Finding Carson Lee (Oh Captain, My Captain 3)

A flicker of surprise passes before she narrows her eyes at me. “Hello, Carson. I’m thrilled to see you,” she says with zero emotion. “Now, why did you knock on my door?”

“Our bet, remember? My mission is to make you smile twice. Let’s go watch a movie.”

“With you?”

“It’s a comedy,” I semi-sing, hoping that will persuade her.

She matches my stance with her arms over her chest. “It has to be you, not a movie.”

“Was that a rule, Kinley? I don’t think you said that. Besides, I can do it all on my own.” The no is on her lips, I can tell. “Cassie can come too. And I promise I won’t even mention a threesome.” I grin, but she rolls her eyes.

“Cassie went out with a few of the models.”

“So you have no reason to turn me down?”

“Aside from the fact that I don’t like you?”

“Oh, come on, sweetheart. Just come watch a movie with me.”

Kinley sighs, but then sends me a glare. “Only if you stop with the sweetheart crap. I hate it.”

“I can do that.”

She retreats into her room to grab her key and then pops back out to cross the hall into my room. Kinley goes straight for the chair by the window. I grab the remote and lay on the bed with my arm behind my head, scrolling through the channels.

“Ooh, what about that one?” Kinley speaks up.

“This one?” I clarify with the correct movie highlighted. Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

“Yeah.”

I press the button, so the movie can start. It’s pretty good too. Kinley smiles and even laughs. She snorts at one point, which makes me laugh a clutching-my-stomach kind of laugh. That didn’t make her laugh. She shot me a look of annoyance mixed with a healthy dose of embarrassment. A small part of me is genuinely surprised. I wasn’t sure that Kinley had it in her.

Feeling thirsty, I walk over to the mini fridge. My phone rings, so I grab it.

“Want something?” I ask Kinley, who nods. I swipe to answer the phone and then put it on speaker. It’s only Mike. “Hey, Mike. What’s up?” I question, surveying the fridge.

“Just wanted to see how things were going so far and I had some other news.”

“Like what?” Grabbing two cans of soda, I hold them up for Kinley to see. She nods her head at the one on the left.

“The donations to your usual round of children’s hospitals were delivered today. The kids were all very disappointed that you weren’t there like normal, especially your little girl, but I let them know you’ll stop by before summer’s over.”

I purposely don’t look over at Kinley, which means I’m standing in front of the fridge with two cans in my hands like a dummy. “Great. Go ahead and get a date scheduled, so it’s all set and I can make sure not to be out of town.”

“Will do.” He pauses. “So…has she kicked your ass yet?”

“Not yet, but there’s still plenty of time.”

Mike sighs. “Remember what I told you, Carson.”

“Yeah, I got it.” I set down one of the cans and hang up before he can say more. Before I can even face Kinley, I regret putting it on speakerphone. How I spend my money is none of her business and I don’t need anyone thinking that there’s actually a kind bone in my body. Not to mention that he brought up Gracie too, but that’s no one’s business either.

Her lips are slightly parted and her eyes are a bit wide. I’m guessing she wasn’t expecting that.

“Here you go,” I mumble, handing her the can.

“So, do you play Santa all year or just when it’s convenient?” She pops the top and takes a sip while I answer.