Page 40 of His Curvy Distraction

“A beer, please.”

“Dinner?” He poured my beer, the same one he gave me two nights earlier, and set it in front of me.

I glanced at the door and down at my phone. “I’m not sure yet.”

Hudson’s brows jumped almost high enough to vanish under the snapback of his blue ball cap. “You’re meeting someone.”

It wasn’t a question, but I nodded the confirmation anyway.

“You took our advice and signed up for Book Boyfriends Wanted.”

I shook my head. “I signed up a while ago. But I did take your advice and asked the woman I’ve been talking to to meet me.”

“And you chose here?”

“No, she did. Speaks volumes to who you are and the way people trust you.”

Hudson chuckled. “I’ve accepted my position. It used to piss me off when the women would meet their dates here, but I realized the same thing you said and decided I’d rather have them come here than risk something happening because I ran them off.”

“That’s admirable of you.”

He snorted. “Not really. Got my ass handed to me when Finley and Trent met up in here. She didn’t know who he was, and when she got pregnant, she was pissed that I didn’t give her a head’s up.”

“Ouch,” I said with a wince.

“It all worked out in the end. She got her happily ever after.”

“She’s a close friend of yours?”

Hudson nodded, a smile softening his features. “She is. Has been forever. And my wife works for her now, so we spend a lot of time with them. Finley changed Trent in all the ways he needed to change.”

“I can’t say I’ve met him more than a handful of times.”

“He’ll be here this Thursday if you’re available again. Although I imagine it depends on how tonight goes.”

I laughed. “Doubtful about that one. At this point, I’m hoping she shows up.” I checked my phone again. She was five minutes late.

“Did she give you any indication of what she’d be wearing so you would know who she is?”

“No. Should she have?”

Hudson shook his head at me like I was a fool. “Usually the guy does that. So she can duck out if she doesn’t feel safe.”

“Dammit. I suck at dating.”

“We all do.”

I unlocked my phone and opened the app while Hudson walked away to help another customer. I sent ThisIsAwkward a message telling her what I was wearing and that I was at the bar when she arrived.

I resisted the urge to ask if she was still coming. Something told me calling her out on being late would not go over well.

I sipped my beer slowly while I waited for someone to show up. A few times, the door opened, and I held my breath, but no one sat next to me. I refused to watch the door in case she walked in and decided to walk right back out again without approaching me.

After thirty minutes, I decided I’d give her another fifteen minutes, then I’d leave. If she changed her mind, I’d be upset, but she was allowed. If she didn’t, and something happened, I had to be reasonable. I didn’t know much about her, and she could have had an emergency.

The door opened at thirty-nine minutes late, and I took a sip of my beer. Hudson smiled at whoever walked in. He glanced my way, then smirked.

My entire body stiffened. She was there. And debating. But she showed.

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