Page 76 of A Lucky Shot

A short gruff left his throat, and while he didn’t smile, the line between his eyebrows faded a touch. She scooted into his eyeline again. “I’m so sorry I didn’t get in earlier.”

“Late night?” he bit out.

Oh, he was in a right state. He couldn’t be that mad at her for being five minutes late. And how did that man look so good with such a foul expression on his face? Cass tilted her head. “Later than I planned, honestly. It was fun.”

A muscle in his cheek jumped, and the line between his brows deepened again.

Cass continued, determined to be undeterred by his moodiness. “Definitely a player, but he was so sweet, in his own way. He’s not looking for anything serious, but I swear he is my friend’s type through and through, so I texted her to join us. I stuck around for a bit, but I got a text from her this morning, and they shut the coffee shop down. They’re meeting up again tomorrow.”

Cass could almost see the sparks fly when her friend had arrived. Unorthodox, maybe, but since she wasn’t looking at scoring with Burny McHotpants, who was ridiculously good looking with his bright blue eyes and calendar-ready physique, why not try to hook him up with a friend? Cass had snuck away after a bit to let the two of them get to know each other. She wasn’t entirely convinced they’d noticed her leave.

It wasn’t clear from the barrage of texts her friend had sent that morning, extolling his virtues, physical and otherwise, if they’d gotten naked last night. If they hadn’t, Cass was willing to set a very short countdown clock to the event. And if history was any predictor, Cass could set a timer on the save-the-date invitations.

Not interested in anything serious, my perfectly round tush. My track record is flawless.

Josh narrowed his eyes at her. “So, your good time wasn’t because you were playing with his hose?”

“Ew!” Cass hid a snort behind her hand. “No! We both liked the same music and watching them was adorable. Seriously, you should have seen them. They were picking out china patterns by the second cup.”

“Oh.” Josh twisted his mouth, shoulders releasing down his back. “Good. I mean, for your friend. That’s too bad. For you.”

“At least one of us is on their way to Mr. Right and not just Mr. Right Now.”

“Is that what you want?”

Cass studied her fingernails. “I want someone who respects me. Who is honest with me.”

“Jesus, Charms. The bar really is in hell.”

The air huffed from her lungs. That was the understatement of the century. Every crappy ex-boyfriend had lowered the bar a little further. Years of unmet needs eroded her standards until the bare minimum felt like a grand gesture.

What did she want, really?

It wasn’t a ring, or a minivan, or a house in the burbs. Josh wasn’t letting her touch anyone, so it wasn’t like she was getting laid. Heck, it was more than just getting over what’s-his-nuts.

Actually, Nick hadn’t crossed her mind in weeks. That was progress. But it wasn’t what she wanted.

It was how Stephen had spent days tracking down a rare vinyl Libby wanted. Or how Alex had painted their bedroom Jill’s favourite colour because he thought it would make her happy. How all the men Cass had dated took what she said she wanted from them and gave it to someone else.

“Just once, I want someone to make an effort.” She blinked hard and turned a brittle smile to him. “Do you think I’m asking too much?”

An emotion she couldn’t identify hid behind the shadow that crossed his face. “I don’t think you’re asking for enough.”

Filming was running late. As usual. Josh had demanded extra takes. Also as usual. Craft services had cleared the last of dinner hours ago, and so now not only did her feet hurt, her stomach could be heard rumbling across the set.

Cass braced her hands on the railing to relieve the pressure on her back. Even with the late night, Brynne and Dawson looked as fresh as they had at the start of the day. Like her thinking of him drew his attention, Dawson caught her eye from across the room, and she smiled back.

She had to give it to him; the man was a pro. He’d been on his feet twice as long as her and hadn’t complained once.

She added a few side twists, flexing her bad knee to keep up the range of motion. Surely, they had to be done soon, and she could go home and turn on show tunes and do some sewing.

Cass hadn’t checked the time since dinner, and she pulled out her phone to check, her stomach bottoming out at the message notification on her screen.

hey cass

Been a few months since I’ve seen that beautiful face of yours. Wyd tonight?

Cass shoved her phone into her pocket so hard she thought the seams would rip and skittered across the set as fast as her sore feet would take her.

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