Page 85 of The Valentine's Bet

“I’ll text you tonight and we can set up a second date.”

“That sounds great,” I say, giving him a wave as I step toward the lobby.

“Goodnight, Amy.”

“Night,” I call as he turns and heads back down the street. I smile to myself as I enter the lobby. Tonight was good.

And it’s totally okay that there weren’t sparks on the first date.

Not everyone can kiss like Parker.

And I’m just going to have to get past that.

Because at least there weren’t any red flags.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Parker

The rhythmic pounding of my feet against the pavement is supposed to calm my racing thoughts, but instead, they only seem to be spiraling faster.

I don’t like Dalton. And no, I don’t have a reason.

Maybe it was seeing him lip-locked with Amy through the lobby windows. Or maybe it’s just a gut instinct—though I can’t seem to find anything wrong with the guy. He respects Amy and clearly likes her. I mean, he sees herallthe freaking time.

I turn up the music in my AirPods, hoping that the ’90s rock will somehow drown out the noise in my head as I jog through the city streets. The familiar sights and sounds usually bring me peace, but this evening, they only serve to magnify my unease. Ican’t shake the feeling that something is off, and it nags at me like an itch I can’t scratch.

As I reach the park, I slow my pace and head for my favorite bench overlooking the city skyline. The setting sun casts a warm golden glow over the buildings, but my mind is far from the picturesque scene before me.

Sitting down, I take a deep breath and close my eyes, trying to clear my head. But even in the darkness behind my eyelids, all I can see is Amy’s face—the freckles sprinkled across her nose, her soft smile that lights up her eyes, the way she bites her lip when she’s nervous. It’s maddening how easily she’s lodged herself in my thoughts.

I know I have no right to feel this way. Amy and I are friends, nothing more. Though, we’ve been growing significantly closer since she moved into my place—sharing meals together, getting to know each other’s routines and favorite television shows. She even wrangled me into watchingThe Golden Bachelorwith her one evening, and now I’m admittedly invested in these sixty- to seventy-year-olds finding love. Which she gets a kick out of teasing me about—considering I don’t even really believe in love.

But watching the show makes her happy, which makesmehappy.

But that’s beside the point.

The point is ... Amy is free to date whoever she wants. It’s not like I have any claim over her. Plus, she deserves to find someone who truly cares for her, who can give her the kind of love she so wholeheartedlybelieves in.

With a resigned sigh, I check my watch and decide to make my way back home. Twenty minutes later, I step off the elevator to my penthouse apartment and unlock the front door.

“Hey you,” Amy greets as I step through the doorway. She looks stunning as ever in her pencil skirt and blue blouse. It brings out the color in her eyes. “How was your run?”

I manage a smile as I close the door, trying to push aside my earlier feelings as I respond, “It was good, thanks. How was your day?”

“Good! Thanks for asking. Do you want me to make us some dinner tonight?”

“Aren’t you going out with Dalton? You’ve been seeing him almost every day for the past two weeks.”

“He has a meeting with his partners tonight,” Amy says, a tinge of pride in her voice. The guy is driven, considering he owns an incredibly successful financial firm, but he’s also selfless... Because you know, he works at a vet clinic for hardly anything...

Ugh.

“We’ll hang out tomorrow,” Amy continues. “I’m still in awe that Dalton puts in so much time at the clinic and then turns around and goes to business meetings in the evenings. He literallynevercomplains about it.”

“That’s great and all, but what happens when he has a family?” I ask as I unlace my running shoes. “Wouldn’t the fact that he’s working all the time get in the way of family time?”

Amy just shrugs. “I mean, he only has meetings every now and then. I don’t think it would affect anything in the long run.”

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