Page 61 of If We Never Met

"Maybe only because my phone rang." She wished she could retract her words as a sexy gleam entered his eyes.

"Interesting," he said.

"No, it's not." She paused as her phone buzzed once more. It was the same number as before. "Hello?"

"This is Arlington Appliance again. We, unfortunately, got a flat tire, and we need to wait for a repair. It will be about forty-five minutes before we get there."

His words brought both relief and worry, because the imminent arrival of the stove had been a good reason not to get into bed with Dante. But there was nothing she could do. "Okay," she said. "Let me know if that changes."

"Will do."

"What happened?" Dante asked as she hung up.

"The delivery is delayed. They got a flat tire."

"Interesting," he said again.

"No, it's not," she repeated.

"We have time to kill."

"To research Mandy," she said pointedly. "That's what I'm going to do. You can help or not."

"Oh, I'm helping. But I'm also hungry. Should I run out and get us some food? You haven't eaten, have you?"

"No. We could just order a pizza. I was actually going to do that."

"I'm in."

"What do you like?"

"Everything."

"That's easy."

"While you order the pizza, I'll start digging into Langley," he said, taking out his phone.

"Why don't we go into the kitchen? I've got my computer set up on the table."

As they walked down the hall, she called Dillard's and ordered a large pizza with everything except onions, and she was not going to analyze that decision. Because that might mean she had a plan, and she did not have a plan. She was just going to wait for a stove, share a pizza with Dante, and maybe find some dirt on Langley. That was it.

There was going to be no kissing, no naked fun…at least, she didn't think so.

Chapter Fifteen

As he andKeira settled in at the kitchen table, Dante couldn't help thinking about the last time they'd been there, sharing a meal, getting to know each other. It was weird, but this house was almost starting to feel like home, and it didn't belong to either of them. Maybe that was why it felt safe. It wasn't her life, and it wasn't his; it was a place to meet in the middle.

"Damn," Keira muttered, as she stared at her computer.

"Did you find something on Mandy?"

"No, I was actually checking my emails." She looked at him with disappointment in her gaze. "I think the fallout from Nikki's posts is just beginning."

"What happened?" He braced himself for another bad surprise.

"After Chelsea's red-carpet walk, I got some emails from stylists wanting me to design for their clients. They're all in the early stages of contact, but I just got a reply from one stating that her client won't be interested in pursuing a relationship with me now, because she's friends with Nikki."

His stomach twisted as he saw the distress in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Keira."

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