“How about a drive-thru?” I wince because I’m pretty sure someone as cultured as Cade rarely has a burger that was flipped by a preteen and costs less than ten US dollars. Not that he’s a snob—he simply expects more out of life.
“A drive-thru, huh?” He tips his head back, examining me with hooded eyes, that sultry look on his face budding with sexual anticipation. I’m pretty sure once I clue him in on the fact there will be a flogging or two distributed this evening—punishment for even suggesting the outing, but he doesn’t have to know that—he’ll have a change of heart about those crackers. “Okay.” His dimples dig in as he acquiesces.
“Okay?” I’m stunned to hear that he’ll even consider it. But I suppose a quick jaunt into town couldn’t hurt too much. The odds of us running into Piper and Owen while hitting a drive-thru are slim to none.
“Yup.” He presses out a dimpled grin, and I lean up and stuff a kiss in one. “But only if we see a movie after.”
And there it is. Public venue number two.
“A movie, huh?” My heart thumps out a warning in Morse code. There’s no way this is going to end well. It has Ina Eugene written all over it.
The smile melts from his face as he dots my forehead with kisses. “It’ll be dark. I’ll let you hold my hand.” He interlaces our fingers and presses his lips to each of my knuckles in turn. I’m not sure why he needs this, but I can tell by that pleading look in his eyes that he’s hell-bent on stepping out of that door with me right by his side.
“Will you let me hold something else as soon as that movie lets out?”
“Yes”—he pushes out a tender smile—“but only if you promise me one more thing.”
“Boy aren’t you demanding this evening.” As handsome and kind as Cade James is, he’s still managed to vex me on some level. “Let’s hear it. I’m okay with bringing food into the bedroom, but if you’re looking to impale me with blunt objects, it’s a no-go.”
That warm laugh of his rumbles through both of us. “I want you to stay the night.”
“Stay the night?” A white-hot pang of anxiety flashes through my chest. I swallow hard, contemplating this for the briefest of seconds. “Done.” I shake his hand, and we lose ourselves in one another’s eyes for a moment.
Cade James is starting to rewrite the rules, break his own code of conduct in my honor. Maybe we have something here after all.
I’ve been in expensive, flashy cars before, but the scent of his new leather seats, all of the strobing lights on his dashboard, that alarmingly large navigation screen that looks like a built-in television, it’s all a giant leap in technological advancements that I can hardly wrap my head around. I knew Piper’s family was filthy rich, but for some reason, Cade and his down-home attitude never really exuded that. Perhaps that’s why I’m so taken aback by his nice ride.
“We can do burgers.” He points to the left at the Burger Hut. “Or something different.” He nods across the street at the Fat Burrito.
“I’m down for whatever.” Fat Burger, Burrito Hut—mix and match, I really don’t care, so long as we’re not spotted out and about enjoying our foil-wrapped fare.
“Burgers it is.” He winks as he takes the turn into the drive-thru. We put in our orders, and he hands me a hot bag brimming with fries and pulls back out onto the street. “Do you mind if we head to the overlook?”
“Not at all. I’ve only been there a couple of times with Pip”—oh my shit—“piping hot food. There’s nothing like looking down over the city this time of night.” My face stings with heat. That was more than close! Crap on a crap cracker! I need to watch my tongue, or I’ll let the cat out of the bag before morning. Hey? Maybe that’s why he’s having me spend the night. It’s all a part of his nefarious plan to get me to confess the truth about who I am. A dull chuckle pulses through me. That’s ridiculous. It’s not like I’m hiding anything from him. I’m not some two-faced liar looking to shake him down for his hot buns in the bedroom, only to conceal the fact I’m secretly his little sister’s bestie. That would be ridiculous.
“So, which dorm are you in?”
“Prescott Hall.” Holy crap! I am a liar! I may as well step on a crack and break my momma’s back. I’m a damn liar—going to hell in a hand basket. My entire body heats with sin as I bleed out a sickly smile. If I had admitted to the fact I’m in Cutler Tower, I might as well have said Piper James is my roommate. We both know she would have been the inevitable next question. “But my dorm mother is a real peach. Don’t bother sniffing around, or she’ll hand you your rock-hard bottom on a stick.”
“Sounds painful.” He raises a brow as we cruise farther up the switchbacks, past the Witch’s Cauldron that boils and steams into the night. “This look good?” He pulls in close to the fence, and all of Hollow Brook lights up, glittering beneath us like a Christmas tree.