Bad Boys Do (Donovan Brothers Brewery 2)

“You mean goofy in a good way? Because I’ve known some who were fantastically nerdy.”

“Yes, goofy in a good way. He’s so smart, but he likes bad television and scary movies and great music. And his socks matched. And he smelled really, really good.”

“Oh, yeah? Just how close did you get?”

“Not close enough. But he asked if I’d like to go out again, and he said he’d call….”

Olivia smiled down at a rosebush that was just starting to show buds. “Do you think he will?”

“God, I hope so. I think he will, but who can tell? Men are such teases sometimes.”

“I bet he’ll call. Men love it when women laugh at their jokes, right? You probably made him feel manly and powerful.”

“Yeah? Well, let’s hope he is manly and powerful. I could use a little of that in my life.”

“Do you want me to call him and see what he thought?”

Gwen sighed. “I do, but you’d better not. Not until next week when he hasn’t called.”

“Got it. I’ve got to get back to my date now, but congratulations. I’m glad it worked out.”

This was a novel feeling, playing Cupid. She’d never done it before, and she grinned like the Cheshire cat as she walked back into the restaurant. She liked Paul, and despite her new aversion to dating professors, he seemed like a truly nice guy. Just the fact that he was asking out grown women instead of students… Maybe Olivia’s standards were low, but that seemed like a good place to start.

For herself, though…she wasn’t even sure she wanted a nice guy. Jamie was a truly nice guy, and that was part of the problem. Everyone liked him. And he liked so many. Maybe she needed somebody grumpy. Somebody who would never cheat on her because he didn’t have an ounce of charm in his body.

She was weaving her way through the tables when her neck prickled with awareness. She looked toward Jamie, certain he was staring at her, but he was making notes on a napkin. Curious, she glanced around at the other tables. When she caught sight of the person staring at her, Olivia jumped in surprise. It was Victor, seated at a table in the far corner. His eyes burned into her, until he was distracted by the movement of the woman with him. Allison stood, her movements jerky with anger as she tossed her napkin down and grabbed her purse. Victor made a halfhearted effort to reach toward her, but she pulled back and stalked away from him. Away from Victor, but straight toward Olivia.

Olivia tensed up, expecting a confrontation, but the girl only glared for a moment before storming past, her cheeks streaked with tears.

“Oh,” Olivia murmured, at a complete loss. She looked helplessly around and caught Jamie’s wide-eyed gaze. He grimaced in sympathy as she walked toward him. She did her best not to look in Victor’s direction.

“Yikes,” Jamie said. “What was that about?”

“I’m not sure. I guess we chose the wrong restaurant.”

“I don’t want to start anything, but did you notice—”

“Crap! He’s coming over here.”

“Victor?” Jamie glanced over his shoulder, then rolled his eyes. “Speak of the devil.”

Olivia watched him approach, keeping her face as neutral as she could. There was no denying the small glimmer of satisfaction after witnessing that scene. The girl might be young, but she wasn’t malleable, apparently. Not like you were, the voice of Olivia’s mom whispered in her ear. She scowled.

“Victor,” she said. “You remember Jamie.”

Victor’s smile was all false joviality. “Nice to see you again. Olivia, how have you been?”

“Wonderful. And you?”

“Great,” he answered, as if his girlfriend hadn’t just raced out in tears. “I’ve never seen you here before. I thought you weren’t crazy about Italian.”

“It’s not my favorite, but I’m trying new things. Getting out of my comfort zone.”

His eyes slid to Jamie, and she tried not to smirk. Yeah, she was trying all sorts of new things with Jamie.

“The pizza was wonderful,” she said, trying not to ooze too much satisfaction onto Victor’s expensive loafers.

“How’s the summer semester going?” he asked. His words were always meant as blades, she realized now. Sometimes they were used to shape the situation around him, and sometimes—such as now—they were meant to cut. He was either reminding her that she was forced to work more hours because she’d left him, or he was pointing out that Jamie was, technically, her student. On second thought, it was likely a double-edged sword, meant to wound on both sides.