Page 12 of March’s Bad Boy: Ty

Levi shrugs. "Why not?"

Shaking my head, I rub the back of my neck and contemplate rushing to her. "Because she wanted this. She asked me to help her get ready for this date. If I barge in there now, I look like a possessive asshole."

But the thought starts to take hold. Going and putting myself out there. I know she felt the same way I did about the kiss. I could see it. But she could also say no, and then it would kill our friendship, too.

Levi studies me for a long moment, then leans forward, resting his forearms on his knees. "Look, man. You can sit hereand pretend you're fine with this, or you can be honest with yourself. But you don't want her dating some other guy. What you want is her to be with you. So, stop fighting it."

My chest tightens. "It's not that simple."

Levi gives me a smug smile. "It is. You're just making it complicated."

"If she says no? It's not just a no, it's putting our friendship on the line too," I say, running my hand through my hair.

"Your friendship will recover. It might take some time, but you two have been through so much. You just have to work at it and not ignore it," he says, smiling.

I let out a slow breath, staring down at my beer. He's right. I know he is. And if I don't do something about this now, I'm going to regret it, even more so if her date goes well.

Without another word, I grab my keys and head for the door.

"Atta boy," Levi calls after me, laughing as I leave.

"Close up when you leave and don't be here when I get back!" I call after him.

During the drive to the steakhouse, I work out what I'm going to say. I might only get one shot at this, and I don't want to fuck it up.

The restaurant is busier than I expected. I tell the hostess I'm meeting someone and walk back through the tables. Thankfully, she doesn't try to stop me.

I spot Kara almost immediately, sitting at a small table near the window. Her date is talking--rambling, actually--while she nods politely, her expression unreadable. She's not smiling. Not laughing. And I know her well enough to know she's not into this.

With my heart hammering, I step closer. Her date finally notices me approaching, his brows furrowing in confusion. Kara looks up, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Ty?" she says, her voice soft, but stunned.

I don't give her a chance to question me. Instead, I focus on her date, offering the guy a tight smile.

"Sorry, man," I say, "but I could tell from the door you are boring her to death."

His frown deepens. "Excuse me?"

Kara blinks at me, and then suddenly, unexpectedly, she laughs. A real, genuine,relievedlaugh.

She relaxes and looks at her date. "I was just about to end it, anyway."

The guy stares at her, then at me, then back at her. "Wait, seriously?"

I feel a bit bad because he looks so confused, but I'm also stunned that Kara was going to end the date. That doesn't mean she is interested in me, but I have a much better shot now than I did on the way here.

Kara gives him an apologetic smile. "Yeah. You're nice, really. But this just... isn't what I want."

He exhales, shaking his head. "Well, damn. Okay. Good luck, I guess."

With that, I toss some cash on the table and then take Kara's hand and lead her out of the restaurant. She lets me guide her to my car, but stops me from opening the door for her.

She's still smiling. That same soft, secret smile that always makes my chest ache.

"You really were gonna end it?" I ask, needing to know.

She nods. "Yeah."

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