The quiet girl spoke up again. “Thai?”
“Burgers?” I wasn’t sure who that was, but they had my vote.
Glancing at the clock, I realized it was later than I’d expected. Considering it was almost two o’clock in the afternoon, I hadn’t gotten enough done. Moving a half-dozen boxes and Reece’s mattress didn’t count toward anything on my list. As I pushed away from my desk, I heard a knock.
Heading over to the door, I opened it and greeted a smiling Reece. “Hi. How’s the room going?”
“Great. It’s a lot more space than I was originally expecting, so everything fits perfectly.” He glanced toward the living room. “We’re heading out for some lunch, and I wanted to see if you were interested in coming with us. I know you probably didn’t get much done with all the noise, but…”
His smile started to fade, and my hand itched to reach out to him. But that wasn’t in the cards. “Sure. I got a lot done earlier. I’m a morning person. I don’t want to intrude on your friends, though.”
“No, don’t worry about it.” Reece gave a reassuring smile that made his eyes warmer.
“Okay, then. What are you going out for?” I wasn’t sure who’d won, but I was hoping—
“Burgers.”
Perfect. Although the six-pack I was aiming for was going right out the window. “Sounds good. Have you picked a place yet?”
Reece shrugged. “I don’t really know anything local, so they’re picking. If you have an idea, just jump in. None of them are shy about giving their opinions. Well, aside from Hannah, she’s pretty quiet.”
Hannah? Was that the girl who’d just given me the cautious stares?
“They seem like a good group of friends.” It was too vague a hint, evidently, because Reece just nodded.
“Yeah, I got lucky.” He gestured toward the living room. “I met Eli and some of the other guys from work, and then everyone else through them.”
So did that mean hewasn’tdating her?
As we made it to the living room, the chatter stopped as they all looked at me. Reece didn’t seem to notice the odd behavior. But I felt like I was standing under a spotlight. “Where did you guys decide to go?”
Eli seemed to be the spokesman for the group. “The diner off Fourth, it’s not far, and the burgers are great.”
Nodding, I had to agree. “That’s where I would have suggested as well.”
Smirking, Eli glanced at Reece. “Glad to know the boss approves.”
“Boss?” I was missing something.
Reece coughed, shooting Eli a disgruntled look. “Um, you did a good job of taking charge of unloading the storage box.”
I hadn’t done anything out of ordinary. Had I? “I apologize, did I—”
Reece interrupted quickly. “No, don’t. You didn’t do anything wrong. You kept everyone on track. I think without someone in charge it would have taken a lot longer.” Reece’s warm brown eyes blinked up at me, and it was starting to feel like he was hinting at something.
“Having a…leaderwith this many…followerswas probably a good idea.” Eli snickered as one of the other girls, a blond Reece introduced earlier as Andria, elbowed him in the stomach.
“Eli.” Reece gave Eli a stern look, although I thought I saw him roll his eyes. “You guys ready to go?”
Since the general consensus was that everyone was starving, we headed out. It was a little bit like watching the circus pack up. People dashed between the different cars, juggling who was sitting where. I wasn’t really excited about depending on someone else for a ride, it was the control freak in me, so I was expecting to ride by myself. But somehow, it ended up being just Reece and I in the car.
I wasn’t quite sure how that’d happened.
But judging by the giggles from the girls, and a knowing grin from Eli, it wasn’t an accident.
Not that I knew what to make of that. “I’m surprised you didn’t want to ride with your friends…girlfriend?”
Reece coughed, and I glanced over to see him blushing faintly. “Um, no, I’ve been single for a while. They’re just friends.”
