Page 28 of Driven Daddy

I actually had a penchant for hot food, so I decided to dunk the tip of my pretzel in the wasabi.

“Have a death wish?” She dabbed her mouth with her cloth napkin.

I shrugged and chewed. “Wimp.” My eyes bulged. What had gotten into me? I never teased near strangers.

Colette laughed and picked up another pretzel, this time spinning the basket to the honey mustard. “Not usually, but you must have an asbestos tongue.”

I dunked again. “I used to do hot wing competitions for free food.”

I frowned. What the hell was going on with me? Generally, I didn’t share anything with people. It was easier to let others talk, and I could just coast.

“Really?” She leaned forward. “How did that work?”

I shrugged. “Not much to do in Brooklyn when you’re not a sports type. Bookish nerds had to do something cool so I could keep my face the way it is.”

She stacked her arms on the table. “I don’t think I knew that about you.”

I arched a brow at her.

She shrugged. “Google. BookTok…I know stuff.”

I sampled the hot honey mustard and hummed. “Oh, that’s good.”

“Yeah, it’s my fave.”

I finished chewing. “So, you googled me?”

“Shamelessly. Not that there was much to find. Plenty on Jenelle, but not much on you.” She broke off another end of a pretzel stick. “You can tell me to shut up—I’m just naturally curious.”

“Is this going to end up on a video?”

“No. But I can test my interview skills on you.” She pointed the pretzel at me. “What do you think about a super ridiculous couch for the expansion? Is that crazy?”

“For your videos?”

“Yeah. Maybe make it a feature spot like the Ripped Bodice girls have. I know there’s some really cool old brick behind some of the walls. Ask me how I know?”

Happy that the subject was away from me, I leaned forward. “How?”

“I was trying to hang a really heavy poster, so I needed one of those molly things. You know that does this—” She made two fingers go straight then wide apart in the opposite direction.

I nodded. “Renovation research, remember?”

“Right. What was that character? Chase?”

I laughed. “Good memory. Pretty sure yours is better than mine. I’ve written so many books they kind of blur. Thank God for my series bibles.”

“I’d happily kill to look at those.”

I huffed out a laugh. No way I was sharing that. “What made you open a gift-slash-bookshop?”

Rami came by with our wine and we both sat back while she poured. “You guys ready to order?”

“Maybe in a few?” Colette asked.

The waitress nodded. “I’ll come back in a bit.”

“Thanks,” I said softly.

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