Love Bug (The Prescotts Book 3) by Tara Wyatt (electric book reader .TXT) 📗

sushi?” he asked, flinching a little at his own lame question. It was satisfying that at least he felt as awkward around her as she did around him. That had to count for something, right?

She looked around, blinking wide-eyed. “Oh no, I thought this was Burger King. Dammit.” It was a lame joke, but the corner of his mouth tipped up and a little of the tension hovering between them eased. His gaze slid up and down her body, and she had to fight back a shiver. “Go ahead,” she said after a minute, licking her dry lips and then shooting him a smile. “Ask me.”

Relief flickered across his face. “Okay, I’m dying to know why you’re in a unicorn costume.”

She curtsied, flashing him another grin. Was it just her, or had the light in his eyes shifted, becoming hotter, more intense? “Cupcake the Unicorn at your service. I read stories to kids at Sloan-Memorial every other Saturday.”

Something in his gaze softened and he nodded slowly. “Oh. That’s…that’s really nice.”

She opened her mouth to say something about how she knew how much a distraction was worth when you were sick, but snapped her lips shut. This wasn’t the time or the place, and he wasn’t the guy to share that particular part of her life with. Hell, he probably wasn’t the guy she’d be sharing anything but her work life with. Sadly. So instead, she squinted at him and gestured at the door.

“What are you doing all the way up here? This isn’t exactly your neck of the woods.” Her mind flashed back to his stunning penthouse in SoHo, which had to be a twenty-minute subway ride from where they were.

He tipped his head in the direction of the door. “I had a meeting at the Museum of Modern Art about a potential project, and this woman at work keeps talking about how amazing Red Fox sushi is, so I thought I’d try it.” The corner of his mouth quirked up again, sending butterflies exploding through her stomach.

The pendulum tracing a path over her heart did a hard swing from “pity fuck” to “it meant something” at the knowledge that he’d sought out a restaurant she’d recommended. It was a stupid thing to get excited over, but she couldn’t help it.

“Well, I hope it lives up to the hype,” she said. She met his eyes and an awkward silence fell between them. A wave of intense emotion rocked through her, stealing her breath. She curled her hands into fists, steeling herself against the hurt, the sense of loss at standing here with him and knowing he didn’t want her while she wanted him more than she’d ever wanted a man in her life. Maybe more than she’d ever want anyone else.

He pushed off the wall and took a step toward her, slipping his phone into his back pocket. “Are you okay?” he asked quietly, his brow furrowed.

She forced herself to take a deep breath, her stomach dipping at the subtle hint of his aftershave. “I…I don’t know how to answer that question,” she said. “I’m…” She looked away, shaking her head. She didn’t want to tell him everything swirling through her brain only to be rejected again, and given the way he’d been acting at work, as though he hadn’t made her come four times, as though he hadn’t told her she was beautiful and held her naked body against his as they slept, she had a feeling that nothing had changed on his end. She was still a mistake.

“You’re what, Willa?” he asked, his gaze hot and intense on her now.

“I don’t know how to act around you anymore,” she said quietly. “I don’t—”

“Number twenty-three!” called the woman from behind the counter, a clear plastic takeout bag in her hand.

“That’s me,” she said, stepping away from him and slipping her hand into her pocket, which only held her keys. Feeling a little frantic, she tried her other pocket, finding her phone and nothing else. Oh, shit. She’d left her wallet on the table in the volunteer room after getting it out to buy a 50/50 raffle ticket for the hospital’s foundation.

“Shit,” she whispered, trying her other pocket again, even though she knew she’d left her wallet at the hospital.

Before she could stop him, Max stepped up to the counter. “Just add it to my order,” he said, handing the woman behind the counter his credit card. After he’d paid, she handed him the bag, which Max turned and handed to Willa. His fingers brushed hers as she took it, making her skin tingle with awareness. He blew out a breath and shoved his hand in his pocket. They stood there awkwardly, staring at each other as she clutched her food.

“Um, thank you,” she said, trying to act somewhat normal. “I’ll pay you back on Monday morning.”

He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Number twenty-two!”

He turned to take his order and she couldn’t stop herself from scanning the contents of the bag. Relief coursed through her when she saw that he’d only ordered a little bit more food than she had—it wasn’t enough for two people.

Had he been with anyone else in the six weeks since she’d woken up in his bed? Oh God, she didn’t want to know. Just the idea made her stomach churn, as did the idea of being with another man. She hadn’t been even remotely interested in anyone else since her night with Max.

“Do you want a ride?” he asked. “I’m parked around the corner.”

“No!” The word came out louder and more frightened sounding than she’d intended. She cleared her throat and forced herself to smile. “No, thank you. I’ll just walk back to the hospital to get my wallet, and…” She shook her head. “Thank you,” she said, holding up her takeout bag. “I’ll pay you back.”

“You’re welcome, Cupcake.”

Her cheeks flamed and she stumbled backwards out the door and onto the sidewalk, nearly colliding with a man walking his dog. Before she could embarrass