Page 198 of Now and Forever

“You can stop staring at my legs now.” It was too much too soon. It was undeniable, this chemistry we had. I wasn’t imagining it, either. It was obvious he felt it, too.

“You did invite me to, so here I am … enjoying the view.”

My sanity was on the verge of being thrown to the wind. Even though there was this thing with Cruz, I didn’t want to make a fool of myself. My ex-boyfriend did such a number on me, and I didn’t want that repeated.

“Jesus Christ, must you all be so flirty? Archer, you—I can’t breathe for a second without having palpitations. You both are just too everything—”

“You find my brother charming?” he inquired.

There was stillness in him that made me seek his eyes. “No—yes … Well, it’s hard not to be.”

Something flashed in his eyes. “He’s a good man, but he doesn’t like to take women too seriously. I’m just giving you a precaution in case you get carried away. He’s not that type. He likes variety.”

He was giving me a warning of what type of a man Archer was, and I appreciated it, but maybe there was something he misunderstood from me.

“What makes you think I’m not that kind, as well? Who wants commitment, anyway?”

He studied me a moment, scrutinizing me with those vividly mesmerizing eyes. “Most women do.”

“Maybe I’m not like most women. Maybe I like to play the field, too.”

He nodded as if fully understanding me. “Brilliant. Then there’s nothing to worry about,” he said in a serious voice before holding the door open, indicating he was done discussing the subject.

His demeanor didn’t come off rude, but there was an apparent shift in his attitude. It didn’t give me the warm fuzzies; that was for sure.

The moment he started the engine, I could feel him deep in thought as he weaved into traffic. He didn’t bother turning on the music or making small talk. He was quiet as he concentrated on the road while I wondered why I had to say things I didn’t mean that had possibly offended him.

Was it that my statement about not wanting commitment and wanting to have fun made me look like a loose cannon? Was his silence an indication that he was worried I might bring problems to his mother’s household? Reflecting on what had happened, I hoped he didn’t deem me as trouble.

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