Page 98 of The Enemy Face Off

"Or going through favorite movies, or shows, or music."

"Yes! And not being honest with any of your answers for fear of being judged, so you only say things you think the other person will think are cool."

I clear my throat. "You speaking from experience, by any chance?"

"Actually, yeah." She blushes a little. "Younger Beth was a lot more worried about what other people thought of her."

"I like this Beth better."

"You do?"

"For sure." I hesitate. "Tell me something embarrassing."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, if I scored highly due to not asking typical first-date questions, I'm curious to see what score I get for asking untypical first-date questions."

"You mean atypical."

"I'm pretty sure I'm rig—you know what, nevermind. I'll let you have the win."

"Nuh-uh. I'mtakingthe win because I'm right."

"Are we ever going to stop teasing each other?"

She grins. "I hope not."

"I hope not, too."

"Okay. Let's see. You want an embarrassing story, huh?"

"I do."

She takes a moment to think of something. "Okay. I have something. It happened recently."

"Go for it."

"Okay, so Mr. Forrester comes into the book shop. Do you know him?"

"No. I don't think I do."

"He's so lovely. When you think of a sweet grandpa, he's the guy who pops into your head."

I smile. "Got it."

"Anyway, he asked for a mystery book recommendation. That's not my genre, but I remembered Courtland raving about a mystery he'd just read, so I suggested that to him. Anyway, Mr. Forrester returns the next day, laughing, and tells me the book I'd recommended was actually a steamy romance novel. I'd gotten the two titles,The Lieutenant's SecretandThe Lieutenant's Promisemixed up."

I chuckle. "Bet he didn't see that plot twist coming."

Beth giggles. "I realize it's not the worst thing in the world, but Idied. I only hoped he stopped reading by page five because that's when the Lieutenant's, uh, secret, makes its first appearance."

My chuckle turns into a laugh. "That's too funny."

"Okay. It's my turn to ask you a non-first-date question. Hmm." She taps her chin. "Ooh, I know. Is Milo Payne, the gruffest and grumpiest goalie in the NHL afraid of anything?"

I study her for a moment. It's an interesting question to ask. Is she asking because she really wants to know, or is it a test to see if I'm able to admit to my fears?

"I'm good with a lot of things. Snakes, spiders, toddler poop." She giggles. "The only thing I'm afraid of is heights."

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