Kellen snorts. “Brandon’s smart and good with the ladies.”
“So you know him?” I look over my shoulder in time to see him shoot Hayley an annoyed look.
“I know he seemed pretty comfortable with you last night.”
I throw him a Look. Capital L included. “Why were you paying attention in the first place?”
“What else was there to pay attention to?” He shrugs like it doesn’t matter.
For the second time, I’m asking myself why he doesn’t respond to things the way other people do. He didn’t look away when I saw him watching me.
And he doesn’t even have the decency to act embarrassed now that I’ve caught him admitting he was paying close attention.
Maybe he didn’t think there was anything to be embarrassed about?
“Brandon’s comfortable with me because he knows me.” I shrug it off. “That’s not the same as getting relentlessly hit on by strangers who could take advantage of him.”
“You’re protective of him.” It’s not a question.
“He’s the little brother I never had and I want the best for him.”
“He’s a grown man.”
“He is. He’s also super smart, possibly a little naive, and has gotten too hot for his own good. I don’t want him to get taken advantage of. Those girls will chew him up and spit him out.”
“So you’ve taken it upon yourself to look out for him.”
Another Look. “Never mind. I think I’m going to find another seat.”
He reaches out, taking my wrist in a gentle grip. “Sorry, sorry. I think you’re just not understanding my sense of humor.”
“Sense of humor?” I roll my eyes. “That wasn’t humor. You were being mean.”
“I wasn’t trying to. I actually think it’s sort of nice. And I keep forgetting you’re a sincere person.”
“Is there anything wrong with that?”
“No. It’s odd, yeah, but that’s not your fault.” He chuckles, leaning back in the seat with a sigh. “I’m jaded. A born cynic. I don’t find it easy to believe the best about people right away.”
“That … sucks.”
“You’re also pretty blunt.” He grins.
“It must suck though. I didn’t say you sucked. Just that the situation sucks. Not being able to believe good things about people right away, like everybody has an ulterior motive.”
“A lot of people do.”
“A lot of people don’t.”
He frowns. “Where did you grow up? Somewhere over the rainbow?”
“No. Brooklyn.”
“Okay, so not over the rainbow.”
“Hardly. Nobody would ever mistake me for a Pollyanna. I’m fairly cynical myself, but I don’t believe the worst about people as soon as I meet them.”
He nods slowly, eyes narrowing. “Yeah. I guess you have to have that kind of outlook if you’re gonna write romance. You can’t be a jaded asshole like me.”
“Wow. Are you sure you shouldn’t go into sales? Because you’re so good at selling yourself.”
He chuckles. “That’s me. The consummate salesman. I guess an early wake-up time wasn’t helpful either. I’ve been in a better mood.”
“Oh, don’t get me started.” I can barely stifle a yawn. “I think Hayley might’ve drowned me in the pool if I asked one more time whether I really had to do this.”
“I’m the best man, so I didn’t have a choice either way.”
I have to laugh. “Yeah, and it’s cute that you think I had a choice.”
He glances out the window to his left before jerking a thumb out there. “We’re missing all this scenery, you know.”
The scenery sitting next to me is much more interesting, but he has a point. We’re supposed to be looking around, taking it in.
Jeez, do I wish I hadn’t looked.
“What’s wrong?” He’s stunned, judging by the way his voice breaks a little when my nails dig into his arm.
I have to hide my face in his shoulder. “We’re up so high!”
“Yeah. It’s a mountain.”
“Oh my God.” I close my eyes, teeth clenched. “Why are we so close to the side of the road?”
“Because this is the road. Kitty, breathe.” His voice is gentle. He pats my arm. “You’re scared of heights?”
“I live in Manhattan. Heights aren’t a problem. Being on a road without a rail along the side, hundreds of feet up? That’s the problem.”
He pats my arm again. “Okay. Just breathe. Talk to me. Tell me stuff about you.”
“Like what?”
“Like how your hands got so strong.”
He surprises me into laughing a little. I can’t bear the thought of opening my eyes, but the tightness in my chest loosens enough that I can speak without squeaking.
“I type for a living, remember?”
“Oh, right. How many books have you published?”
“A lot. I don’t know.” I honestly don’t. I can’t even think. My insides feel tight and fluttery in a sickening way.
“Okay. What’s your favorite part about writing?”
His voice is low, his mouth close to my ear. While I’m half out of my mind with terror, it registers how nice he’s being.
“Making my own happy endings.”
The sound of his breath catching isn’t lost on me, even now.
“It’s the truth,” I add when he doesn’t say anything for a while.
“I know. It’s just not what I expected you to say.”
“How do you know what to expect from me when we don’t know each other?”
A brief snicker. “Remember, I’m a cynical asshole.”
The bus comes to a stop.
“Tell me we’re where we were supposed to end up and this isn’t a brief pause,” I whisper.
“We’re where we were supposed to end up. We’ll be on our way back down after everybody gets off to take pictures.” There’s a sharp intake of breath. “Kitty. The claws.”
Right. My nails are practically breaking the skin. If I were in a decent state of mind, I might even give him credit for his turn of phrase. Instead, I force my fingers to loosen. “Sorry. Please tell me I don’t have to go out there.”
“You don’t have to go out there.”
“Will you stay with me?”
“I’ll stay with you.”
And he does. While everybody goes out to look at the view and take pictures, he sits with me the entire time.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“What happened then?”
“Nothing.” I shrug, staring at the water. It’s easier than looking even my best friend in the eye.
I’m still so embarrassed over what happened on the bus. How I lost it. “I swear, I had no idea I was going to freak out that way. I didn’t even give it a moment’s thought, you know? A bus tour. No biggie.”
“I know. It’s okay. These things happen to everybody. You don’t know something’s going to freak you out until you’re in the situation and there’s nothing you can do about it.”