“Dahlia, what’s wrong?”
“You working?”
“No. What’s going on?”
“I shouldn’t have called.” Shit, I shouldn’t have called.
“Where are you?”
“No, really, Michael, it’s stupid. I’m being a baby.”
“Dahlia, where are you?”
I told him where I was.
“I’ll be there in five minutes.”
He hung up before I could ask him how he intended to get here so fast from Southie.
As I waited, I tried to calm down, but I kept replaying the argument with my mom over and over again. It wasn’t even an argument. It was a verbal beatdown.
I pushed off the tree I was leaning on when I saw Michael’s old Ford turning the corner. He pulled up beside me and leaned over to push open the door. I scrambled to get in, and that electric awareness zinged through me when our eyes met.
“How did you get here so fast?”
“I was in Malden.”
“Why?”
He shrugged, turning away. “Just hanging out.”
Oh my God. He’d been on a date. I grimaced. “You were on a date, weren’t you?”
“It wasn’t a date. Put your seat belt on.”
I did, but guilt consumed me. Not a date was guy speak for a hookup. When I first started dating Gary, he told me Michael wasn’t a casual hookup kind of guy, but ever since I’d known Michael, that’s all he did. He didn’t seem to want to get serious with any girl. Ignoring my jealousy, I concentrated on the guilt. “Michael, I’m sorry. You should go back.”
He flashed me a grin as he pulled the car back onto the road. “There is no going back. She wasn’t exactly pleased I bailed on her.”
I flushed. “Why did you? Bail on her?”
Michael’s grin fell, and he gave me a quick, serious look. “Because you sounded like you were crying. And you look like you’ve been crying. What’s going on?”
Feelings I didn’t even want to contemplate flooded me. Michael had ditched a girl for me because I’d sounded upset.
I felt that in an ache in my chest and, to my chagrin, an ache between my legs.
Heat rolled through me, and I did my best to ignore it. “Now I feel terrible. It was only a stupid argument with my mom.”
“Dahlia, I’ve never seen you cry so I’m guessing it wasn’t stupid.” He shot me another look. “Why didn’t you call Gary?”
“I tried. He was supposed to be taking me out tonight, but he canceled. That’s how the argument with my mom started.”
“So you called me? You don’t have a girlfriend you can call?”
Embarrassment prickled me, and I hated that feeling. Especially in front of him. “I’m sorry I called, okay? You can drop me off here.”
“Hey, I’m not mad that you called. I’m … glad.” He kept his eyes on the road, and I took the time to study his profile. Why was he so freaking handsome? His voice was a little hoarse when he continued, “I don’t like the idea of you being sad.”