Page 11 of Promises & Pumpkins
“What if I don’t want a real date?” He winked, stepping close enough that he could lower his voice. “What if I just want to take you to get something to eat and make you scream my name again after? As friends.”
I gasped. “Oh mygod,will you please be quiet? This is myjob!You are the father of one of my students!” I whisper-yelled.
“What’s wrong?” The mischievous look on his face told me he wasn’t going to be changing his volume. “You don’t want the moms to know that you loved getting fucked by the guy next door?”
“What happened to dinner as friends?” The stubbornness I was born with started to take over.
He put his hands up in mock surrender. “I promise, just as friends.”
“If I agree to dinner, will you leave? You’re causing a scene.” Was I serious? When his face lit up, I realized what I had done. Miles nodded.
“Deal. I’ll pick you up tomorrow at six.” He took a smooth step backward followed by another.
I couldn’t believe I had agreed to this. Even more so, I couldn’t believe the butterflies in my stomach were getting so excited. “You know where I live.”
When he winked, the butterflies raced toward my throat. “That I do.”
Chapter 11
Miles
“Ithought we were going to get dinner.” Harper adjusted in my front seat when I turned down a dirt road, almost like she was preparing to escape. This wasn’t a horror movie, and she didn’t need to roll out of the car and run like her life depended on it, if that was what she was worrying about. I chuckled.
“We are.” I turned again down another road that had fewer streetlights, watching her eyes narrow in the shadow.
She crossed her arms defensively. “Then why are we out in the middle of nowhere?” Harper scrunched her nose, staring out the window as the fields rushed by.
“Because this is where the cookout is.” I stifled a laugh when her eyes widened and put my hand out to stop the panic before it started. “It’s a department tradition. My partner throws a cookout every fall. There will be a bonfire, plenty of food, and beer.”
“You tricked me.” Harper glared at me.
“Not intentionally.” When I smirked, she bit back a small smile of her own. I sighed. “Look, I thought you might have fun, and I thought it would be nice having you here. If you’d like, I’ll take you somewhere else or back home.”
Her eyes never left my face while she moved her pursed lips side to side, debating silently with herself. Then her face relaxed and she groaned. “You said there’s beer?”
“Tons of it.” I couldn’t resist the grin that tugged at my lips when we pulled into the driveway at Stanley’s house. I didn’t know why I wanted Harper there so badly. Maybe I was tired of coming to this thing alone since Miranda died, or maybe I wanted to see if she’d loosen up and have some fun. “Let’s go.”
Harper looked around while we walked into the party, walking down the path around the side of the house. She carefully took each step, but I was prepared to catch her in case she tripped. As soon as we were far enough into the yard for the lights to announce our arrival, Stanley shouted. “Hey, look who it is!” He already had a beer in his hand, and I was sure it wasn’t his first judging by the amusement on his face. “And he didn’t come alone! I thought you were bluffing. You brought a date!” Harper stiffened and looked at me from the side of her eye.
“She’s just a friend of mine. This is Harper.”
Stanley clapped me on the shoulder when he clearly didn’t believe me and then wiped his hand off on the front of his jeans. “Stanley. It’s nice to meet you,” he said, sticking his hand out to Harper. “I’m Miles’ partner. Going on, what, almost a decade now, right?”
I hummed in agreement. I looked at her and then back to him. “Don’t scare her off.”
Harper giggled when she shook his hand, and the sound tied my stomach in a knot only a beer would undo. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said, glancing at me from the side of her eye. I knew exactly what she was looking for.
“It’s nicer to meet you!” Stanley said, already cracking himself up. “I don’t know how you can stand this guy.” He swatted me in the stomach with the back of his hand, and I glared.
“Me neither!” Her eyes glistened under the lights while she laughed with him. “He even tricked me into coming here. If anything, I don’t know howyoustand him!” She sounded lighter when she laughed.
Stanley looked at me and then back to her with a mischievous glint. “I don’t!” He laughed loudly enough that it explained why he and his wife lived so far out in the country instead of closer to town. Then he grabbed my arm and took a swig of his beer. “Okay, I think I like her.”
Harper looked pleased by the approval and the waved finger guns Stanley gave her, and I scoffed, pretending that I wasn’t glad they got along. “Then maybe I should get her away from you before you start to influence her.” She scrunched her nose when I put my arm around her shoulders, but she relaxed and didn’t pull away. Relief flooded over me when I looked down at her to find her already looking at me. “What do you say we get a drink?”
When she nodded, I put my hand in the middle of her back and led her toward the barn that I knew was full of coolers and powertools. “Your partner is nice,” she said, stepping a little closer to me as a small breeze picked up.
“He can be. Your partner becomes kind of like family.” Mine did, especially when Miranda died. He was the reason I got through it.
