Page 21 of Marry Your Best Friend

It’s like a hit to the solar plexus when he calls Bethany honey. I stare down at the drink menu, acting like I’ve never seen it before when Gabe snaps his fingers in front of my face. “Chrissy.”

I lift my eyes up to him, and I’m sure they’re green with envy. “What?” I ask him, surly.

He just smiles patiently. “I asked you how work was today?”

I sit up a little straighter. “Oh, you were talking to me? It was better…” I gesture to Bethany. “Bethany and I were paired today, and we work well together.”

Bethany is smiling, but she’s giving me a curious look.

I have to force myself to give my date some attention. “So, Mark… how long have you been at the fire department?”

He looks to Gabe, and Gabe nods his head as if he’s giving him permission to speak or something. Before I can comment, Mark answers. “I’ve been with the department two years, ma’am.”

I sit back in my chair.Ma’am… did he just call me ma’am?

Bethany stands up. “Come on, Gabe. Let’s dance.”

Gabe stands, albeit reluctantly, and gestures for Bethany to walk ahead of him. He practically glares at Mark, doesn’t even offer me a glance, and then walks off.

Well, there’s no way I can just sit here in awkward silence for the whole night. Mark is nice and seems to be a perfect gentleman, but he also seems to be lacking in the personality department. I stand up. “Come on, let’s dance.”

Mark doesn’t seem thrilled by my suggestion, but he gets up and follows me. I position us across the dance floor from Gabe and Bethany because I’m not trying to torture myself even more than I already am.

I put my hands on Mark’s shoulders, and he brings his hands up, but I can’t even feel them on my waist. I look down and his hands are there, but he’s not touching me. “What are you doing?”

He clears his throat. “Dancing, ma’am.”

“Okay, drop the ma’am. I’m pretty sure you’re older than me.”

He nods. “I am older than you. I’m thirty-four.”

I grit my teeth. What the heck is happening here? “Right, so uh, quit calling me ma’am, andwhen you dance, you put your hands on the girl’s waist.”

I release his shoulders long enough to push his hands onto my waist, and then I put my hands on his shoulders again. He’s completely tense, and I’m not sure what is happening because he acts like he’s being punished or something. I hear Bethany’s squeal of laughter from across the room, and I grit my teeth. I’m not even going to look over there.

Mark is looking over my head, holding himself tensely, and I’m starting to get a bad feeling about this. “Mark?”

“Yes, ma’am? I mean, yes, Christine?”

I clench my eyes shut and then peel them open. “Mark, did Gabe have to beg you to go on this date?”

He shakes his head. “No, ma’am.”

He’s about to apologize for calling me ma’am again, but I wave him off. “Okay, did he pay you?”

“No, ma—”

I hold my hand up. ‘Stop with the ma’am. Okay, what are you doing then? Because you sure don’t seem happy to be here.”

He’s still tense, standing like an oak tree. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

I chance a look over at Gabe and Bethany, andGabe has positioned them so he’s staring at me. He’s scowling, and I nod at him, but his gaze doesn’t falter. I look back at the man in front of me, and I know something is up. “Okay, so it’s obvious you don’t want to be here. What happened? How did Gabe talk you into doing this?”

He shakes his head. “He didn’t talk me into it.”

“Right.” I blow out a breath. “Okay, so what’s going on here? Did Gabe ask you to be my date?”

He scrunches up his nose. “Not exactly.”

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