Miller stilled. “You think I’m handsome?”
What?“I didn’t say that.” Did I?Dear God, please tell me I didn’t.“I said you were arrogant.”
“You definitely said he was handsome.” Noah briefly considered Miller as he chewed. “I mean, he’s okay, I guess. Not reallymytype.”
“I didn’t mean it,” I sputtered.
Miller returned to his steak. “Now she’s just being hurtful.”
“You should know my date is probably a total psychopath. If I disappear after this evening, your guilt will follow you the rest of your days.” That had Miller and Noah’s attention. “He’s an expert in autopsies, his favorite topic is blood spatters, and he’s obsessed with his ex-girlfriend. Also when I was in the bathroom and Googled him, I discovered the university fired him for undisclosed reasons last semester.”
Noah’s forehead wrinkled in a frown. “What did you say his name is?”
“Lincoln McNamara.”
Noah choked on his drink and grabbed a napkin. “McNamara? Did you do no reconnaissance work at all? Are you not the granddaughter of a former CIA agent?”
“What do you know about this guy?” Miller asked him. He craned his neck to peer into the adjoining dining room.
“I know he’ll either be just a harmless weirdo…or someday he’ll be Suspect Number One on somebody’s murder podcast.”
“Great,” I said. “It’s even worse than I thought.” IfIdisliked a person, he had to be awful. “I need to get back before the man tracks me down by scent. Are either of you going to help me end this date or not?”
Noah looked between Miller and me, as if slowly formulating a hypothesis I did not want to hear. “For some reason I get the feeling I need to yield to Miller here.”
“Miller?” I impatiently prodded. “Just last night you told me you owed me one,” I reminded him. “Remember?”
“And then you said I did not, in fact, owe you. Because you are…” Miller pretended to search that beautiful, oversized brain for the exact words. “A woman of principles and ethics.”
“My evening clutch is very tiny, so I had to leave my principles and ethics at home.” This was getting me nowhere. “You know what? Never mind.” I leaned close to Miller and pushed my finger right into his firm pec muscle. “I hope you drop a hot wing on that white shirt and the stain never comes out. Enjoy your meal, gentlemen.” My heels stabbed into the hardwood floor as I made my way back to my potential serial killer.
Fine.
I could wrap up this date myself. Would Lincoln McNamara probably stuff me in his trunk and dump my body in a river? Probably. But I was a big girl. I was a therapist, for crying out loud. I could be honest with the man and have the hard conversation.
Oh, geez. What a fraud I was.
“Everything okay?” Lincoln asked when I eased back into my seat.
“Yes, sorry for the delay. I ran into some friends of mine.”And considered escaping out a window in the ladies’ room.
“How nice.” Lincoln rested his knife on his plate. “Do you have a lot of friends?”
“I do.”
“I guess I don’t see the need. In my last relationship, we spent every bit of free time with one another. She was my best friend and I was her—”
“Captor?”
“What?”
“Sorry, jumped the gun on the plot.” I cleared my throat and dove in. “Lincoln, I’m sorry but I need to end—”
“Hello, Hattie.”
I closed my lips on my escape attempt to find Miller looming over our table like an avenging specter of gloat and overconfidence.“Miller.”
“Dating so soon?” He gave a pointed look to a confused Lincoln.
