Page 16 of Happy Trails & Honey Pots

“I didn’t know he was coming. He just showed up,” I said in the way of a very weak defense.

Nadia blinked several times at me. “That does not answer my question. I don’t care if you had prior knowledge of his arrival. I want to know why our numbers weren’t the first ones you dialed the second he left.”

“It was a school night. I had to get AJ to bed, and I had to work today.”

“Right. Like you slept afterMiles Happy Trails Hottie Fordhad dinner at your house,” Nadia said.

She had no idea the bullseye her statement had just landed on.

“Are you going to keep saying that every time you say his name?”

“Probably.” Nadia shrugged before demanding, “You have to tell us everything.”

“Everything.” Ashley backed her up.

I sighed as we started walking toward the baseball field. This was not going to go away. I didn’t want to talk to them about Miles. I told myself it was because I didn’t want to talk to them about the movie, but part of me didn’t want to reveal the reaction I’d had to the actor. It had taken me completely by surprise, and I was not a fan of it. I wanted to ignore it and pretend it never happened.

“How did you even know he?—”

“AJ was talking about it at school,” Nadia explained. “And it’s Firefly. I mean, you didn’t actually think the entire town wasn’t going to find out, did you?”

I mean, I sort of hoped that was the case. I hadn’t even thought about the fact that AJ would tell his friends. I didn’t like that he had, even though I wasn’t sure why I didn’t like it. Maybe it was because it gave the impression that we were cooperating with the movie, which we weren’t.

It was not authorized. Whatever version of Austin they portrayed was not going to be the man he was. It was that simple. There was no way to distill his life into ninety minutes.

“Here’s what I know. Miles Ford is staying at Mrs. B’s Boarding House,” Nadia continued as we walked across the parking lot. “There were rumors that he was here with Rihanna, but after further investigation, it turned out it is actually his assistant, who is her doppelganger. He got into town yesterday evening and drove straight to your house. Okay, that’s all I’ve got; you’re up.” Nadia motioned to me as we lowered down in the third row back from home plate.

I sighed. “He showed up at the house when we were eating dinner. AJ invited him to stay. He did. After dinner, he helped clean up. Then he left.”

Nadia’s face contorted as if she’d just bitten into a lemon. “What was that? How can you make having dinner withMiles Happy Trails Hottie Fordsound that boring?”

“Guys. Guys. Guys. Guys. Guys,” Ashley repeated rapidly through a smile of clenched teeth without moving her lips as she patted my thigh. “He’s here. He’s here. He’s here. He’s here. He’s here.”

Nadia and I both turned our heads to the right, and sure enough, Miles was walking up the bleachers with Harlan and Daphne. Tonight, he was wearing a white T-shirt, blue jeans, and a baseball cap. I wasn’t sure if he thought that it might be some sort of disguise, but the cap somehow brought more attention to his sexy, stubbled square jaw.

The shirt might look plain on someone else, but on Miles Ford’s torso, it looked like it was on a Roman Gladiator. And his jeans were worn in all the right places. His presence caused a wave of whispers and gasps from the spectators with two X chromosomes in the crowd. Miles either didn’t notice or was very good at pretending he didn’t notice. He continued speaking to Harlan and Daphne as if there hadn’t been a shift in the atmosphere when he arrived.

Nadia’s head spun back to me, her eyes as wide as saucers. “What is he doing here?”

“I have no idea. AJ mentioned he had a game tonight, and Miles said he wanted to speak to Dawson and Harlan while he was in town. Maybe he’s killing two birds,” I surmised.

“Is it just me, or is he somuch hotterin real life?” Ashley spoke with reverence and awe.

“It isnotjust you,” Nadia emphasized. “He’s like a cross between Channing Tatum and Jason Momoa but exponentially sexier, which I would have thought was a physiological impossibility.”

Once the men sat down at the top of the bleachers, Daphne kissed Harlan and then made her way down to sit with us. As she did, she mouthed OMG. Behind her, I could see Miles’ eyes laser-focused on me. His stare heated me from the inside out.

I quickly turned back to face the baseball field.

Ashley leaned over and whispered in my ear, “I think he’s looking at you.”

“He’s not,” I snapped back.

I wasn’t sure why I was denying it when he clearly was. It was obviously a case of the lady doth protest too much. I just didn’t want anyone to know what was going on with me in regard to him. It was completely ridiculous. I didn’t want to make a fool out of myself.

Thankfully, as soon as Daphne sat down, the game started, and I told the girls that I was there to watch AJ, who was pitching. Of course, they continued to make Miles Ford comments, but for the most part, I was able to ignore them.

For one game, anyway. If he stayed in town much longer, I wasn’t sure how I would keep it up. Especially if he showed up on my doorstep again and I had food on my face that he needed to wipe off. His touch was dangerous. He was dangerous. The problem I was having was it seemed I liked dangerous.

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