Page 64 of Singled Out

I didn’t expect him to go out of his way to interact with me. I knew we couldn’t let on that there’d been anything between us beyond one date. But when he’d strode onto the beach with his little boy in his arms, the view had improved tenfold. Considering the scenery at the lake was normally beautiful in and of itself, that was saying a lot.

I’d done my best to act nonchalant when he’d brought Danny through the food line. Then I’d made a point of taking my own full plate to the opposite side of the party and sitting with Dorie Ludwig, who I’d graduated with, and her mom, Corinne. Both of them were natural redheads, bookish and super smart, and English teachers at the high school.

Dorie and I had never been particularly close, but she and her mom were easy to talk to and welcoming.

After eating, the three of us went over to the dessert table and grabbed mini slices of Cash Henry’s famous hummingbird cake. I couldn’t seem to help myself—as we stood in a trio and oohed and aahed over our glorious desserts, I allowed my eyes to skim in Max’s direction for the hundredth time. He was sitting next to Danny, bending over him as if his son had said something, and laughing. As he straightened, his hand on his little boy’s back, Max’s eyes met mine for an instant. It wasn’t the first time tonight, and I couldn’t help wondering if he was having the same problem I was of keeping my gaze to myself.

“You ladies look like you could use an adult beverage.” Ty, who was an incurable flirt, butted into our circle of three, rolling a cooler behind him. “Can I interest you in a bottle of hometown-proud Rusty Anchor beer?”

Dorie declined, but her mother chose a Beach Babe Pale Ale from his not-small selection. It was a classic Ty Bishop move that served as a way to flirt and interact with more people. That was just who he was.

“Harper,” he said, putting his arm around me, “it’s come to my attention that you’re in desperate need of a brewed beverage this evening. What can I get you?”

Laughing, I said, “Do I look that bad?”

“Au contraire, pretty lady. You look particularly stunning.”

I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Thank you, kind sir,” I said, playing along.

“You’re too much, Ty,” Corinne said.

She wasn’t wrong, but I took a Sandbar Wheat, let him open it, then thanked him.

“Anytime, darlin’.” He gave me a side hug, leaning close to my ear and saying so no one else could hear, “You’re the hottest girl here, for real.”

With a smile, because Ty really was harmless, I said, “You’re the flirtiest.” I raised my brows to convey that wasn’t necessarily a desirable claim to fame. Dorie and Corinne had welcomed Francesca Gibbons, another English teacher, into the group and listened raptly as she explained why she was so late.

“That’s what you do to me, Harper,” Ty said in a low, more serious voice. The others paid no attention to us.

It was all an act, I knew. Ty could throw out meaningless lines faster than a professional fisherman. He’d hit on me plenty in the past, but he knew not to cross a line, with me or anyone else. That was just Ty.

“You know you’d have better luck with girls if you didn’t try so hard, right?” I teased.

“That’s a myth,” he said emphatically. “Ladies love me.”

“Of course they do.” I shook my head, laughing. He had a good heart, and I knew someday he’d find the right woman for him. Probably someone who loved his lines and his try-hardness. That woman wasn’t me, and we both knew it.

“If you’re not going to marry me, I better move on to find someone who will,” he said with a wink.

“Thanks for the beer, Ty.”

Before he walked off, he grabbed my hand, lifted it to his lips, and kissed it.

I shook my head and grinned.

As he rolled his beer cooler away, my eyes were drawn across the crowd to find Max watching me. He wasn’t smiling.

As if he realized he was staring, he turned his attention to the group of math teachers he was with. I tuned into Francesca’s tale of helping Dr. Holloway, the town vet, catch his pet llama who’d gone on the lam yet again.

Not two minutes later, my phone buzzed in the pocket of my skirt. I pulled it out and saw Max’s name, which threw my heart rate into overdrive. I angled my screen to be sure no one could see it, unlocked it, and read Max’s message.

Something going on between you and Bishop?

I pursed my lips to hide the satisfaction that brought. I weighed how to handle the question as I pretended to be engrossed in Francesca’s story.

I could mess with Max and tell him yes, but I didn’t want to play games.

I texted my answer.