Holiday Sparks
Page 15
“How?”
He stepped down to the floor. He was so close she could feel the warmth of his skin and the tantalizing scent of pine and leather swirled around her. “Do you really want to know how I use channels and create the sectors that the music will be manipulated through?”
Wow. Vastly underestimating her neighbor’s prowess with electronics was going to get her into trouble. Bad boy look and brains to spare? Nope, not at all good for her peace of mind. “Engineering degree?”
“Nope, my degree is on the streets, darlin’. I learned everything I know from friends and acquaintances, with a side of trial and error.”
Her belly twisted. She knew all about on-the-job training instead of college, but for this kind of thing? She wasn’t sure it was a good idea. “This is going to work, right?”
He tapped the tip of her nose. “I’m going to blow you away.”
She folded her arms. “You’re a cocky one.”
“Nah. Just aim to impress the pretty girl.”
She could feel the heat of her cheeks. Damn fair skin. “I need Mr. and Mrs. Blackstone impressed, not me.”
“Yeah, but you’re the one I want to impress.” He clicked his boot heels together and gave her a snappy salute. “I’ll be back and you are going to sit down with me for at least twenty minutes and eat.”
“I’ll try.”
He cuffed her wrist with his forefinger and thumb. “It’s going to be a long night, Darcy. You’ll need your strength.”
Gosh, she hoped he couldn’t feel her pulse hammering away as though it were a rabbit on meth. One touch and she was a frazzled mess. And he was right. She needed her strength to get through the night. And dinner. “Is that offer still open?”
His lids lowered. The hooded look made her think of anything but the possible sandwich he was bringing back. “Which offer is that?”
“Food, Ben.”
The smile was slow and anything but innocent. “Of course.”
The entire night with him? She was so freaking screwed.
Oh yeah.
Screwed.
“I’m getting a sub from Lou’s. Want a hot or cold one?”
The Lean Cuisine she had stashed in the freezer for emergencies paled in comparison. “Meatball,” she said before she could stop herself. She should have asked for a salad or anything else but a sauce, meat and cheese explosion of garlic.
Her mouth watered at the thought. She rarely allowed herself to have takeout. It was just too expensive and she was saving to build a deck off the back of her house. She patted her pockets.
“I got it.”
“The least I can do is buy lunch.”
He nudged past her, giving her ponytail a yank. “I got it. If I can get you to sit with me for twenty minutes and talk it will be well worth it.”
“This isn’t a date.”
He threw a grin over his shoulder. “Oh darlin’, you’d know it if we were dating. You’d be smiling a helluva lot more.” He disappeared beyond the jewelry counter.
Her nails dug into her palms before she realized it.
“He’s right.” She turned to find Jaime beside her. “I bet you’d be smiling like that damn fish Dory that my daughter can’t stop watching.”
“Oh sure, that’s attractive. Dory’s the vapid, forgetful one, right? I think not. Besides, he’s too cocky. What the heck would I do with a guy like that?”