Page 11 of Unbelonging
He said nothing, and neither did I until we were just a couple houses away from the Parkers'.
"I'm up here on the left," I said, pointing toward their house.
"I know," he said.
"Really? How?"
"We share a fence. Remember?"
"Oh. Yeah. Sorry." Of course, I knew that. Where was my brain tonight anyway?
"And I saw you before," he continued. "Walking your dog. Chucky, right?"
On my lap, Chucky gave a yap of affirmation.
Lawton chuckled, a low sound that blended nicely with the rumble of the engine.
Funny he could remember Chucky's name, but not the blonde's. Then again, I was still convinced most of that was an act. For whatever reason, he seemed to enjoy goading her. Maybe they had that kind of relationship, if you could call it that.
Soon, we were pulling into the Parkers' long, tree-lined driveway, the car rumbling to a stop. "Thanks for the ride," I said, reaching for the door.
"Hang on," he said. "You still owe me dinner."
I gave him a sideways glance. "The foursome? I think I'd better pass."
He gave me a wicked grin. "How about a twosome?"
My stomach did funny things at his smile, along with the image his words conjured up. But I paid no attention. I couldn’t afford to pay attention. A guy like him was the last thing I needed. Besides, what did he think? That I'd jump in his pants just because he drove me home?
"Are we still talking dinner?" I asked. "Or something else?" Because if it was something else, I wasn't interested. Okay, maybe Iwasinterested. He was mouth-watering, plain and simple, and I'd been thinking about him far too much for my own good.
In my fantasies, half the time we were naked. The other half, we were naked on his yacht, assuming he owned one. Sometimes we were naked on his yacht and drinking dirty martinis or drinks I couldn’t pronounce.
In my fantasies, I didn't have too many responsibilities. Instead, I had more than enough time and plenty of money. Oh yeah, and I had parents who cared, not just about me, but for my kid brother too.
It was a pretty picture, even if it wasn't real. In my fantasies, I got to enjoy life for once, free and easy. That's where the yacht came in. I could just sail off into the sunset with a beautiful guy and no responsibilities except what came day-to-day.
But real life just wasn't like that, and even if it were, I'd never abandon my commitments. I was nothing like my parents, and I had too many things on my to-do list.
Besides, there was a fine line between fantasy and reality. The reality could never live up to anyone's imagination. I knew where that road ended. It didn’t end up on a yacht. It ended with a whole lot of wasted energy and some social disease I couldn't pronounce.
He cut the engine. "That's up to you."
"Huh?"
"Dinner – or something else – it's your choice." He gave me a slow smile. "Or hey, I'm up for both."
Yeah, I just bet he was. I glanced at the house. "Sorry, but I can't have guests over."
He leaned back in the seat. "Worried your folks wouldn't like it?" He lowered his voice, as if sharing a secret. "Let me guess, because I'm a bad influence, right?"
If he only knew. My parents wouldn't give a crap one way or another. But the Parkers certainly would. Again, I glanced at the house. It wasn't half as impressive as Lawton's, but it was still pretty spectacular. Did he think I actually lived here?
Of course he did. I'd been calling Chucky my dog, after all. And Lawton had just moved in a couple weeks earlier. Even if he was the type of guy to get to know his neighbors, it's not like he'd been in the neighborhood long enough to figure out the Parkers lived there alone.
"Actually, they're not here," I said. Technically, this was true, even if it was somewhat misleading.
"So what's the problem?" he asked. It wasn't a challenge so much as a question. He seemed genuinely curious.
