

“Should I be?” Quinn yawned; she really didn’t care about whatever story he was going to spin to cover his tracks; maybe she was a little curious about what he’d tell her, but not enough to invite it.

“I would be.” He looked hurt that she wasn’t interested in what he had to say, and that really made her night. He hadn’t been interested in anything she had to say for four months.

“Joel, she was wasted. Did she say anything important or extremely inappropriate?” Quinn glanced at him. “Cause otherwise, I don't care. You seemed like you were handling it, and you're the one who has to work with her.” She paused. “Or is it something you want to discuss?”

“I just don't want you to think there's more going on than there is, that's all.” He ran a hand through his hair and shifted. “She's been becoming increasingly... I think she has some kind of crush or something.”

“I see.” Quinn frowned as she pulled up beside Joel's Porsche. “Well, it's pretty clear she doesn't like me, but I'll just go the distant and polite route.”

“I'd rather not have her or Tenn around anymore. It's uncomfortable.” He cleared his throat and avoided her gaze.

“What does Tenn have to do with anything?” She raised her eyebrow. “He’s been nothing but cordial to you.”

“Viki keeps telling me stuff about him, and I'd rather keep my distance from their whole mess.” He shook his head. “I don’t want us involved in their problems.”

Quinn somehow managed not to roll her eyes at him. Considering he was a major part of their problems, that was an incredibly hypocritical statement. “That's fine. I can respect that, but you do realize Tenn and I are partners on this lecture series, which has been approved by both our supervisors, right? I can't do this without him; it's too big, and he has a lot of contacts, not to mention he's just as excited to do this as I am, so I'm going to be spending a lot of time with him, and there will be times we will be working at our house or his house.”

“Just give me a heads-up,” Joel sighed, looking disappointed. “I just need some distance from them.”

“You're spending a weekend in Atlanta with her, remember?” Joel looked panicked that she knew about it for a moment, then seemed to remember he told her it was training and relaxed. Quinn had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep the mildly concerned look on her face.

“It's fine; I'll just spend time with the guys. Colin is still an instructor, and we're pretty good friends.”

“I'm sorry you feel like you're being shoved into something that's making you uncomfortable, but I have a tiny favour to ask.” She gave him an apologetic smile.

Joel let out a small, nervous chuckle. “Oh yeah? What's that?”

“Next Friday, Tenn and I are hosting a small party to celebrate and announce the series. Like his family, our families, and all our friends. I need you there because we have special surprises for you and Viki to thank you both for being understanding and supportive of us doing this.”

“Well, if it's going to be big like that, I think I can avoid Viki and be polite but distant with Tenn.” His eyes lit up. “Does that mean Del Aston will be there?”

“Yeah, him and his wife.” Quinn nodded, smiling. Joel wouldn't dream of missing an opportunity to meet one of his favourite players.

“Then yeah, absolutely, I can do that.” Joel nodded and leaned over to kiss her. She quickly turned her head and let him kiss her cheek, but he didn't seem to notice; he was getting out of the car, practically buzzing with excitement about meeting Del. He grabbed the bag of clothes from the backseat and grinned at her. “See you at home!”

Chapter Twenty-Six: Driving & Dating Stories

Quinn pulled into Tenn's driveway at ten the next morning; his Buick was gone, but Viki's Porsche was still in the driveway, windows up. She could only imagine the smell in there, wrinkling her nose she chuckled to herself and sent Tenn a quick text, letting him know she was there. A few minutes later, he came out of the house carrying a book bag that he tossed in the back seat as he climbed in. “Hey!” He smiled at her. “How are you feeling?”

“Great.” She grinned and backed out of the driveway. “Were you a very nice husband and let Viki take your car to work?”

“No, I brought it to the museum.” He seemed very pleased with himself, and Quinn chuckled at his smug look.

“I could have picked you up at the museum, you know.”

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