Kingston Kidnappings (What Happens In Vegas Book 3) by Matt Lincoln (great book club books .txt) 📗

“They deliver stuff this late?” I asked aloud.

“Until nine, I think,” Miranda hummed. “I remember last Christmas. I had a delivery guy show up at like eight-thirty. He just chucked the package at my door and kept moving without even bothering to knock. I think they have to meet certain quotas or something. Poor guys.”

“Sounds like a rough job,” I frowned.

“Every job has its ups and downs,” Miranda shrugged. “We’d know all about that.”

“That’s true,” I chuckled. “That also reminds me that I should take Amber’s birthday present up to Harry’s place tomorrow since I won't be here for her party this weekend.”

“Aww, you’re such a sweet uncle,” she teased. “Anyway, you want to hang out tonight?”

“What do you mean ‘hang out’?” I asked.

“Am I speaking another language?” She asked sarcastically. “Hang out. You know, watch a movie. Get something to eat. I don’t know, play a card game?”

I stared at her blankly, unsure what to say. Miranda and I had never really hung out together. The reason our “relationship” had worked out so well so far was that I’d always known what to expect. We’d get together, hook up, and go our separate ways. There were no feelings involved, so there was no way anyone could get hurt. It was straightforward and easy, and I didn’t want to mess that up by trying to turn it into something more serious.

“Sure,” I answered, even though my own brain was screaming at me to stop.

Miranda’s smile widened, as though even she was surprised that I’d actually agreed, and I found that I couldn’t bring myself to regret my decision to say yes. She tightened her grip around my arm, and it surprised me to realize that I actually was looking forward to spending the evening just hanging out with her.

For the first time since we started seeing each other, we actually didn’t hook up that night. Instead, we spent several hours watching this crime drama that Miranda claimed was the best show currently on television. It was completely unrealistic, and I spent the entire time pointing out all the legal inaccuracies, much to Miranda’s dismay. After a while, though, she joined me, and we spent the better part of the night poking fun at the show. She also insisted on cooking me dinner using only the ingredients scattered around my kitchen, which wasn’t much. After setting off the smoke detector, we decided to just order a pizza.

After dinner, she taught me to play a complicated card game, but after a few rounds, she admitted that it was much more fun to play in groups, so we abandoned the game in favor of trying to see who could build the tallest house of cards. It was nearly three in the morning before either of us noticed how late it had gotten.

“It’s not fair that you get tomorrow off,” Miranda whined. “I’m gonna be a zombie all day at this rate.”

“You’re the one who kept wanting to watch more episodes of that show,” I chuckled. “And besides, I only get tomorrow off because I’m about to go overseas for who knows how long. I’ll probably get less sleep while I’m gone than you will tonight.”

“Yeah, fine,” she yawned as she leaned her head onto my shoulder. “I’m still jealous that you and Naomi get to go.”

“Didn’t you just come back from Italy like a week ago?” I deadpanned.

“Yeah,” she huffed. “But I’m always hungry for more adventure, aren’t you?”

“Yeah,” I answered honestly. That was, after all, the main appeal of the job for me and the reason I’d left my sleepy, peaceful hometown.

Even though she was complaining about how late it was, Miranda kept insisting that we watch just one more episode every time another one ended. I was having a good time, and since I wasn’t the one who needed to be up early the next day, I agreed. Eventually, she fell asleep, and I carefully extracted myself from her grip before draping a blanket over her and turning out the living room lights. I’d considered staying there with her, but there was no chance we’d both fit comfortably on the couch all night, and I knew that trying would only lead to us both waking up feeling sore and miserable, so I decided to retreat to my own bedroom for the night.

It was past ten in the morning when I woke up the next day, and Miranda had already gone. I wondered vaguely if she’d made it to work on time. I wasn’t sure how I felt about this development in our relationship. Since I was visiting Harry today, I thought I might try to talk with him about it.

I took a shower and got changed, then picked up Amber’s gift from where it was sitting on my kitchen table, still in the mailing box it had been delivered in two nights ago. I’d bought her a tablet after I noticed how much she liked the one I used for work. I’d let her play a game on it in the afternoon when the power had gone out while we were at Harry’s house, and she’d been enthralled. When I’d run the idea by Eliza, she’d agreed easily. I worried she might not have wanted Amber to have a tablet at such a young age, but she’d been all for it.

“Kids these days are growing up on technology,” she’d shrugged. “It’s practically a necessity now, the way knowing how to use a paper and pencil was for us. We’ll just monitor it to make sure she’s only accessing children’s sites and taking breaks from it.”

Once I’d had her approval, I hadn’t hesitated to buy it, as well as a few cute accessories like a case and a stylus that I thought she might like. Since I wasn’t that interested in luxury items myself, most of my pay went directly into my savings account. I didn’t mind spending money on Amber, though, and