Better with Ben (How to Tame a Heartbreaker Book 3) by Casey McMillin Read Free Book Online

Nick. She marveled at how much he'd changed. Not to mention, he now had this new super-secret job that made him seem oddly like a stranger.
    "James Bond?" she asked.
    One corner of his mouth raised in a grin. "Not nearly that glamorous."
    "Spy gear?"
    He laughed. "Probably."
    She shook her head in disbelief then neither of them spoke for a while. He wasn't going to say any more and she knew it. Then suddenly she remembered something. She reached over and swatted his shoulder. "You left in such a hurry the other night that I didn't even get to talk to you about Taylor."
    His gaze instantly shifted to hers. "What about her?"
    "Oh come on, don't act like you didn't almost rip Cam's head off when you saw him sitting next to her on the couch."
    He started to deny it, but just shrugged and looked away. "I just don't like that guy," he said.
    She coughed a laugh. "Oh, you don't like Cam Bishop? I guess you meet ultra-famous singers all the time, and sometimes they just rub you the wrong way ."
    "What do you want me to say? That it's cool that you had Cam Bishop over to Nick's house?"
    "You know it's cool, Ben. You just don't like him because you wanted to sit next to Taylor."
    He shook his head. "All right, if I tell you Cam Bishop is the best and it's amazing that you're friends with him, will you get off my back about it?"
    "I'll get off your back about it when you tell me you think Taylor's hot."
    He shrugged, looking a little annoyed. "That's easy. She's hot. That's obvious." He paused. "And maybe she reminds me of a girl I dated in Germany a little bit."
    Molly looked surprised. "You had a girlfriend in Germany?"
    "I wouldn't say she was my girlfriend, really. But I dated a girl in Germany, yes."
    "And this girl looked like Taylor?"
    "I guess, a little. It's not like that, though. I just don't like that guy."
    She laughed. "You're funny."
    "What?"
    "I hope you're a better liar than that when you're doing your spy job."
    "I'm not a spy."
    She nodded and pointed in his direction. "See, that's the truth. I can tell you're telling the truth about not being a spy, but you're lying about not being attracted to Taylor."
    "I'm not lying about that. I'm attracted to her. She's hot. I already told you that."
    "So you do like her," she said, raising her eyebrows suggestively. "I can totally set you up. You want me to?"
    He looked at her like she was crazy. "No," he said. "That's the last thing I need—a girlfriend to ask me all these same questions about my job and get mad and worried when I have to leave town." He paused shaking his head. "No thank you."
    Molly thought about that. She could see his point. That was the last she mentioned about playing matchmaker.

 
    Chapter 6
     
     
    By 8PM that evening, Taylor and Hannah had a little buzz going. For Taylor, it was the kind of buzz that made her silly rather than sad, a fact for which she was extremely grateful, given the circumstances.
    Kent had come home for a few minutes to change before leaving again, but Gina hadn't yet been home. She text Taylor earlier to check on her and let her know she was studying at a friend's house. Taylor told both of her concerned roommates she was fine which, thanks to Hannah and two-and-a-half White Russians, was the truth.
    A few times she'd felt her heart start to race, but she was able to talk herself down and go back to a somewhat normal mindset where she forgot about the panic enough to make the symptoms disappear. All in all, she felt like it was a pretty good night—one where she felt mostly in control.
    It was ten times better than the day before.
    "What are you thinking?" she heard Hannah say.
    "About how I'm getting good at talking my brain into believing my heart's working."
    "What?" Hannah asked, thinking Taylor was just being silly.
    Taylor laughed it off. She was feeling good at the moment, and didn't want to kill it by explaining it to Hannah.
    "Hey, you know how Molly's brother had to leave when we were all out the other night?"