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“Of course,” I say, pasting the sweet smile back on.
He returns my smile, clearly satisfied. “It’s non-negotiable anyway. Blackwood’s having the night off, so you’ll need to be with me.”
“The night off?” I ask. He hasn’t mentioned that to me.
Dad doesn’t reply. He’s already checking his phone, halfway out the door. A few moments later, his car disappears down the driveway, and the house falls quiet.
I head straight for the guest house and I knock hard.
“What are you doing on Saturday night?” I ask the second Drew opens the door.
He’s standing there in nothing but gray sweatpants, shirtless, every hard-earned muscle on full display. His hair is still mussed from sleep, and somehow he looks even better like this than he does fully dressed.
“Good morning to you too,” he says, dragging a hand through his hair with a lazy smile.
I pull my robe tighter across my chest. “I asked you a question.”
“I’ve got something to take care of.” His tone is casual, almost dismissive.
“What kind of something? No one ran this past me.”
“Sorry, boss,” he replies, dripping with sarcasm. “Why are you so interested?”
I bite my lip, refusing to admit the truth: that the only thing I can picture him doing on a Saturday night is going on a date. He’s already told me he only has one friend. What else would he be doing? Everyone knows Saturday nights are for dates…and he’s not allowed to date anyone while he’s working for me. I need his full attention…on my safety.
“Dad’s trying to set me up with two of his boring friends,” I say instead.
“Two at once?” Drew lets out a low whistle. “Damn. He’s not messing around. They tagging in and out, or are you diving straight into the double feature?”
“Not like that,” I mutter, cheeks burning.
He just grins, slow and knowing. Of course he knew exactly what I meant.
“Relax,” he says, his grin fading as something darker slips into his eyes. “The only way some guy is touching you is over my dead body.”
My stomach flips. I should hate how possessive that sounds. I should tell him he doesn’t get to decide that. Instead, heat pools low in my belly.
“Of course they’re not going to touch me,” I say quickly. “But I don’t want to sit through dinner with them.”
“You want me to what? Stop the dinner?”
“Say there’s some kind of security emergency.”
Drew exhales, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “I’ve just been telling your dad there’s been nothing but crickets. He might get suspicious if I suddenly say there’s an emergency. He might think we’re colluding…which might get him thinking we’re somehow involved.”
It’s a little far-fetched, but not completely unreasonable.
“So what, I just go? Spend the whole night with them?”
“I didn’t say that.” He wets his lips, eyes locked on mine. “I’ll sort it out.”
“I thought you had a thing.”
“I do.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“I don’t know yet. But I’ll figure it out.” His voice drops, sending another flip through my stomach. “Don’t worry about it.”
