hardwired in me to be frugal. I didn’t like the parties we went to. I always felt like they were watching me, waiting for me to screw up. Again, it wasn’t his family, though I was always worried about embarrassing them. Reporters actually followed us around when we went to visit Nina after she had her last kid.”
“Yeah, I understand that,” David replied. “It’s weird. I don’t know how or why anyone would want to live that way.”
“Sean’s been on TV.” She hoped he could start putting two and two together. “He’s on TV a lot.”
“Sean’s got actual groupies. I don’t know why people watch shows where other people cook. It’s not like you can eat the food.”
She could understand. She’d actually watched Sean’s shows. “I don’t know. There’s something soothing about it.”
“So you decided not to take me up on my offer because you think I run in those circles?” David asked.
Good. At least he understood. “I think you’re Sean Taggart’s stepson. You’re related to Ian Taggart. He might not be TV celebrity, but he’s a rock star in my world. He knows presidents and prime ministers.”
“He also once threatened to punch a reporter if he didn’t walk away.” David chuckled, though it was obvious he wasn’t amused. “Sean’s a little better but only because his agent forced him to take media training. You know they nicknamed him Sean the Viking Chef, right? Once this group who call themselves Sean’s Shield Maidens showed up at Top. These are not nice women. They like to troll my mom and tell her she’s too old for him or too fat for him.”
“What?” His mom and stepdad were one of the most gorgeous couples she’d ever seen.
“Yeah, the celebrity thing sucks. Anyway, they show up and they’re waiting in the parking lot, and Ian happens to be there that night. No one wants to tell my mom that five crazy fans are waiting for Sean to walk out into the parking lot and they’ll likely heckle her. So Ian goes out to talk to them.”
“Oh, shit.” She hoped the big boss had buried the bodies well.
“He talked to them by turning the hose on and spraying the hell out of them,” David explained. “He said they were obviously overheated and needed a cooldown. They did not come back, and my mom never even knew it happened.”
“That sounds like Ian.”
“Yes, it does. Do you know who it doesn’t sound like?” David asked. “The Malones. They’re always in the public eye, and they’ve learned to navigate it. My stepdad still kicks people in the balls when they deserve it. The Taggarts aren’t the Malones. Ian might know how to put on a tux, but I assure you the minute he can take it off it’s gone. But none of this matters. You don’t owe me a date. All you owe me right now is the promise that you’ll let me do what I need to do.”
It was completely perverse that she didn’t like the sound of that. Wasn’t he offering her exactly what she wanted? He was offering up a completely professional relationship with no hope of slipping up and whoops, we didn’t mean to end up in bed together. The one tent thing was sounding better and better. He was right about Ian not being anything like the Malones. The guys she worked with talked about how he used to get in the ring with them when he was frustrated and let everyone punch him. Of course, he punched back. “As long as it’s safe, I promise.”
“Okay.” He kept his eyes on the road. “And there’s this app I use. It shops around for the cheapest price on the groceries you want, and it even applies coupons it finds online.”
Naturally they even liked the same apps. “Grocery Pro. I love that one.”
“Yeah, I do, too.” He went quiet and took the exit that would lead them to the private airport.
And Tess wondered if she’d made a big mistake. The good news was she had some time to think about it.
* * * *
David yawned as he looked out over the ocean and had to admit that he hadn’t been all that great at tempting Tessa so far. He’d brought out the big guns when he’d picked her up. He’d hoped showing up in the Mustang would buy him points, and then there had been that completely coincidental choice of music.
He wasn’t a man who believed in fate, but damn the universe seemed to