Page 58 of Free to Run
He sighs. “No, but—”
“If I give you this chance, Keene, this is it. No more crazy. I can deal with fights. Look at my family. Hell, you’re a part of it, so you’d better get used to them. What I won’t deal with is being made a fool of a third time.”
Breath whooshes from his nostrils as it releases. “I never meant to make you feel like a fool the first time, Alison.”
“No, just yesterday,” I say with saccharine sweetness.
“Yesterday, I was being a spoiled child,” he admits.
“Excellent. We’re in agreement.”
“We’re us. We’re going to disagree.”
“Quite a bit.” I smile. “I imagine it’ll be fun to make up once we get to that point.”
There’s a delicate pause. “Once we get to what point? Sex?” His voice is a mixture of outrage and disbelief.
I want to howl laughing. Oh, Keene, you poor, poor man. Better get ready to enjoy your hand for a little while longer. “Yes.”
“You realize that horse left the barn a long time ago.” Now he sounds like Keene— irritated.
“Yes. And I feel like we need to have a couple of dates under our belt before we jump back into bed,” I calmly explain.
His teeth must be clenched. I’m freaking delighted. “How many?”
“Dates? I don’t know.” I pause to think. “Thirty?” I wait for the explosion.
He doesn’t disappoint.
“Thirty? Thirty separate dates? Not a date that lasts thirty hours?” His voice is so loud, I imagine they can hear him back on the farm.
I’m biting my lip to keep my laughter contained. “What’s your negotiation, counselor?”
“Three,” he says firmly.
“I don’t think so. Fifteen.”
“Five.” His arms slip around my waist.
I like his idea, but I don’t want to give in too quickly. “Does that include the family dinner this week?”
“Absolutely.” His voice is firm.
“No, I don’t think so. That’s more like a coming out party. Besides, you’re basically giving Phil an opportunity to harangue me all night. Ten, plus the family dinner.”
“Five plus the family dinner, or I swear to God, I’ll end up bending you over in front of your entire family and let Phil take pictures,” he threatens.
I finally lose it, laughing hysterically.
He grumbles, “I was so had.”
“Not for five more dates,” I singsong.
Smack!The slap Keene delivers to my ass, wearing only running shorts, feels almost as good as it does as when it’s bare. I can hear the taunt in his voice when he says, “Think about that when you’re using your fingers later, baby.”
“Asshole,” I mutter. “Ready to head back?”
He looks down the way he came up. “Those steps should be interesting in the dark.”
