His gaze ran down my arms before he said, “Something natural that you didn’t have done to yourself.”
Now that we were in the diner, my fear of him gutting me had lessened, and his brother’s desire to choke him had become more apparent. “Do you always ask someone you barely know such intrusive questions?”
He winked. “Yes. Absolutely. I’m interested in people and what makes them tick.”
“Is that why you date so much?” I asked, shrugging when he gave me the stink-eye. “Sorry, I couldn’t help but overhear your brother and his men teasing you.”
Creed rolled his eyes. “I just haven’t met the one yet. But we’re talking about you right now.”
“Nope. I get a turn. Have you ever been in a serious relationship?”
Creed rolled his head from side to side. “Ah, a couple.”
“Who?”
“Aren’t you the nosy one all of a sudden.” I merely raised a brow. “Fine, my girlfriend in high school. We were about as serious as you can be at sixteen and seventeen. Then I was in a relationship in college. Unfortunately, I found out a little too late that only I was truly invested.” He shrugged. “But life goes on, and there are plenty of fish in the sea.”
Sadness infiltrated his voice, and I wondered if he was aware. As obnoxious as his questions were, I decided I liked overly-confident Creed better, so I said, “Okay, your turn to ask another question.”
He sat back and crossed his arms over his broad chest. Maybe I should have asked him about his workouts, instead. “I’m going to give you a break about talking specifically about yourself for tonight. Tell me about your nephew.”
My body relaxed, and I smiled spontaneously. It was impossible not to when I thought about Jakey. It had been that way since the first time Haley showed me an ultrasound picture. “Jakey’s the best.”
“How old is he?”
“He’ll be three in a couple of months. It’s unbelievable how fast kids grow. He’s so good, though.”
Creed picked up his cup and smiled over the top. “Okay, Logan. I have friends who have kids already, so I know how this goes. Go ahead, gush about Jakey. I want to hear every word.”
And so I did. We spent the next hour with him listening intently as I told him about Jakey’s obsession with fish and Play-doh. He cracked up when I told him how Jakey’s love of boats got so extreme that he crawled around everywhere when he was only one, pushing one of his many plastic toy boats as he went. He ooh’d and aww’d appropriately when I whipped out my phone and showed him pictures. He even asked to see some of Jakey’s Play-doh creations.
“He made those and he’s only almost three?” Creed asked, shocked, when he laid eyes on the different sea creatures that Jakey had created.
I nodded, enthusiastically. Too caught up in sharing about all things Jakey to worry about my dorkiness, which I knew had multiplied since I became the boy’s full-time caretaker.
“Wow.” He sat back in his seat and shook his head.
“I know. Incredible, right?”
Creed’s gaze flicked back to my phone screen, then back to my face. “Yeah, he is, but I was talking about your smile when you let yourself go, and you’re not worried about every move you make.”
“Oh.” Clicking my phone off, I slid it back into my pocket and reached for my coffee without looking back up at him. Except for my mom, I wasn’t used to anyone complimenting my smile. Not since Haley died, anyway.
“Sorry.” Creed drummed the fingers of one hand on the table. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”
“You didn’t.”
Creed cleared his throat. “I think we better call it a night. You have to get your boy in the morning, so I don’t want to keep you out too late. Let me just order an Uber, and pay, and we can get out of here.”
“Oh, I’ll take you home,” I said, wanting a little more time with Creed before he walked out of my life as fast as he’d blown in. The gentle smile Creed graced me with took my breath away. Even knowing I didn’t have a chance at a relationship with this guy—not that I would’ve even if he was interested in men—I didn’t want the night and being the recipient of his undivided attention to end. Only to myself did I admit that this had been the best night of adult company I’d had since J.J. and Haley died.
“No, no. I’ve put you out enough for tonight.” He kicked my shin lightly under the table. “Thanks for putting up with me.”
Shrugging, I said, “You didn’t kill me, so…I guess, thank you.”
Creed chuckled, shaking his head again. “You’re too much, Logan. I look forward to getting to know you better.”
I didn’t have the nerve to ask him when. Tomorrow, a sober Creed would probably question why he’d asked me to coffee anyway. As I double-checked the alarm on my phone one last time before bed, my heart sank at the realization that Creed hadn’t asked for my number. Apparently, not getting asked out a second time didn’t just apply to dates anymore, I couldn’t even make a friend.
Chapter Four
Creed
“Hello, sir.”
“Hey, I’m just going to sit at the bar if that’s okay,” I told the waitress.
“Sure, they have menus up there for you.”
“Thanks.” I winked and pink blossomed on her cheeks. Before she started flirting, I strode past her toward the bar. Yesterday had felt unending, and even though it meant having to work, I couldn’t wait for this morning to roll around.
Luck was on my side when I reached the bar while Logan helped a customer on the other side. Based on his behavior the other night, I knew the odds were high that me sitting here to enjoy my lunch would fluster him. Where that thought would usually amuse me, with Logan, I just wanted to be in his space enough for him to get used to my presence and relax. I’d really wanted to push when we were talking about his nephew, Jakey, and find out how exactly he’d ended up with custody of the little boy, but he’d finally stopped freaking out about us having coffee together, and I didn’t want to chase his smile away with an unhappy story.
Logan turned, and the minute he saw me, his lips twitched up at the corners—making my heart speed up—before he schooled his expression and approached me. “What are you doing here?” he asked.
I leaned back with a mock-frown. “What kind of customer service is that?”
One corner of his lips twitched again. “I’m sorry, sir. What may I do for you on this fine afternoon?”
I sighed, straightening in my seat and tipping my head at a haughty angle. “I suppose that’s better. I’m on my lunch break and have come for food and your company.”
That oddly confused blank face he’d made when I’d asked him to coffee returned. “But why?”
“We really need to work on your vocabulary, Logan,” I teased. “But in answer to your question, food because the human body requires nourishment to sustain itself.”
“But w—” He cleared his throat, and then started again. “You do realize I’m working, right?”