No problem. I meant what I said. Call me if he comes back.
“What did he say?” Liz asked, and Fiona held the phone out so she could read the text. A grin stretched across her friend’s face, and she knew she’d never hear the end of it. “Aw, yeah. He’d totally be up for naked Twister.”
Glass empty, Fiona stood. “I’m going to start dinner. Should I make enough for two?”
“Only if you’re planning on inviting Hot Guy to dinner. Joe,” she quickly added before Fiona could correct her. “I’ll pick up something on my way to the bar.”
Fiona went inside to the kitchen, where she put her glass in the sink. “I thought you were off tonight.”
“I was, but Marley called out with the flu.”
Someone knocked on the door, and Fiona’s stomach knotted with dread. Odds were Dennis was on the other side of the door, pissed off because she wasn’t answering his calls. She went to the door and checked the peephole, and her breath caught at the sight of Joe’s handsome face.
“Don’t tell me the asshole’s back,” Liz said.
“No, it’s Joe.”
Liz’s eyes widened. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Hot Guy Joe?”
Fiona nodded, unable to contain the riot of butterflies fluttering in her belly. It was ridiculous. She barely knew the man. For all she knew, he could be a total creep. And yet here she was, nearly as giddy as a teenager because a hot guy was at the door.
“In that case, what are you waiting for?” Liz gestured to the door. “Let him in!”
Fiona slid the bolt and opened the door, and there he was, looking strong, rugged, and ready to conquer the world in camo pants, combat boots, and an olive-green T-shirt that molded to his chest in all the right places. His thick, dark hair was tousled as if he’d been driving with the windows rolled down. His phone rested in a holster that was clipped to his belt, while the tactical watch around his left wrist appeared tough enough to withstand a nuclear blast.
He smiled at the sight of her, a flash of white in his five o’clock shadow, and she was pretty sure at least one of her ovaries exploded. “Hey, I just wanted to check how you’re doing after what happened last night with your ex.”
Before she could answer, Liz crossed the room to stand beside her. “Hi, I’m Liz. You must be the man who rode to her rescue.”
The statement seemed to fluster him. “Um, well…I wouldn’t call it a rescue.”
“I don’t care what you call it. You helped my friend and for that I’m eternally grateful.” Liz tossed back the last of her wine and handed the empty glass to Fiona. “I’d love to stay, but I better get ready for work. I promised Jeremy I’d be there by seven, and you know how he gets when I’m late. If you have time, why don’t you stop by tonight? That goes for you too,” she told Joe. “First round is on the house.”
Fiona watched as Liz slipped past Joe, checked out his ass, and then disappeared down the stairs.
“She seems nice,” Joe said once they were alone.
“She’s incorrigible, but I love her like a sister.”
To paraphrase an old saying, family wasn’t always blood. She and Liz had been through all kinds of crap together and came out the other side even stronger. When she’d left Dennis and had nowhere to stay, Liz had given her a shoulder to lean on and a couch to sleep on for as long as she’d needed to get her feet back under her.
Joe smiled. “Which bar does she work at?”
“Spiny Norman’s off Rouse. She and her brothers own it.”
“I’ll have to check it out sometime.”
Her phone rang—Dennis again—and she bit back the curse that was perched on the tip of her tongue.
Joe’s gaze tracked to the phone. “I take it that’s your ex.”
She nodded. “He’s been calling all day.”
“Have you answered any of his calls?”
“No, but he’s persistent. It’s one of his superpowers.” That, along with his uncanny ability to identify and exploit her insecurities, had locked her into a bad relationship for much longer than she cared to admit. Hindsight being twenty-twenty, she should have gotten out long before they moved in together. The warning signs had been clear as day. But now that she was free, she’d rather spend the rest of her life alone than be treated like garbage again.
Joe extended his hand. “May I?”
