Page 17 of The Valentine's Bet

“Nah, just put it on my tab.Allof it.” He gives me a sly grin. “Good luck, Amy. Maybe the fourth time’s a charm? But I wouldn’t bet on it.”

I’m fuming as he walks away.

I’ll show him.

Chapter Six

Parker

Thankfully, woman number four is a no-show for me—as is Weston’s. So, we sit together in a booth and order another round of drinks and nachos. Despite this event beinghorrible, the food here isbomb.

And what’s a second serving of nachos?

“So ... you got paired withAmy, huh?” Weston chows down on his tortilla chip covered in cheese and pulled pork. “I still don’t see what’s so bad about her.”

I eye the table she’s sitting at with her fourth date. “I don’t know,” I admit, not sure what makes her so insufferable to me. Right now, she’s got her elbows on the table, her chin resting on her hands—just like she was the other night.

It must be her go-toposition.

The match she’s with—some tall, lanky but sophisticated guy—is chatting her up, and honestly, it appears like they’re hitting off...

Good for them.

Except something in the pit of my stomach doesn’t like it.

“Why’re you staring at her if you don’t like her?” Weston’s voice is full of amusement. “Dude, you’re literallygawkingat her. You might as well just walk over and interrupt the date to get her number.”

“First off, I’m not gawking. Second,no,” I argue, shaking my head. “It’s just ... like a car wreck. You know? You can’t look away.”

“Right.” Weston chuckles. “Whatever you need to tell yourself.”

“I don’t need to tell myself anything,” I grumble under my breath. Weston has been dragging me around the dating scene too much. It’s time for me to get a break from it all. “But seriously, can you please quit signing me up for these things?”

“Okay,” Weston says, his voice full of defeat. “It’s just that, I thought maybe after a few events, I could change your mind about dating—or that you might connect with someone. But maybe that’s not gonna happen. I just want to see you happy, Parker. And once I find someone, I’m not going to be able to hang out with you all the time.”

“Dude, you’re making it out like I’m dependent on you or something.” I laugh, finding amusement in the concern written all over his face. “Lighten up—don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. And I really hope youdofind someone and that they make you happy. This stuff just isn’t for me.” I give him a genuine smile because Imeanit. Iamokay. I don’t need a romantic partner to be happy. In fact, they’d probably do the opposite for me. Relationships are nothing but heartache.

“Okay.” Weston lets out a sigh. “Well, that’s good because I got allthreewomen’s numbers, and I intend to ask all of them out.”

I cringe. “That’s a sure way to end up with noneof them. Can’t you just pick the one that you connected withthe most and go with her?”

“Icould,” he reasons, giving me a thoughtful look. “But then that might ruin my chances with someone else. I mean, what if I go out with the girl IthinkI liked the most, and then it turns out I don’t like her all that much? If I have all three numbers, I have back-ups.”

My brows raise. “I don’t know if that’s messed up or ingenious. But regardless, I think it might be morally gray.”

“Hey, isn’t that what all the ladies are into?” Weston jokes—well, Ithinkhe’s joking. He pulls out his phone and starts typing away.

“What’re you doing?”

“Texting each of them, letting them know how great of a time I had tonight.”

“Maybe you should wait until after the event is over.” I shake my head. “Otherwise, all their phones will go off at the same time. And for all we know, they might find out.”

“Ah,good point.” Weston looks up at me. “You know, you’re pretty good with relationship advice, considering you’ve never really been in one.”

“I’ve been inone,” I admit, frowning.

“Oh yeah, that’s right. The girl from college. She left you for a football player.”

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