Page 54 of Callahan

I wasn’t sure I was ready to see Adam so soon after basically throwing myself at him earlier and being turned down.

If he really moved here, how was I going to handle seeing him every day like he promised/threatened?

I needed to go out of town and have a one-night stand. Maybe if I got laid, I could be around Adam and not be affected by his toothpaste-worthy smile or muscular chest.

“Dinner, huh? What kind of dinner?”

“Whatever you want.”

“Well, I had pizza the other night, so not that. And Ralph is cooking at the diner tonight, and you know he puts way too much salt in everything, so not the diner.”

“That pretty much leaves the Golden Dragon, or we make something and bring it over.”

“Chinese it is.”

“Text me your order,” he said with a laugh. “We’ll be by in an hour?”

“I might be nursing Conor, but I’ll be here.”

“Do you want us to come later? Or earlier?”

“No, six-thirty is fine. You know what? I’ll wake up Conor as soon as we hang up, then he’ll be awake when you get here.”

“Oh, I don’t want you to do that. Won’t he be grumpy?”

“It’s close enough to his dinner time. He’ll be okay.”

“I would love to see him again, so, if you say it’s okay, I’m not going to argue.”

“Good; I say it’s okay.”

“Then we’ll see you in an hour. Don’t forget to text me your order.”

I hung up and let out a deep sigh, unsure if I’d be able to act normal around Adam in front of Brian. If I came off as anything but nice and welcoming, Brian would insist on knowing why. How would I explain that?

“Well, Bri, I wanted to get busy with Adam earlier, but he turned me down because he thinks it would be disrespectful to your dead best friend’s memory. I, however, was willing anyway. Because I’m horny and a horrible person.”

And now Adam was going to live in Haven Springs, so I’d get to relive the embarrassment often.

Grrrrreat.

But a tiny part of me was glad he wasn’t leaving.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Adam

“I really appreciate you letting me crash at your place for a few more days.”

“You’re welcome to stay as long as you need. I don’t know how many rentals are available in town. Tomorrow, you should make an appointment with Sylvia Day. She’s the local expert on the real estate market—although, she’ll probably try to get you to buy something instead of rent.”

“I mean, I wouldn’t mind buying a place eventually. But I want to make sure I’m going to stick around long enough and put down roots before I spend that kind of money.”

“That makes sense. But I predict you will want to stay.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“Call it a hunch.” Without missing a beat, he changed topics. “We have to pick up Chinese for dinner and take it to Lainey’s before we put up her camera.”

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