Page 20 of Highest Bidder
“You two kids have fun!” Jess says, while holding back the dog.
“Thanks, Jess,” I sarcastically say. “Bye, Nickelback. Bite her in the ass while I’m gone,” I sweetly say to the dog before rubbing him on the ear. Jess gives me her fakest smile, and I stick my tongue out at her before turning toward James to leave.
His silver Toyota Camry is in the driveway, and he opens the passenger door for me. It’s a sensible car with all the driving he does. Maybe that’s why Jess doesn’t care for him.No, she’s not shallow.She doesn’t care about what people drive.My quarrel with Jess will bother me all night. I don’t like fighting with anyone, but especially not her. I just want to go back inside and hash it out with her, but that’s not fair to James.
He waits for me to buckle before shutting my door and walking around to his side. He looks over at me and smiles. He’s friendly, but I don’t feel much of a spark with him yet. Maybe tonight will change that.
“Hey, pretty girl.” He leans closer to me.What is he doing?Time feels like it slows as I watch him. My heart palpitates, and not in a good way. I don’t want to hurt his feelings, but I’m not ready for this. With how I’m feeling, I’m not sure I’ll ever be ready for this with him.
I turn my head and laugh nervously. “So what movie are we going to see?” I ask, trying to avoid what he apparently planned on doing. This is awkward and in my driveway, of all places.
He sits back before rubbing the back of his neck. “Um, it’s called Abduction.” He gives me a small smile.
He’s trying to be nice, but I’ll refrain from saying that I didn’t like Taylor Lautner in the movies I’ve seen him in. I liked the Twilight books but couldn’t get through the movies. Schooling my face into something neutral, he pulls onto the main highway.
Fuck. I’m terrible at this. Dating.I’ve had boyfriends, it’s not like Steve and I didn’t sleep together. But even that didn’t live up to the hype. You spread your legs, and he kisses you a few times. Once he’s done doing histhing, you go back to looking at your phone or watching a movie. I could take it or leave it, but mostly leave it. I've always wondered if there is something wrong with me. Some women say they crave sex, but I don’t understand. I haven’t enjoyed it enough towantit. Steve always initiated or begged, making me feel bad when I wasn’t up for it.
“Hey, where did you go? You okay?” James touches my arm, looking at me before turning back to the road again.
“Oh, yeah,” I grin. “I’m good. The movie sounds great!” I lookdown and watch as he reaches over to hold my hand. Stopping at a red light, I look into his brown eyes, seeing a guy who’s trying to get close to me. So I hold his hand all the way to the movies and feel nothing.
“This theater has some good pizza, so I thought we could eat it while we watch the movie. Is that okay with you?” James asks. I may be crazy, but I’m not much of a pizza person. But I’d rather eat it than make it a big deal.
“Yeah. Sounds good.” I turn back to looking outside.
What would it be like to want to touch someone? I mean, that has only happened once to me. It was after I’d metMyles, and his strong hands picked me up off the floor. He stepped away, and I had to keep myself from closing the distance.
Woah, where did that come from?
I shake my head. I don’t need to be thinking about how hot and rugged he is, especially right now. Seeing him with his shirt off and his strong muscles just begging me to touch them was hard. It’s like a veil has been lifted, and I’m seeing the real Myles for the first time. He gave me my favorite coffee and was friendly when he caught the furball, even asking me to run with him. It made me see the side of him that everyone else always talks about, but I can’t believe he caught me checking him out. It was honestly unavoidable. His body was on complete display, and I have never been more turned on by someone in my life.
“Did you say something?” James looks over at me while pulling into the parking lot.
I whip my head to look his way, my eyes no doubt bugging out of my head. “Oh, no.”
“Okay, well, we’re here.” He pulls his hand away to park the car. I’m relieved because as much as he seems to like holding my hand, it makes me nervous. Not because I like him, but because I’m afraid I don’t like himenough.
My mind wanders back to Myles, and my cheeks warm at the thought of holding his hand.The way his strong hands burnedtheir mark on my hips, or the way his lips felt as they ghosted over the shell of my ear. When he gave me the most mesmerizing smile while wearing my sunglasses. I’ve definitely lost sleep wondering why he acts the way he does.
James turns off the car and goes to open the door when I blurt, “Does your car have a name?”
He turns to look at me with a puzzled look. Okay, yes, it’s a random question, but not unheard of. I don’t know how to not be awkward on a date. Plus, I need to stop thinking of a certain ringman.
“Um, no. Why would it?”
“I mean you spend more time with your car than anyone or anything else, especially in this industry.”
“It gets me from point A to point B.” He shakes his head. “I’ve never understood people who felt the need to name their cars.”
I look down at my hands folded in my lap. “Oh.” I turn to open the door.
“Hey,” he says, grabbing my hand. “I’m sorry. You told me you like your Bronco, and it’s an awesome ride. I’ve never had one that was as nice as yours, I guess. I drive so much I have to buy cars pretty frequently.” Giving me a reassuring smile, he squeezes my hand and gets out of the car.
I guess he has a point, but I’ve never understood why people don’t name their cars. I spend at least twelve hours a week driving to all my different jobs. Westley and I are close, and it’s not because he looks good. I spend more time with him than I do going out on dates, so of course, he should have a name.
We walk into the theater and get our food and tickets. This is the quietest date I’ve been on, and it’s growing more uncomfortable by the minute. What do people do on dates? Steve basically dated me at work. He wanted everyone to know he was with Conrad’s daughter. I tried to avoid traditional dates with him because there would be a chance he would drink. The first time he got loud and a little physical, I thought it was a fluke. But afterthe fifth time it happened, I realized it wasn’t. I ended things and left him. I knew he wouldn’t make it easy, and I didn’t want to see him at work. I love being an auctioneer. I don’t want to dread going to work because of who’s there. Oklahoma never felt much like home, so it was easy to leave.
I follow James up the aisle to the back of the theater, passing only a few other couples on the way. It’s a little eerie being in an almost empty theater, but I’m not complaining. I don’t like sitting next to strangers. We both dig into our pizza before the movie starts. It’s becoming obvious that we have little to talk about.
