Page 37 of The Best Friend's Billionaire Brother
Wyatt set his cards down and stood.
“Where are you going?” asked Carrie Anne.
He might not have been the sharpest crayon, but he had enough wits to not say,To spy on Gabby.Instead, he used the best excuse ever invented. “Bathroom.”
“Oh,” his sister replied sweetly, but the look she gave him nearly froze his boots in place. It was as if she was reading his mind and knew his real reason.
He shivered with the thought and left the table. As he reached the living room, he walked softer. His brain and his body were working in such harmony that he didn’t even have to try to be sneaky. Wyatt stopped just far enough away that he could hear her clearly.
“No, it’s okay. I understand.” Her shoulders sagged. “I was looking forward to it. Maybe another time?”
Another time? Bandit was standing her up? What? Nothing Bandit said would make up for him ditching her.
“Sure, I’ll talk to you later.” She chuckled. “Okay. Bye.”
She turned, and Wyatt froze. “I’m sorry. I was going to the bathroom and didn’t want to interrupt you.”
“It’s okay.” She lifted one foot and began taking off her boot.
“What are you doing?”
She stopped and shrugged. “Changing. Bandit went to town, and he lost track of time. We had reservations at the La Grande Bistro in Amarillo. No way we can make it now.” Sighing, she set her clutch on a nearby side table. “It’s okay. Maybe another time.”
“Well…” Well, what? The last time Wyatt was alone with her, he’d kissed her. Did he risk doing that again? Especially with her looking so amazing? Man, her lips were covered in some gloss that seemed to be made of neon. It was all he could do to keep his eyes off them.
That washisproblem, though. She looked great, and it didn’t seem right for her to look that good and not get to go out. It wasn’t fair that her night should get ruined just because Bandit lost track of time. She deserved a great night out. “I could take you. I mean, I’m a poor substitute for Bandit, but if you’re okay with it, I’d be happy to be your plus one.”
She smiled. “That’s okay.”
The mournful tone in her voice made Wyatt even more determined to take her out. “No, you got dressed up. There’s no reason to let that go to waste. Is there a dress code for that Bistro place?”
She closed the distance between them just as Wyatt took a deep breath. Goodness, and he thought she smelled good the other day. This perfume was even better. Up close, her hair looked so soft that it took effort not to slide his fingers through it. But what really got him were her eyes. They had to be the prettiest brown eyes he’d ever seen.
He was mesmerized by her. “Geez, Gabby, you just look…”
“Too dressed up?” Her lips turned down in the corners as she glanced down.
He tipped her chin up with one finger. “No, you look stunning. There isn’t a prettier woman in the state of Texas, if you ask me.”
“I think you’re required to say that, being family and all.”
His hand dropped to his side. Family? He wasn’t having family feelings at all. Right then, he could see himself taking her in his arms and kissing her. He needed to knock that off if he was taking her out. Kissing her a second time…well, there would be no excuse for that. The last thing he wanted was for things to be awkward or to betray his friend again. “That’s not why I said it. Family or not, you are gorgeous.”
“Are you sure you want to go out with me?”
“Absolutely.” The word came all the way from his core. He wanted nothing more than to spend the evening with her. Yeah, they were family, but he didn’t know nearly enough about her, and he wanted to fix that. “Am I dressed okay? All I’ve got are jeans and these button-ups.”
Her lips quirked up. “You’ve always looked good to me. I think you’ll be fine.”
“Then I guess we should go.”
Man, oh man, he couldn’t remember being drawn to a woman so strongly. And if he was feeling this way already, how would he feel about her once he’d spent time with her?
He took a deep breath and tamped down the thoughts. She was Bandit’s girl, and Wyatt was going to respect that. He was man enough to control himself, hopefully.
* * *
Conversationon the way to the La Grand Bistro was fun and light. Whatever awkwardness that had been between them was gone, and they were back to being their old selves: teasing, joking, and talking about everything from his accident to her time at the newspaper. Overall, the two-hour drive to Amarillo was comfortable.
