He grabs his tumbler, downing the rest of his whiskey in one gulp as I stare at him slack-jawed.
Who the hell does this guy think he is?
My tone drips acid. “I’ve done a lot of research for my paper and had some field experience with my studies, so I think I know exactly what I’m getting myself into.”
“That’s what they all say.” A muscle in his jaw ticks as he turns to wave down the server who’s passing our table. “Another whiskey, please.”
The jerk has manners for her apparently. Too bad he can’t extend me the same courtesy.
I wave my empty. “I’ll have another Birds and Bees too, please. A double this time.”
“Maybe you should have a water,” Dean whispers, and I turn an accusatory glare at him.
“I’ll have another Birds and Bees,” I repeat my request with narrowed eyes. “We’re celebrating, remember?” I state the last bit through clenched teeth.
Dean grumbles under his breath, “It’s your hangover.”
I turn my frown upside down and ignore Josh’s stare while nodding to the waitress in confirmation. After she takes Max’s and Dean’s orders, she retreats to the bar.
After a moment of Dean and Max’s bakery talk, Josh suddenly stands without a word and strides over to the bar where the waitress is still standing. He whispers something in her ear, and she smiles a flirty smile at him, flipping her hair over her shoulder and biting her lip. She looks at our table briefly and then nods.
“What the hell was that all about?” I mumble with curiosity, interrupting whatever Max was saying to Dean.
“What’s that, Lynsey?” Max asks kindly.
I swallow hard. “Nothing.”
Josh returns a moment later looking extra arrogant as he slides in next to his buddy who doesn’t miss a beat.
Boy, Max is a talker. I had a schnauzer named Max when I was growing up…and even he didn’t talk nearly this much. Or bark. Honestly, Human Max pales in comparison to Dog Max.
Max and Dean are deep in conversation when the waitress returns with our drinks. Or I should say, the men’s drinks. I get a tall glass of ice water placed in front of me.
“I didn’t order this.” I frown up at her. “I ordered a Birds and Bees.”
She smiles awkwardly and glances over at Josh. “I was told you wanted your order changed.”
“By who?”
She looks at Josh again.
“This guy?” I point at him.
She nods.
“This guy doesn’t even know me,” I exclaim, throwing daggers with my eyes at the audacity of him.
“I know you’ve had enough.” Josh sips his own glass of alcohol.
I look at Dean for some backup, but he’s busy showing Max something on his phone and doesn’t even seem to notice what’s going on.
“How could you possibly know that I’ve had enough?” I seethe.
“I’m a doctor, remember?” He winks at me, and my hand balls into a fist with the urge to punch him. Josh frowns down at my hand. “Hungry for pie?”
“I’m leaving.” I stand and smooth my skirt over my hips.
Dean’s attention turns to me. “Just a second, Lynsey. I need to show Max this article.”
I whip out my phone and order an Uber in record time. Could a drunk person do that?
Probably.
Regardless, I step away from the table. “I’ll be fine to get myself home, Dean. You stay.”
“Well, let me see you safely into the Uber at least.”
“I’m fine.”
Just then Josh stands. “I’m leaving too. I’ll see her to the Uber.”
My eyes fly wide. “Seriously?”
Dean glances back and forth between me and Josh, and then tosses a regretful glance at Max before turning pleading eyes to me.
And that, right there, is why Dean and I didn’t work out as a couple. He’s the shiny new toy guy. He only sees the shiny new toy at the moment and not the big picture of what that toy will do to other people.
That analogy makes no sense.
Maybe I am drunk.
Don’t make a scene.
I’ve handled Dr. Dick for this long, a few more minutes won’t kill me.
My phone pings with a notification that the Uber has arrived, and Josh gestures for me to lead the way. With a huff, I head toward the door, feeling Josh’s hot gaze on my back as I step outside.
“We might as well share the ride,” he offers.
“Seriously?” I snap back incredulously.
He levels me with a glare. “I’m serious about most things in my life, so you can stop asking that annoying one-word question.”
The tiny Toyota Corolla pulls up just then. “Did you select the clown car option?” Josh grumbles under his breath as he moves past me to open the door.
I pause and gape at his random display of manners before replying, “Not all of us make a doctor’s salary. Are you seriously begrudging a free ride? I didn’t ask you to hop in with me.”
His brows lift. “I’m begrudging no legroom.”
“Then sit in the front with the driver,” I snap and slide into the back seat. My attempt to shut the door is thwarted by Josh’s big man hand.
He folds himself in beside me, and I have to admit, he does seem really uncomfortable. His legs have to spread so wide, our knees touch. Too casually for my liking, he drapes his arm behind me as he works to get comfortable. The move makes me feel like I’m too close to him, his scent…and just…his presence.
Is it getting hot in here?
“We’re making two stops.” Josh grabs my phone out of my hand before I can even blink.
“Just manhandle my personal property, why don’t you,” I murmur. His face glows in the dark from my screen as he adds his address into the app.
He frowns and finishes what he’s doing before handing it back to me while the driver exits the parking lot.
There are maybe ten seconds of dark, blissful silence before Josh drones, “A psych major, of all things.”
I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. “Not this again.”
“So, you’re telling me that you were working on your little thesis in the hospital cafeteria all these weeks?” he asks in such a patronizing tone, I want to strangle him.
My lips purse. “If I answer this redundant question, are you going to threaten to turn me in to the psych ward again?”
Turning to him, I catch his eyes drifting over my legs as though he’s examining me. “I’m still trying to decide.”
I pin him with a look. “Yes, I was working on my paper. I don’t know why the hospital cafeteria helped my focus, but it did, and I was so desperate to finish that I just kept coming back. As I said earlier today, I didn’t know it was against any rules. I thought it was like a normal waiting room.”
He sighs heavily and gazes back at me. “I suppose it’s not against any rules.”
My upper lip curls. “So, you just decided to confront me today for what…your own twisted amusement?”
He ignores my question. “Are you sure you know what you’re asking for?”
“In regard to what?”
“In regard to what you want your psychology specialty to be. Do you have any idea what it’s like to work with sick children? You do realize that’s what a psychologist does, right? Works with sick children? It’s far different from your spoiled little nieces.”