“That’s one way of putting it.”
He laughed comfortably. “Family. You can’t pick them, can you?”
“No. Both my sisters and my dad are all a bit…Pippy Longstocking. I’m the odd one out.” Davis’ smile widened. “Maybe it’s a good thing. No offense to your sister, but you’re stunning. And you seem a lot less nuts.”
“Oh!” she said, not surprised exactly, but taken aback.
It’s only okay when I say my sisters are insane, she thought. Then she realised Tabby had released six mutts into a public park. “Yeah, my family doesn’t have much of a filter.”
Davis chuckled. He was closer again; she could see the dimple in his tanned chin, a freckle on his right cheek. “So, if we fall in love, we’ll have a killer story to tell our grandchildren.”
She smiled on autopilot, thrown by the conversational about-face. She’d known he was flirting, butgrandchildren?“It would be a good story.”
He nodded. “Is there any chance I could get your number?”
“Ooh, I um…”
Dammit, she’d forgotten all the excuse lines she’d given out before ‘fiancé’ had been enough.
“I don’t want to come on too strong,” he said quickly. “Are you seeing someone?”
She recalled the feel of Noah between her legs.‘How about you shut up and let me eat your gorgeous pussy, Nicole?’
“Oh, um, no. I’m not.”
“So…can I have your number?”
She stalled, confused by her own confusion. Why shouldn’t she give him her number? She was single, and he was handsome and tanned and owned an Apple Watch and had just indicated he was serious enough about relationships to want grandchildren—unlike a certain bikie, who’d abandoned her in his bed after two seconds of awkward small talk.
Do it, the Sam in her head demanded.Give him your number. Why not? Seize the carp!
Brushing aside that her twin didn’t know about Noah; didn’t know a lot of what she was thinking right now, Nicole chose to agree. “Okay, sure.”
Davis looked relieved. “Great. Do you have your phone on you?”
“It’s flat,” she lied. If she turned it on now, there was no way her problems had been magically solved. “Do you have a pen?”
“I do.” Davis patted his jeans and pulled out a blue biro, then he handed herParadise Lost.“Write it on the inside cover.”
“Oh, I don’t want to ruin your book!”
He flashed her a smile. “You won’t. You’ll be improving it.”
She scribbled down her number without looking. In her mind’s eye, she was seeing Noah’s hands, patterned from wrist to knuckle with tattoos; the same hands that painted those beautiful paintings. Why did this feel like a betrayal? They didn’t mean anything to each other. Neither did she and Davis, but at least she knew he wasn’t a bikie. At least he wouldn’t lecture her if she got her tattoos removed. She handed him his book and pen and smiled as wide as she could. “Can I ask you something?”
“Anything.”
“Do you have any tattoos?”
He laughed, an easy open laugh. “No, I don’t. Is that a problem?”
No.
Yes.
Nausea roiled through her like a rising tide and Lilah squirmed, trying to escape her tightening grasp. She kept her smile steady, relaxing her hold around the puppy. “Not at all. Okay, I should go get my sister. Nice to meet you.”
“You, too,” Davis said with a small frown. He pattedParadise Lost.“I’ll call you later.”