is a mess, and if you’re really observant, you’ll notice she’s wearing unicorn slip-ons instead of shoes.”
Summer watched Arnie’s eyes dip as he checked for the quirky footwear. “Who are you?” he asked with a deep chuckle. “Nancy Drew?”
Gasping with delight, she bumped against his side and laughed. “You know Nancy? Where have you been my whole life?”
“Don’t ask me why or how, but there was a time when a DVD of the 2007 movie was a favorite. I’ve watched it probably fifty times.”
Her entire body tingled with awareness. Oh, yeah. This man was special.
The woman she’d been watching suddenly moved and opened her laptop. “Look, look!” she exclaimed. “Oh, my god. Watch her! Her lips are moving. She’s reading out loud.”
Arnie played it casual and draped an arm behind her on the top of the banquette seat. He took a sip of his drink and turned his head to watch the woman.
“She’s chuckling. Do you think there’s a laugh track?”
They watched her pound away at the keyboard for a moment, laugh, and then close the lid again. Then she picked up a phone, still laughing, and her thumbs started flying.
“What do you think?” he asked.
“Five minutes ago, she was so anxious that the whole room had to feel it.”
She looked twice when she found Arnie gaping at her with a curious light in his eyes.
“You felt it?” His voice had a husky thrum that made her giddy.
“Felt, perceived, something like that. Anyway, she was putting off a vibe. Then all of a sudden, she opened her laptop and found a laugh. Now she’s texting a friend to announce her writer’s block is over.”
“Have you ever thought about being a detective? I hear there are lots of jobs.”
“Detective?” She snorted. “Good lord, no. I like people too much. Digging around looking for compromising information wouldn’t be good for me. That stuff gets inside my head. I’m happy as a Goody Two-shoes.”
His deep voice was teasing. “The world could use more goody shoes.”
A smile of genuine happiness spread on her face. He grinned when she smirked. “Doesn’t mean I’m a pushover. Just because I’m young doesn’t mean I was napping when they handed out street smarts.”
With no idea whatsoever why she took such a stern approach, she blushed some more and fiddled with her hair. In a rush, she asked the elephant in the room question so the answer would be in the open, and they could move on.
“How old are you, Arnie?”
“Old enough to know why you asked. Old enough to know better.”
She cringed. “That bad?”
He nodded.
In a small voice, she said, “I’ll be twenty in the spring,” then watched the color drain from his face.
Summer was glad to see proof he had a conscience.
“Just kidding. I’ll be twenty-five in May. Perfectly legal,” she teased.
“Well,” he drawled, “for that impressive display of heart attack-inducing insolence, you just lost your half of the Danish.” He plucked the cheesy treat out of the pile and stuffed most of it in his mouth. His crystal blue eyes twinkled with laughter.
While nibbling on a cake pop, Summer made no effort to hide her interest as she studied him. Looking for flaws seemed silly since he had to be one of the most classically handsome men she’d ever seen.
His head of tousled yet creatively styled blond hair was natural, and she knew this because he had the blondish eyebrows and light scruff of a true golden boy. There was a faint scar on his chin partially hidden in the lazy beard.
His mouth fascinated her. Maybe too much because she couldn’t drag her eyes away from watching him polish off the Danish.
A shiver caught her unaware. She looked away and hid her eyes in case he could read her thoughts and see the X-rated slideshow flashing in her head.
“Fair lady, I don’t know why you’re blushing but please, don’t stop.”
She made a face. “It’s the curse of being a blond.” She motioned at his face. “Something I wager you know full well.”
“Which is why I said, please don’t stop. I know a dirty thought when I see one happening.”
“You’re very direct, aren’t you?”
He shrugged with a smile. “Playing things safe just doesn’t make sense to me.”
The conversation was straying into personal territory way too quickly, so she applied the brakes and took a detour.
Tilting her head to indicate the other side of the room, she finished off the cake pop, and said, “See the guy by the bookcase? What do you think his story is?”