good news.” Brantley exhaled, closed his eyes. “Damn good news.”
Considering all that Lauren Tyler had been through—kidnapped as a teenager, held hostage and brainwashed for nearly a decade—for her to come around so quickly did seem to be a good sign. According to Corinne, there was still a long road ahead, but if all went well, maybe Lauren could have some sense of normalcy as well.
“What’re you boys doin’ sittin’ down on the job?” JJ teased when she stepped out of the kitchenette. “These other desks ain’t gonna move themselves.”
Oh, so it was a complete rearrange. Reese should’ve known.
“Just waitin’ for you, Your Highness,” Brantley mumbled, eyes slowly opening. “Where’d you like it?”
Reese and JJ both laughed.
“Walked right into that one, didn’t I?”
“Baz can help me with my desk first,” she said, then turned to Charlie. “It was great to meet you. I look forward to workin’ with you.”
With JJ guiding the process, she led Baz back upstairs to get her desk where she wanted it while Reese introduced Brantley to Charlie.
Once they’d made each other’s acquaintance, Reese opted to take Tesha outside, let the two of them chat for a few minutes while he tossed the ball around and put a smile on the dog’s face.
New normal, he realized.
That was what this was for him, too.
***
“I like her,” JJ hollered to Baz when Charlie left. “You think she’ll take the job?”
His voice carried up to the loft when he said, “I think she’ll give it some serious consideration.”
Since Charlie had spent a solid hour talking to Brantley, JJ figured he was right. There was a good chance she would be part of their team in the coming days, maybe weeks. That was the best they could hope for, she figured.
“You done up here?” he asked, appearing at the top of the stairs.
She honestly hadn’t given much thought to being able to communicate with the rest of the team while she was tucked away up here. Good thing was, her voice carried and she wasn’t opposed to shouting.
“Almost.” She paused to look up at him. “Why?”
Looming over her from in front of her desk, he answered with, “I’m treatin’ you to dinner.”
JJ leaned back in her chair, considered him. “I thought you told your dad you were datin’ someone.”
“I am.”
She felt like someone had stabbed her in the gut. “Then you should go and find her for dinner,” she bit out, hating that she’d been stupid enough to fall for his charm.
“I did. You, JJ. That’s who I was referrin’ to.”
Her? “We are not—”
“Yes, we are. And like I said before you started arguin’ with me, I’m treatin’ you to dinner.”
How he could stand there and be so cool in the face of opposition, JJ didn’t know. But Baz didn’t seem at all fazed by her continued rejection. But worse than that, JJ was getting tired of resisting him. She’d already given in to her urges, kissing him when she shouldn’t have, thinking about him when it was inappropriate. So what would it hurt to have dinner one more time? Give it a chance. If it failed tonight, she’d know that they had to step back from this mutual attraction and move on with their lives.
She relented with a sigh. “The diner again?”
“No.”
Her eyebrows popped in curiosity. “Where?”
“My place.”
Instantly she was shaking her head. “Not a good idea, Baz.”
“Your place then.”
She continued to stare up at him, wishing he would truly understand her confusion on this matter. She liked him. Not only because he was hot as sin with that unruly hair and those wicked blue eyes but because he was a true gentleman. It had been a really long time since she’d had someone she could open up to, feel comfortable with. For a little while, she’d had Brantley, but now that Brantley had Reese, those times were few and far between. Not his fault but hers. She didn’t want to impose on their new relationship.
“How about someplace neutral,” she suggested.
“I’m game.” He crossed his beefy arms over his chest. “Suggestions?”
“How about breakfast for dinner. IHOP?”
His eyebrow rose slowly, his words dripping with incredulity. “You want me to take you to IHOP? On a date?”
Oh, if he only knew how much she had needed him to react that way. IHOP was not a date place and no one could ever convince her otherwise.
“I like pancakes,” she admitted.
“Then I’ll treat you to pancakes.” His arms lowered as he walked around her desk, offered his hand. “But I’m cookin’ them.”
When she