Page 161 of Zero Chance

Pushing her poisoned words from my head as I hurried across the porch and down the steps toward him—He’s just like his father.He can’t handle the weight of your trauma and baggage.He’ll run the first chance he gets—I picked up my pace, needing his smile more than I needed my next breath.

The driver’s side door of the Jeep opened, and all six glorious feet of Keene popped out.“Hey,” he chastised teasingly, lifting his hands in pretend offense, even as he grinned that grin I loved so much.“I was going to come to the door like a proper?—”

Not letting him finish, I threw myself at him, hugging him hard and rising up on my toes to kiss the fuck out of him.

Muffling out his surprise, he caught me against him and hugged me back, his tongue spiking between my teeth.Then his hands were on my ass, and he was lifting me until I was wrapping my legs around his waist.

“Or this,” he gasped when he came up for air.“Yeah.This way works too.Damn, woman.”Shaking his head, he blinked his vision into focus and grinned at me.“Happy Valentine’s Day,” he murmured.“You ready for a night you’ll never forget?”

“Yes,” I said, already forgetting everything I’d just been stressing about.

I was ready for anything with him.

36

WAVERLY

Keene gave me a dozen red roses and a horseshoe necklace with little diamonds embedded in it.

“Am I being too cheesy and typical with this?”he asked with a cringe in his voice as he fastened the chain around my neck.

Letting my hair fall into place, I twisted back to face him again, saying, “If you are, I don’t care.I’m here for it.”

“Thank God.”He blew out a relieved breath and gave me a quick kiss above my eye where the bruise from Monday was already beginning to fade.“Because I’m taking you to the nicest restaurant in town next.”

Beaming from the inside out, I was only able to say a winded, “Okay.”

He chuckled, proud of himself over my reaction.And he put the Jeep into reverse to leave my driveway.As we reached the street, I glanced up to see the dooming silhouette of my mother in the front window.

Swallowing, I pushed thoughts of her from my mind and turned to Keene as he told me about his Nursing Fundamentals class and the virtual person they’d gotten to practice on.Apparently, he’d pressed the wrong button on the screen and accidentally stripped the image naked of its loincloth, only to find out the dude had been drawn anatomically correct.

“And he was hung like a fucking mule; I’m telling you.”

I laughed; though seriously, this man could have the most boring day, and he could still make it sound fascinating.By the time we reached the restaurant, I was holding my sides from giggling so hard.

When I saw where he’d taken me, my jaw dropped.“V-Eleven?”Whirling toward him, I demanded, “How the hell did you get a reservationhere?”

My dad had been trying for months and was stuck on a permanent waitlist.

Eyes flaring with delight, Keene turned to me after he parked and grinned wickedly.“Oh God, can it be?”he asked.“I actually know something about your bestie thatyoudon’t?”

“My bestie?”I shook my head, completely clueless.“What…?”

Hitching his head toward the front door, he said, “Ohrley owns this place.I can get in whenever I want.”

“Parker?”Holy wow.I had no idea heownedV-Eleven.Geesh.I knew he was rich, but I was beginning to understand I had no idea just how much bank he actually made.

“Yeah, I did not know that,” I admitted, glancing up at the restaurant again.“So you can stop acting so jealous of him; he and I arenotclose.”

Scoffing, Keene lifted his chin.“I’m not jealous.”

“I mean…” I shrugged.“If youwere, your jealousy is superhot, but?—”

And before I could tease him anymore, Keene burst out, “I want to stab him in the eye for being as close to you as he is.”

I laughed, then reached out to cup his chin.“Trust me,” I murmured huskily.“No way is he as close to me as you are.”

Growling, Keene leaned in.“He better not be.”And he kissed me hard.

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