*
ZANE SHOVED THE CARDin his back pocket. “You’re not serious.”
“Completely.” Scott raised an eyebrow. “Unless you’ve already landed the perfect position. Kenzie says you haven’t been stateside for long.”
“I’ll think about it.” This was why Zane hadn’t wanted to tell Riley he was having trouble finding work. Now she had her sister’s fiancé trying to hook him up with some job born of pity.
“Are you done talking business at dinner?” A gentle warning ran through Kenzie’s teasing tone.
“Yes, ma’am.” Scott almost looked contrite.
Zane desperately wanted to be talking about anything but whether or not Riley went behind his back to drum up a job he hadn’t earned. He spat out the first thing that popped into his head, grateful as the words passed his lips that it was a safe topic. “Has Riley told you what she’s doing with her art?”
Riley dropped her hand from his knee and turned her narrowed gaze to her drink. The glass muffled her response. “No. I haven’t really told anyone.”
“Now I’m curious.” Hesitation lined Kenzie’s response.
Zane hated seeing Riley waste her talent. If his nudging wasn’t enough to get her motivated, maybe Kenzie could help. “She’s thinking of going pro.”
The smile faded from Kenzie’s eyes, though her lips stayed frozen. “That’s a lot of work.”
“You won’t let me talk business at dinner.” The irritation was back in Scott’s voice.
Aggravation crept back into Zane. How had he forgotten this about Kenzie? If it wasn’t mainstream, it wasn’t the right way to do things. “Most things worth doing take a lot of work.”
Scott picked at a piece of bread, pulling the crust off a bit at a time. “He’s got a good point.”
“Excuse me. I need some air.” Riley pushed away from the table.
“You should probably not follow.” Scott took hold of Kenzie’s wrist when she stood.
Zane looked between the two of them, shook his head, and took off in the direction Riley had.
He found her pacing outside the front doors, her arms crossed, and a frown creasing her forehead. A gust of wind tore through the night, and she rubbed her arms. Her gaze was locked on the ground, and she didn’t acknowledge him.
“Hey,” he said to announce his presence.
She jumped and spun to face him, scowl still in place. “She’s right. I’m spinning my wheels on this.”
“She didn’t say that.”
“You know that’s what she meant.”
He swallowed the desire to argue but wasn’t sure what to say instead.
“We should get back to the table.” She ran the back of her hand over her eyes, wiping away invisible tears.
“We don’t have to.” He wanted to wrap her up in his arms and convince her Kenzie was wrong. “We’ll bail.”
The corner of her mouth pulled up. “No. It’s okay. Just... I don’t care what we talk about when we get in there. You and Scott can chest thump some more, for all I care. Just leave the drawing out of it?”
He didn’t want to swear to something like that, but he felt backed into a corner.
“Promise me.”
Make the concession to ease her mind, or push the issue and make the night more miserable? “All right.”
A heavy silence descended over them, hovering when they rejoined Kenzie and Scott. The conversation was stilted the rest of the evening. Zane spent half his time worrying about Riley, and the other half trying to figure out what was safe to talk about. His frustration grew when they ordered dessert and Riley didn’t try to steal even a bite of his cheesecake.