Page 48 of I Could Never
When the door opened, I stood up from the couch.So much for not being obvious about waiting for her to walk in.
Carly put her purse on an end table. “Hey. I’m surprised you’re still up.”
“Yeah, well, I’m up half the night on that shitass mattress anyway.” I raked my hand through my hair and tried to seem nonchalant. “How was The Bar?”
“It was really good, actually.” She plopped down on the couch and sighed. “I was surprised how good the food was. I wouldn’t have expected that in a dive-bar atmosphere.”
“Yeah, the food’s always been good there.”
I waited for her to say something else, but she didn’t. Carly simply closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the couch. She kicked off her shoes, revealing those red-painted toes that always turned me on in some twisted way.
“You seem pooped, party girl.”
“It’s definitely way past my bedtime.” She yawned.
“So…tell me about this guy you met.” I fidgeted with my hands.
She opened her eyes and looked over at me. “I mean, the jury is still out. He seemed nice. But I don’t really know him.”
“Heisa nice guy. And you can trust him.”
Her eyes widened. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about Neil.”
Her mouth fell open as she sat up straight. “Did you set me up or something?”
I had to chuckle at that. “Yeah, because I had all this time to orchestrate setting you up while I went on a scavenger hunt for Scottie’s goddamn underpants.” I laughed again. “Relax. I had nothing to do with it.”
Her face turned crimson. “Then how do you know his name?”
“Well, my brother called me on his way home to tell me about his night out.”
“Your brother saw me there?”
“No, Carly.”Holy shit. She doesn’t get it.
Then she covered her mouth.
Bingo.The realization finally hit.
“Oh my God. Neilisyour brother?”
“He sure is.”
She continued to put two and two together. “This is the single one...”
“Yes. Thankfully. Otherwise, I’d be headed over there tonight to strangle him.”
She leaned her head into her hands. “My first night out and I freaking meet your brother? How small is this damn town?”
“Pretty fucking small.”
Carly stood up and started to pace. “Okay, this is super awkward, Josh.”
I agreed, but I attempted to deny it. “It doesn’t have to be.”
“I guess not?” She sighed. “I don’t know.”