Page 11 of Protecting Lila

“It’s been good. Busy, but good.”

He smiles at Pia, and my heart thumps hard in my chest.

Why couldn’t Warren look at me like that?

My phone buzzes, and I glance down to see another message from Warren.

Warren:I’m losing my mind here, sunshine.

Shoot!I forgot to text him back earlier.

Lila:I’m fine.

Warren: That’s it?

Warren: You’re fine?

Warren: I’ve been freaking out for an hour and a half now.

Lila: You didn’t have to. I’m okay.

Three little dotsappear on the screen, then disappear, then reappear, and I bite my bottom lip, waiting to see what he’ll say, but they disappear again and stay gone.

I sigh, tucking my phone back into my purse as the waiter comes back and we get ready to leave.

“Sorry for crashing your date,” Levi apologizes to us, but I wave him off.

“You’re always welcome,” I promise him.

He smiles as he offers Pia his hand and pulls her out of the booth.

“Want us to give you a ride home?” He offers, but I shake my head, holding up my keys.

“I drove. I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” Pia promises me, and I know we’ll be revisiting the Warren stuff.

“Sounds good. Good night, you two!”

I wave as I head over to my car, and they slip into the backseat of their SUV. Their driver waves at me as he passes, and I smile, pulling out after them and heading in the opposite direction.

I try not to think about Warren as I drive home, but I can’t seem to help it. The one question that keeps circling around in my head is:I wonder if he’s done avoiding me yet?

FIVE

Warren

“She’s still not back,”I tell Keaton as I pace back and forth in the front room of my apartment.

“Well, did you tell her what her curfew was?” He asks, and I growl.

I hear him laugh, and I want to hang up on him, but he’s the only one to answer my call, and I need him right now.

“Relax, Warren. It’s a date,” he points out, and I know that he’s taking way too much enjoyment out of rubbing that in.

“Not helping.”

“Calm down. Traffic in Los Angeles is crazy, right?”

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