Page 47 of Falling for the Guy Next Door

“Nope. Not going in with ya. I’ll stay back here and avoid being elbowed and pushed and scowled at. Good luck. I’m with you in spirit.”

“Coward,” she said with a smile. She turned toward her focal point, took a deep breath and forged ahead. She returned before I could even blink. She was holding her side and looking decidedly less confident about her plan.

“I just got the worst elbow in my side.”

“I’m sorry, but you knew what you were facing going in. After all, you were going to use the same weapon.”

“Yeah, but before I could draw my weapon some bottle-blonde with a hideous green sundress drew first, and man, did she get me when she thought I was trying to pass her.”

“In her defense, youweretrying to pass her,” I said.

Emily shrugged off that detail. “I did get some good intel though,” she said, sticking with the combat theme. “The eagle has landed,” she said in her best covert voice.

“Uh, the secret service is here?”

“No,” she rolled her eyes. “The band just pulled up out back. And I was thinking …”

“Oh no, you’ve got that same twinkle in your eyes you had when you talked me into sneaking into the movie theater through the emergency exit. Nonna was so mad at me, to this day, I still tremble with fear when I think about her face as she picked us up at the theater security station.”

“That was probably not our finest hour. But this isn’t nearly as illegal. The band is no doubt parked in the alley, and they’ll be busy going in and out as they move equipment. And I happen to be with Nash Ledger’s dog walker. Let’s go around to the alley and wait to see him. You can say hi and casually reintroduce me to him. It’s way better than standing close to the stage—and those loud speakers.”

A lump formed in my stomach with each word. This was why lies were so insidious. They fed on more deceit and then grew like the giant blob in that vintage horror movie until the original lie became so big it literally started devouring everything in sight.

Emily grabbed my arm. “What do you say? We won’t stay there long, just long enough to talk to Nash and say hello.”

“They’ll be busy, Emi. We’ll be in the way.”

“That’s why I promise we won’t stay long. Come on, he owes you because you walk his dog.”

“I do that strictly for selfish reasons. I love walking Rocky.”

Emily did her head tilt, pleading gesture.

“Oh my gosh, are you serious? Fine, let’s go out there. It’s possible we won’t even see them.” I hoped that was the case, but if not, I was ready to put on that poker face for a quick interaction with Nash. I was just his dog walker, and we certainly didn’t kiss five times today during and after that dog walk.

There were still people filing in, and we were the only people walking out. One of the drink servers was clicking a counting device to keep track of how many people were inside. Our leaving threw her off, and she grumbled at us. “You might not get back in,” she said sharply. “We’re almost at capacity.”

I looked at Emily. “Are you still willing to risk it?”

Emily bit her lip in thought. “Yes, let’s go.” We walked along the side of the building. My first interaction with Nash came back to me, vividly, as we approached the corner.

Emily glanced over at me. “What are you smiling about?”

“Smiling?” I asked too abruptly. There it was again, the lie blob growing to epic proportions. “Just glad to be out of that crowded bar.”

We rounded the corner. A white van and Nash’s truck were parked in the alley. Bosco and Nash were carrying a speaker down a ramp.

Emily grabbed my arm and startled me. “There he is,” she squealed.

Nash looked up to see who’d come down the alley. He nearly dropped the speaker. Bosco growled at him angrily about it, then he spotted us.

“The bar entrance is on the other side,” Bosco scolded.

“It’s all right. They’re here to see me,” Nash said.

There was only one light bulb hanging over the back door, but it was enough light for Bosco to recognize us as we got closer. “That’s right. Your newest conquest,” he said snidely.

The words were meant for Nash, but they hit me like shards of glass. Was I merely his next conquest?

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