Page 83 of Outside The Wire

“No,” Holly snapped. “I wouldn’t wish her on my worst enemy.”

“She’s your best friend.”

“And it’s because she’s my best friend that I can tell you not to set any of your friends up with her,” she said, narrowing her eyes on me.

I turned to Wyatt. “So, you want that date?”

“Depends. Does she know about the wheelbarrow?”

Holly rolled her eyes. “I’m leaving.”

I walked her out, smiling the whole way.

“I’m glad you find this funny.”

“It is, baby.”

“It most definitely is not.”

“You’re too uptight.”

She spun on me and eyed me seriously. “If you think I’m uptight now, just wait until I turn out like my mother.”

That intrigued me. I tugged her into my arms. “Does that mean you’re planning to stick around for a long time? Your mom seems to think I’m gonna be her son-in-law.”

“I—that’s?—”

“Relax,” I chuckled. “I was just teasing you.” I brushed her cocoa-crusted hair back from her face and kissed her. “You should probably shower before tonight. Your mom said casual, but I doubt she meant with cocoa in your hair.”

“You know, you’re a little too calm about this whole thing.”

“That’s because I am.”

“Why?”

I shrugged. Maybe it was because I’d already been through worse. Or maybe it was because I was already in love with Holly and knew I wanted her in my life forever. The rest just didn’t scare me. Either way, meeting her parents wasn’t a big deal. “It just doesn’t.”

“Will I ever meet your parents?”

“You’d better get cleaned up,” I deflected. “I have to get back to work. I’ll see you tonight.” I kissed her and headed back inside before she could corner me and ask any more questions. I wanted to be an open book with her, but there were some things I just wasn’t ready to get into yet.

“I can’t believeI got dragged along for this,” Noelle grumbled.

“I hear you were the instigator,” I grinned, shifting in my seat.

“Who told you that?”

I glanced over at her pouting face in the passenger seat. For all her crankiness, she would do anything for Holly. This was all one really good act she was putting on.

“Holly messaged me. She said I had you to thank for all of this.”

“Well, I was only trying to get back at her for what she did to me.”

“Which was what?”

“She was taunting me about what phallic-shaped objects you might have played with while you were snowed in at the shop.”

I burst out laughing, finding the whole thing damn funny. That sounded exactly like something Holly would do. “I wish I could have been there to witness that.”

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