On His List (Entangled Flirts) by Wendy Sparrow Read Free Book Online Page B

at her confidence.
    She had a hard time reading into frowns. It might be a puzzled frown, a thoughtful frown, a disappointed frown, or, worst-case scenario, a “what the hell was I thinking” frown. Owen was complex enough a frown could mean anything. Or may just be the relaxed position of his lips for all she knew. She’d thought frowns were sexy earlier, but that was back before she’d jumped into the deep end with him. Now, they set off an anxious jittery thing in her stomach, making her wish she hadn’t eaten.
    “It’s late,” she said. One of the dumbest things ever to drop from her mouth. It drew attention to all sorts of things she didn’t want to think about. Their time was running out. They’d already crossed beyond five p.m. so, technically, she was off the clock. They were officially on a date…but then he left tomorrow to go home to a different state on the other side of the U.S.
    “It is late,” he agreed. Never had anyone agreeing with her thrown her into such a panic. Was he saying it was too late? Too late for what? Get a grip, Remy. You were the one who threw out the whole “it’s late” business in the first place. He could probably feel her pulse pounding in their joined hands. She was a mature and sexy woman. She didn’t get thrown like this, not like she was an inexperienced teenager on her first date.
    Inhale and exhale, Remy. Breathe. From the diaphragm. There you go. It’s not so sexy if you pass out from hyperventilating.
    Owen glanced at her, and his frown tipped up into a smile, but it wasn’t the warm and impetuous smile from before. This was more an acknowledgement that they were two people holding hands, and he’d caught her staring at him, trying to read his expression.
    They were probably both wishing they could drop the other’s hand but it was a bigger statement than just maintaining the status quo, so they didn’t. They’d gone from kissing until their clothing nearly caught fire to…this. The disappointment scared her. To feel this devastated by a lack of emotion meant something she wasn’t ready to face. It had only been a matter of hours. Just a kiss or two. She shouldn’t feel shattered and fragile.
    “This was supposed to be my day off. Normally, around this time, I’d be sitting on my couch with a bowl of popcorn and in my rattiest clothes.” She wrinkled her nose. He’d probably be horrified if he saw her.
    He tipped their joined hands to look at his watch. “The stock market just opened in Asia. I’ve been dabbling in that lately.”
    “I can drive you somewhere that has Wi-Fi.”
    He shook his head. “They’ll manage well enough without me for one night.” His smile looked a little more real that time. Every time she made him smile it felt like a personal victory. “I’m sorry you had to give up your day off for me.”
    “I’m not.” No matter where the rest of the night went, she was enjoying the rush of feelings. Even all the emotional pain of this roller coaster was freeing. For all her impulsivity, her dating life had been declared DOA thanks to all the money she’d been putting toward her student loans the last year. Today’s date to a prison with the most conservative and controlled man she’d ever met might be one of the biggest deviations in her love life. Ever. She felt alive.
    When they arrived at the car, she’d considered dragging him into the large, comfortable backseat, but it felt tacky. Actually, the passion they’d shared before wasn’t withstanding the quiet of the walk back. It was one thing when her heart was pounding, and he was looking at her like he had been on the bench. Now, it was awkward.
    She didn’t do one-night stands. There was no way she’d go up to his hotel room on the off chance that’s where it led. He was leaving in the morning. Denny hadn’t even been scheduled with him because he was taking a cab to the airport.
    This was why you didn’t live in the moment…because the moment after that