A Reunion And A Ring (Proposals & Promises 1)

She giggled. “Why, of course I was.”

Though they all knew she wasn’t fooling him in the least, he merely chuckled. “Well, it works for you. You look good.”

Stevie batted her lashes. “Thank you, sir.”

Jenny remembered that Gavin and Stevie had flirted teasingly in college—all in good fun, neither of them taking it seriously. She’d never felt even a twinge of jealousy toward them then. She told herself it didn’t bother her now that he was smiling down at her friend, looking relaxed as he hadn’t been with her.

Tess was eyeing Gavin with a slight frown. “I think we’ve met before. Aren’t you the officer who responded to a break-in at my office a couple of months ago? Prince Construction Company?”

“Yes, I thought you looked familiar. Your boss’s office was ransacked, but nothing taken that you could see, right?”

She nodded. “We finally decided it was someone looking for quick cash. And since we don’t keep cash at the office, they were out of luck.”

“It’s nice to see you again under more pleasant circumstances.”

“You, too, Officer Locke.”

“Call me Gavin.”

“This is quite a coincidence. That you’ve met before, I mean,” Stevie said, looking from Gavin to Tess.

Gavin’s eyes turned to Jenny as he murmured, “There’ve been quite a few of those lately.”

Stevie made a sound as if she’d suddenly had a brilliant idea. Because she’d seen so many of Stevie’s brilliant ideas go terribly wrong, Jenny tensed as Stevie tugged at Gavin’s arm and burst into excited speech.

“My boyfriend’s band is playing on the deck at Benoit’s Pier Saturday night. Very informal, and it’s an over-twenty-one-only crowd, so we don’t have to deal with teens and frat boys. It’s a twenty-dollar cover charge to pay the band and to keep out the troublemakers. There’s going to be a donation box to raise money for the victims of the spring storms that have hit Arkansas this year, but it’s a no-pressure fund-raiser. You could even bring one or two of your buddies if they’d like to come hear some great music and meet new people. Or, um, bring a girlfriend if you have one.”

Jenny had to stop herself from openly grimacing. It seemed she’d been right to worry. What was Stevie thinking?

Gavin smiled at Stevie as if her wording had amused him. “No girlfriend at the moment.”

“All the more reason for you to come, then.” She patted his arm lightly. “Lots of hot single women will be there. Tess, here, for example.”

Tess choked on a sip of tea. “Stevie!”

Stevie gave her a blandly sweet smile. “Just saying.”

She gazed back up at Gavin. “Well? Are you interested?”

He shrugged the shoulder Jenny knew to be uninjured while she held her breath waiting for his reply. He would say no, wouldn’t he? Surely he would say no.

“Maybe,” he said instead, making her fingers curl tightly in her lap. She wasn’t sure who she most wanted to strangle, him or Stevie. Gavin glanced her way before asking, “Are you all going to be there?”

“Yes, we are,” Stevie answered cheerily. “Tess and Jen have already promised they’d be there to keep me company while my boyfriend is playing. My friends always keep their promises.”

Jenny glanced at her friend and resisted the urge to shove the napkin in her mouth.

“So, we’ll see you Saturday?” Stevie prodded Gavin.

“Sure. Why not?” He winked at Jenny and her heart clenched. “See you.”

He turned and strode out of the restaurant in a rolling gait that was undeniably sexy. Jenny was well aware that she was only one of many appreciative women studying his very fine backside as he left. Damn it.

Dragging her eyes away, she whirled on Stevie, who was settling back into her seat with an exaggeratedly innocent expression. “What the hell was that?”

“What?”

“Why did you invite Gavin for Saturday night?”