Reckless

The whole evening wears on me, like the brakes on a car grinding.

With Allison coming tomorrow to pick up the kids, I can’t keep them out late to chase after my pissed-off nanny. At least, I think she’s pissed off.

I cringe when I think of her response to Sandra. That’s about all I’m good for. Babysitting.

With a patience I don’t really possess, I tuck each of my children into bed, read them their bedtime stories and cuddle, the whole time wondering how I fix this. Tori probably thinks I played her all week. That I was trying to get in her pants. That I don’t really care.

The second the kids are asleep, I stride into the living room and yank the remote out of Logan’s hand. “What the hell were you doing tonight? Why would you set me up with Sandra? In front of Mila?” I don’t say the rest. In front of Tori.

“What?” He shrugs and returns his attention to the TV, which I flick off. “Mila seemed fine, and you told me you’d go out with Sandra.”

“The hell I did.”

“Bro. For real. Week before last when I asked you about Sandra, you said you’d go out on a date.”

I stare at him as I collapse on the couch, wondering if he’s spent too much time in the sun.

He snaps his finger in my face. “It was that first day Tori brought you lunch.”

A long minute passes. “Really?”

“Yes, dumbass, really.” Groaning, I run my hand over my face. My idiot brother laughs. “Why you acting like I’m making you haul horse shit instead of thanking me for setting you up with a gorgeous woman?”

“I thought you wanted me to explore this thing with Tori.”

Surprise registers on his face. “Have you fucked her?”

“Don’t talk about her like that.” Anger burns hot through my body, way hotter than it probably should.

“Fine.” Raising his voice so he sounds like a prepubescent boy, he asks, “Have you made love to her?”

I smack him with my baseball cap. “No. Not that it’s any of your business, but we’ve been hanging out.”

“Is ‘hanging out’ code for some other sexual activity? Oral? Anal?” With a devilish grin, he adds, “You know, some girls don’t consider anal to be sex.”

This is why every father in a twenty-mile radius locks up his daughter when Logan Carter’s around.

Undeterred by my scowl, he elbows me. “Bro, if things were moving forward with Tori, why didn’t you say something to me? Every time I brought her up this week, you changed the subject. In fact, when she came home last weekend, you told me you weren’t making a play for her.”

“Have you considered that maybe I wanted to keep it to myself? That this is personal, and I don’t feel like announcing shit to you so you can make light of it?” Even now I don’t like talking about this. Not when everything with Tori is so new.

A beat goes by before he scratches his head. “Tori didn’t seem like it was a big deal, you going out with Sandra.”

“Sure she didn’t,” I say dryly.

He lifts his chin. “You falling for her?”

Shrugging, I lean back. “I like the girl. Isn’t that enough? She’s fun and sweet and beautiful, and she doesn’t make me feel like an asshole for working long hours. Does that meet with your approval, Mr. Dating Expert?”

This answer doesn’t appease him like I think it should because his brows pull tight.

“What about this isn’t working for you, Logan? You’re the one who suggested I hang out with Tori in the first place.”

“I’m worried, okay?”

“Why are you worried?” I point the remote back to the TV, ready to tune him out.

“Because this sounds serious all of a sudden and you’re only now getting out of a goddamn marriage. One you didn’t want, I might add, and you’re already diving into something else that’s way too ambitious. I thought you might get up close and horizontal with Tori, not fall for her.”

Now I’m getting pissed. “Why are you saying I didn’t want my marriage? I busted my ass to make it work with Allison.”

“Calm your tits.” He waves his hand like he’s trying to figure out what to say. “Can you honestly say you would’ve married Allison if she hadn’t gotten pregnant?”

That gives me pause. I drag my palm across my chin. “It’s hard to say. After graduation, she wanted to return to Dallas to be near her family, and I always planned on coming home. We hadn’t discussed anything serious before Mila came along, but I always cared for her.”

“That’s my point. Had she not gotten pregnant, you guys would’ve gone your separate ways.”

“Maybe.” All this talk about relationships is making me anxious. I finally flip on the TV, click the DVR, and immediately regret it when the Astros game from last night flashes on the screen.

Logan clears his throat. “Sorry if I messed things up with Tori. I swear I didn’t know you really had a thing for her, beyond thinking she was hot.” If there’s any consolation, it’s that my brother is more clueless sometimes than I am. “You gonna call her?”

“Already tried. She’s not picking up.”

He bumps my elbow. “Try again. You know you wanna.”

I do. Reaching for my back pocket, I slide out my phone and hit her name. It rings. Once. Twice.

Logan and I look at each other when we feel buzzing and then down at the couch. He reaches behind a cushion to pull out Tori’s phone.

That explains why she’s not picking up.

He scrolls through the messages visible on the lock screen, the nosey jerk.

“Don’t snoop.” I snatch it out of his hand and toss it on the coffee table.

“She’s popular, bro. All her friends want her to go out this weekend.” He tries to show me, but I wave him off. “I’m only saying you better get on this stat before she…”

His voice fades, and I turn to him. “Before she what?”

“Before she hooks up with someone else.”

My fists ball up at my sides. “I already told you not to talk about her like that. Besides, what makes you think she’s gonna run out and hook up with someone else?”

“Doesn’t she think you’re taking out Sandra?” He lets the question hang in the air. “Gotta talk to her before Tori writes you off. That’s all I’m saying.”

Well, shit. Hadn’t thought about it like that.

I reach for his beer, which he lets me have without complaint. “I thought you didn’t want me to date Tori.”

“No, I said I was worried about you getting serious about Tori. I’m all for hooking up.”

Rolling my eyes, I punch him in the side. “You give the worst advice, but I still love you, numbnuts.”

He pretends to sniffle and wipes fake tears. “Love you, too, bro. Now how we gonna get your girl back?”

I shouldn’t like how that sounds—my girl—considering I haven’t even kissed her yet, but damn if I don’t want to soon.