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With every glance from Duke and every touch of his hand at my back, he amped up my desire for him. After a week of keeping my distance, I wanted to drag him into my old bedroom and make him choose me over his need to look professional for his team.
As Duke asked plenty of get-to-know-you questions of my family, I intertwined my fingers with his. Here, he couldn’t put artificial distance between us for appearance’s sake.
When something got in my eye, I pulled off my sunglasses to wipe it away.
Kelly eyed me suspiciously, and as soon as the guys moved on to the topic of basketball and the Lakers, she pulled me aside.“What happened to your face?” She touched the bridge of her nose.
Found out.“A car accident.” That part was truthful. “Please don’t mention it to anybody, especially Dad. It’s embarrassing, and you know how he gets.”
“No worries.” She laid a hand on my shoulder. “I’ve got your back. Just keep the sunglasses on.” She looked back at the guys, and a mischievous grin appeared. “Now,” she breathed. “Tell me about Duke. Is he the reason you won’t return my calls?”
I pulled us farther away from them. “Yes.”
She fanned her face. “He’s hot. Where do I go to find another one like him?”
“Self-defense class. He’s an instructor.” It was the cover we’d discussed.
Duke sent a smoldering smile my way, and I waved back.
“He looks like he could lift the house off its foundation.”
I nodded. “And then some.” I wished I could get my hands on those musclesright freaking now.
Duke
Serena’s brothers,Vincent and Zach, were even bigger Lakers fans than I was.
“Of course, they have a chance at the semis, if not winning the whole thing,” I asserted.
Zach prodded the meat again and turned one burger. “I say all the way.”
I turned back to Vincent. “Serena tells me you’re looking at a new job.”
“If it pans out.”
“Tell me about it.”
“If they like me, I’d be going to Boston to run the East Coast operations of Covington Industries. This would be the first time they trust someone outside the family with a chunk of the business.”
“That’s cool. Working for Bill?”
“Exactly. You know the Covingtons?” He seemed surprised.
“Yeah. Stand-up people. Hey, doesn’t Liam run the Boston office?”
He moved closer and lowered his voice. “Yes, but his wife’s sick, and he wants to take some leave.”
“Oh, that’s terrible.”
“Uh-oh…” Vincent whispered.
I turned to see a man I knew wasn’t a Benson. I’d spent a lot of time studying photos of Serena’s family.
“Dad went through with it,” Vincent mused. He elbowed Zach.
“What?”
“Dad invited Kittleman.”
