“Can I buy you a drink?” he asks.
“I’m already waiting on one, but thank you.”
“Later, perhaps?”
“Already getting a drink is code for she’s here with someone.” Nate appears from behind him with my drink. The guy practically winces.
“Hey, man, no harm no foul. She could have been here with girlfriends.”
Nate glares at him. The guy scurries away immediately.
“Hey, why did you scare him away?”
“Wimp.”
“Him too?” I ask with amusement, remembering he called Colin one too.
“He winced. Wimp behavior.”
I take the glass of wine from him, sipping. Nate brought a beer for himself.
“I haven’t been out with a man in months. Almost forgot what it feels like.”
Nate climbs on the barstool next to me. “That’s an outrage and must be rectified immediately. I can help.”
“How, by scaring away the next man who asks me out? Or shoving your tongue down my throat in front of him?”
His eyes sparkle as if I just had the most brilliant idea.
“Is that your way of telling me you want me to kiss you again?” His tone is playful, but it throws me off balance. Where is he going with this? I feel like I’m trapped in a cat-and-mouse game, only I’m not sure if I’m the cat or the mouse. I don’t mind, but I want to know where I’m standing.
“Is there a point you’re trying to make?”
“You deserve someone who can sweep you off your feet, Alice.”
I blink, momentarily speechless. This isn’t where I thought this conversation was going.
“Meaning?”
“Someone who’s man enough for you. Who’d make you say yes to a date in a heartbeat, and when he does take you out, you’ll enjoy it so much you’ll pra
ctically beg for another date.”
“How would he do that?”
“He’d take you somewhere fancy and order your favorite dessert.”
“How would he know my favorite?”
“If he doesn’t do the legwork to find out, he doesn’t deserve the date.”
“Never used it as cutoff criteria. I’ll put it on my list. Any other things I should add?”
“By the end of the date, he’d kiss you on a table or against a wall.”
“Kissing on tables or against a wall is inappropriate for a first date,” I say reasonably, but a shiver of excitement travels down my spine and heat pools in intimate places. Damn Nate and his effect on me.
“You’ve really been dating the wrong men.”