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He hadn’t even got his door shut before she said, “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” He turned slowly towards her.
“The Mason thing. He stopped by here last week and told Scott that we were back together and getting married. I tried to tell him the truth, but he started getting upset. I didn’t want to upset Scott so I let it go. Then I didn’t feel like addressing it with Nora when she mentioned it, so I didn’t correct her at the time, but I don’t want you to think that anything’s going on with Mason and me. There’s not. I honestly don’t kno—”
“Stephanie,” he interrupted, knowing that once she got on a roll it was hard for her to stop herself. “You don’t owe me an apology or an explanation.”
Because they weren’t together. He didn’t add that part, but it was the truth as much as he wished it wasn’t. That didn’t change the fact that he wanted to find Mason and let him know exactly what he thought about him lying about his relationship with Stephanie. He’d had his hands around that weasel’s throat when he’d pushed his way into Stephanie’s house, but that obviously hadn’t made enough of an impression. Ace wanted to rectify that. But the last thing he wanted was Stephanie to sense his desire to settle things with her ex once and for all. She had enough worry and stress in her life, and Ace wasn’t about to add to it.
“Oh…” A wrinkle appeared between her brows. “I just thought…I didn’t want you to think that I would…that Mason and I were…” Her phone vibrated in her purse and he heard her curse beneath her breath as she reached in and pulled it out.
When she saw the number, her eyes closed and her head fell back on the headrest as she lifted the device to her ear. “Hey.”
He waited to see if it was Simone, Scott or work. It seemed like those were the only three calls she got.
“Yeah, I can. Give me half an hour and I’ll be in.”
Work.
She disconnected the call. “I’m sorry, that was the hospital. They are short staffed. I need to go in.”
“No worries.” He started the engine and backed out of the parking space.
They drove in silence. He could feel that she was tense, and he wasn’t sure if it was because she was still worried about the Mason thing or if she just didn’t want to go into work.
“Well, I bet that wasn’t the night you had planned.” She let out a forced laugh as she stared out the passenger side window. “Ask a girl to dinner and you get this.”
He pulled to a four way stop, put the truck in park and placed his hand around the back of her neck, tugging her gently towards him until they were a breath apart. “Tonight was amazing. I met your brother. And I saw you, in your element. In your life. It was the best date I’ve ever had.”
She closed her eyes and pressed her lips to his just as a horn honked behind them. They both jumped, startled by the noise and laughed as he put the truck in gear and started down the road again. “And you’re not off the hook, you still owe me a dinner.”
“Okay,” she agreed, still smiling from ear to ear and he saw that it did reach her eyes.
She was right, it wasn’t the night he’d had planned. It was better.
