Up by Five by Erin Nicholas Read Free Book Online Page B

hours, sometimes a day or two, after a scene. They all knew that there would be bad scenes and that things wouldn’t always go their way. But none of them took that particularly well.
    He nodded. “I know. But I don’t think that churning stops until you do.”
    “That’s…” She didn’t really know what that was.
    “Because I trust you. And because you’re smart and dedicated and you have a lot of heart. If you’re smiling, things really will be okay.”
    Gabby had no idea what to say to all of that. It was deep. And sweet. And way too emotional for her and Conner.
    “You better be careful, Dixon,” she said softly. “It almost sounds like you did notice a girl even without makeup and a push-up bra.”
    “That’s the damnedest thing. I did. But I didn’t. How’s that possible?”
    She rolled her eyes. “You mean how was there a bra—push-up or otherwise—nearby and you didn’t notice there were boobs?”
    His eyes narrowed. “Something like that.”
    She wet her lips.
    His gaze followed her tongue.
    The entire upper half of her body tingled.
    Damn.
    She was not going to be that girl. She was not going to fall at Conner’s feet.
    He was not perfect, he was not a god, he had no magical powers.
    Probably.
    She cleared her throat. “That’s easy. You like the girls who gaze up at you adoringly and I’m not the type.”
    “You don’t gaze?”
    “Not adoringly.”
    “At me?”
    “At anyone.”
    “Ever?”
    “Nope.”
    “Why is that?”
    She shrugged. “Maybe I like being gazed at .”
    His eyes did that thing again where they dropped to her lips, then roamed over her hair and ended on her mouth again.
    And her body did the same oh yeah thing that she didn’t really understand.
    She was responding to something from him that she couldn’t even really define.
    “Being gazed at is good,” he finally said.
    “Yeah.”
    “I’m not really good at that.”
    She gave him a small smile. “Yeah.”
    He looked surprised. “Yeah?”
    She laughed. “Yeah.”
    “I’m generally known as quite the romantic.”
    She nodded. “You are.”
    “And sweet. Sexy.”
    “Yep and yep.”
    His eyes narrowed again. “You don’t agree?”
    “I think you’re very romantic and sweet and sexy…with the girls who pursue you first, the ones who come on to you.”
    He opened his mouth. Then shut it.
    She laughed again. “We’ve spent thirty-six hours a week, every week, for two years together, Conner. You didn’t think I’d notice a few things?”
    He leaned in. “What do you think you’ve noticed, G?”
    “That you like the obvious girls, the ones who are all about you, the ones who will do anything for you. You flirt, but you never ask them out before they’ve thrown themselves at you. You love being doted on. You love the view from that big old pedestal they put you on.”
    Something flickered in his eyes, but he gave her a slow grin. It didn’t make her tummy flip like it should have. Because it was practiced. She could tell he was faking it.
    “So you know my secret.”
    “That you’re full of shit?”
    He raised an eyebrow. “What?”
    She nodded. “You’re full of shit. You only like the sure things, but none of them know that. You make them feel like they’re special and beautiful and wonderful, and they never realize that they did all the pursuing.”
    “What makes you think that I don’t really think that they’re special and beautiful and wonderful?”
    “You do,” she said, knowing that Conner really was a good guy who appreciated women. He treated them all well. “But not before they think you’re special and beautiful and wonderful.”
    “Yeah, well, I’m not really the romantic type deep down. It’s an act.”
    She snorted. “Bullshit.”
    “Seriously.”
    “No. You want to be romantic, but something holds you back from doing it first, from making that first move. So you let all your sweetness and romance out on Sara Gordon.”
    Gabby could tell she’d shocked him.