Page 22 of Absinthe Minded

“You’re welcome.” He chuckled and reclaimed his barstool. “Are you avoiding my question?”

“A few months ago, on a dare.” I eased onto the stool next to him.

“A dare?” He ran his hand over his stubbly chin. “What kind of dare?”

Not wanting to go there, I shrugged. “How’s work?”

“Don’t change the subject. Tell me about this dare.”

“Shanna dared me to sign up for an online dating service. I went out with two guys from the site but took down my profile when I met Justin.”

He smirked as he refilled our glasses. “And it’s working out?”

Nope.“I guess.”

Gabe grew quiet.

I waited until I couldn’t stand the silence. “Three weeks is a long time to be away from your place.”

“If it’s an inconvenience, I’ll figure out something else.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. I could use a vacation. Florida’s nice this time of year.”

I loved the idea of a few days with nothing to do except work and sleep. “The kids have next Monday off of school…”

“You’re pretty excited over a hypothetical trip.” He nudged me with his shoulder. “Or is it a couple of nights in a hotel with me?”

“You could take the kids to Disney with your parents. Your mother has them every other weekend anyway. Plus, you said you needed to talk to your dad. That way, I could get some work done and have a sleepover with Justin.” I had no idea why I’d suggested that—not when I’d rather sleep with Attila the Hun.

“Ella’s too young to travel.” Gabe grinned, seeming to hold back laughter. “Besides, Chloe told me your sleepovers end at eight-thirty, remember?”

I lifted my glass and downed half its contents. “My sleepovers are a lot of fun.”

“They used to be.” He flashed me a crooked grin and wiggled his brows.

“Not that I remember what a grown-up sleepover is like.” I ignored his damned grin and his eyes and his biceps. Instead, I focused on the countertop.

“How long has it been?” He emptied the remainder of the whiskey into my glass.

“Um…” I stared at the ceiling, making a show of counting on my fingers. “When did you dump me again?”

He choked on his whiskey. “What? Wait. You haven’t slept with anyone since me?”

Damn it, I should’ve lied.“I didn’t want to do the rebound thing. Then I was busy with school. Then Rebecca died…and the rest is history.”

He seemed to consider my words. “I thought you had a boyfriend now?”

“We’re taking it slow.”Why am I lying to him?

“Glaciers move faster, Mags.”

My face heated, though I doubted it had anything to do with blushing. The alcohol had gone straight to my head faster than this conversation had gone into the gutter. “I can’t…”

“Can’t what?” He turned to face me.

“Actually, he dumped me, but that’s not all. He did it loudly in a crowded restaurant and left me with the check.” I shot him what I hoped was a withering glare. “I spent the rest of the night at Shanna’s watching bad cable and eating ice cream.”

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