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  “We’re the only family that will be there, but she has a ton of friends. My parents are hosting a party at the local country club for her. She loves that place.”

  “So we’ll need to dress up at least one night,” he commented.

  “Yeah, the other nights will be way more casual.” She paused and looked down at her notebook. “We really do need to work out some stuff about our relationship before we get there. We can use our real how we met story if you’ll agree to leaving out what a klutz I am.” A small nervous laugh followed that request, and Levi was beginning to see just how little confidence she had in herself.

  And that bothered him a lot.

  How could she not realize how special she was? Granted, they didn’t know each other that well–yet–but he could already tell that there was so much more to her than she let on.

  “We can totally leave that part out, but if you ask me, it’s part of what makes the story so sweet.” When she went to argue, he held up a hand to stop her. “Think about it. We can say you fell on some uneven pavement–which isn’t a lie–but we don’t give all the details you described earlier because that’s not what I saw. I saw a beautiful girl fall, and I ran out to help her by scooping her up in my arms and carrying her inside to tend to her injuries. Your grandmother will practically swoon from that!”

  “Oh, she totally will! She loves romantic-sounding stuff like that.”

  “Then there you go. That’s how we met and it wouldn’t be a lie.” He smiled proudly. “Okay, what’s next?”

  “Now is the getting-to-know-you stuff–favorite foods, favorite color…all the little things we should know about each other.”

  Just then, their waitress appeared with their meals. Once all the food was served, and she was gone, he knew how he wanted the rest of their “date” to go.

  “Tell you what, we have about two weeks before we leave, right?”

  Willow nodded as she opened her chopsticks.

  “Why don’t we just let the rest of our time today go naturally, and we can pick up the getting to know you stuff while we’re driving. What do you say?”

  She looked at him oddly. “We’re not going to get together again like this before we go?”

  Could he really be this lucky?

  “Willow, we can get together as often as you’d like before we go. You tell me when you want to go out, and I’ll be there.”

  Her eyes went wide. “Really?”

  Levi couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah,” he said gruffly. “Really.”

  3

  “What’s in the cooler?”

  “Um…drinks?”

  “Why?”

  Levi looked at her like she was crazy. “Um…because I thought we might get thirsty?”

  It took a minute for Willow to realize she was sounding a little accusatory rather than curious. “Oh, uh…sorry. I just thought we agreed that I would handle the road snacks and all.” They were standing in the parking lot in front of her apartment building and loading her luggage into his car. It was another thing he had offered, and she had no choice but to accept. Levi’s car was much newer and nicer than hers, so it was basically a no-brainer.

  Actually, it was one of the coolest, sportiest cars she’d ever seen. The cherry red color looked amazing on the Camaro, and the fact that it was a convertible made it just a little irresistible to her. Part of her couldn’t wait to drive with the top down at some point.

  “What’s in your cooler?” he asked.

  Looking down at her own small cooler, she wondered if she should just run back inside and put it away. “Some brownies, fruit, and a couple of bottles of water.” She shrugged. “You know, nothing much.”

  He picked it up and placed it in the back seat next to his newer, larger cooler before turning and grinning at her. “Are the brownies homemade?”

  And she couldn’t help but smile back. “Maybe.”

  Over the last two weeks of them getting to know each other, Willow had shared her love of baking with him. In return, Levi had shared his love of enjoying freshly baked goods.

  And maybe, just maybe, she opted to make brownies because he said they were his favorite.

  “Any chance they have chocolate chunks in them?”

  Her cheeks heated. “Maybe.”

  “Willow…”

  “And lots of icing.”

  The next thing she knew, she was in his arms and going totally stiff. This was…new. They’d done nothing more than touch hands briefly when they got together, so this was…unexpected.

  “Okay, you’re going to have to relax,” he said, keeping his voice soft and without letting her go.

  “How come?” Forcing herself to unclench a bit, Willow stood with her arms still at her side.

  “Well, if we’re going to tell people that we’ve been dating for three months, then they’re going to expect us to be comfortable around each other. So if I hug you or hold your hand, you can’t freeze up like this.”

  “I…I’m not…I mean…I didn’t freeze up.” And then she over-compensated and practically went limp in his arms.

  His laugh was low and husky. “We probably should have thought about this sooner.”

  “Why?”

  Pulling back, Levi looked at her with amusement. “Seriously?”

  “Oh, right,” she said, trying to look like this was all no big deal. “I get it.” He released her, and she looked in the car to make sure she had everything.

  “Do you?”

  “Huh?”

  “Do you get why we should have thought about this sooner?”

  Why did he want to keep talking about this?

  “Because it’s the one thing we didn’t prepare for,” she replied. “Right?”

  “Well, there’s that. But it’s going to be hard to practice it while we’re driving.”

  That did make sense, but Willow simply figured it was something they’d deal with when they had to. All she had to do was pretend that it was completely natural for Levi to touch her like he wanted to and like he had to.

  Or that he wasn’t acting and doing her a favor.

  That she was practically paying him to do.

  Which left her bank account close to empty.

  “You okay?” he asked, concerned. Stepping in close, he gently grasped her shoulders. “You went a little pale.”

  “What? Oh, it’s nothing. Really.” She turned and looked at the car again. “So? Are we ready to go?”

  Luckily he didn’t push her for an answer. “Yup! Let’s do this!”

  Relief washed over her as she climbed into the passenger seat. Once she was settled, she looked at the dashboard and gasped, her hands immediately flying over her mouth.

  “Problem?”

  Oh, God…

  “This looks like the dashboard of an airplane or something,” she said after a minute. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this.” Every time they had gotten together over the last two weeks, she either met him there or they’d meet at McGee’s and walk to whatever restaurant they were going to–mainly because the pub was right in the heart of downtown and near everything. Honestly, either his boss was the biggest jerk and didn’t like Levi being gone for long, or he was totally trying to bank as many hours as he could since he was taking a week off to help her. This was the first time Willow was actually sitting in his car.

  He laughed softly. “It is a little overwhelming. I went with all the tech upgrades because I couldn’t resist. It took me about three months to figure out how everything worked. But I think I’ve finally got it all figured out.”

  “I hate to say it, but you’re going to probably end up doing all the driving.”

  “How come?”

  “Because just looking at this dashboard has my head spinning.” She let out a nervous laugh. “Plus, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m kind of on the short side. I don’t think I could even see over the steering wheel!”

  Levi laughed with her even as he did his best to assure her. “T
he seats are adjustable and you can definitely get them to a position that has you sitting higher. But if you’re not comfortable driving, that’s more than okay with me. It’s not often that I take any road trips or even long drives, so this is going to be a real treat for me.”

  During some of their conversations, Levi had mentioned how he works a lot of hours at the pub, so it totally made sense that he wouldn’t have time to really go out and drive anywhere. “How about we take it all as it comes,” she suggested.

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  And as he pulled out of the parking spot, Willow had to wonder if this was really the smart thing to do. Getting to see her grandmother was a definite perk, and Gammy was beyond excited to get to meet Levi, but just being in the cozy confines of his sports car had Willow feeling just a wee bit overwhelmed.

  The car smelled like Levi’s cologne, and the seats we buttery soft and warm. It was like she was surrounded by him and she was already on sensory overload. If this was how she was feeling after three minutes in the car with him, what the heck would she be like after three hours? Or three days?

  Groaning, she tried to think of something else.

  “You don’t get carsick, do you?” he asked, somewhat nervously.

  “No, why?”

  “You just groaned, and it made me wonder.”

  “Oh, uh…no. I wasn’t groaning because I wasn’t feeling well.”

  “Then, why?”

  “Why what?”

  He chuckled. “Why did you groan?”

  Think, Willow! Think!

  “Um…just thinking about all that can go wrong,” she blurted out and immediately regretted it.

  He laughed again. “Okay, so you’re an alarmist.”

  “What? No, I’m not!”

  “Willow, we’ve barely pulled off your block and you’re already worrying,” he reasoned. “Is it because of the hug?”

  “Hug?”

  “Yeah, are you still freaked out about that?”

  “I wouldn’t say freaked…”

  Reaching over, Levi took one of her hands in his and held onto it, resting them on the center console. “How’s this? Freaking you out?”

  “Levi, I already said I wasn’t freaked out.”

  But she was and wasn’t sure how to pull her hand away without being too obvious.

  He was onto her and every time she tried to slide her fingers from his, he held on a little tighter.

  Turning his head slightly toward her, he grinned. “Tell you what, how about you just let me hold your hand until we get to the Verrazano Bridge, okay?”

  “Um…”

  “After that, I swear I won’t try to hold your hand again until we’re halfway through New Jersey. What do you say?”

  “I think you’re making fun of me,” she said, but she wasn’t really upset.

  “Maybe just a little.”

  “This just feels…I don’t know…a little weird.”

  “Is there something wrong with my hand?”

  “No! There’s nothing wrong with your hand at all!”

  “Not a big fan of intimacy?”

  A million thoughts raced through her head, but all she could say was, “I never really thought of hand-holding as being intimate.”

  “Well, for two people who are newly dating, it’s a step in that direction. So what do you say? You up for holding my hand for the next thirty minutes or so? I promise it won’t get too sweaty.”

  Now he was really teasing her.

  She sighed dramatically. “I guess I can tolerate it.”

  “That’s my girl.”

  And it was silly how much that little phrase made her feel better.

  It was crazy how nervous he felt, but…he was.

  And for some reason, holding Willow’s hand only seemed to amp up those feelings.

  For two weeks, they had seen each other almost every day. She would come to the pub for lunch, or sometimes they’d go out for sushi or pizza, but every time they got together, Levi could tell she was relaxing more and more around him.

  And maybe if you hadn’t been so worried about her relaxing, you could have gotten a grip on yourself.

  Yeah, it was weird for sure. For a guy who was usually all about confidence and paying close attention to details, somehow he had forgotten to get his own feelings in check.

  “How long do you think it will take to get to your sister’s?”

  Okay, conversation…that he could do.

  “About seven hours,” he said. “A little less if traffic cooperates.” It was a Wednesday morning, and they had already missed the morning rush hour, so he was hopeful things would go smoothly for them. “I figured we’d stop for lunch once we cross into Maryland if that’s okay with you.”

  “Absolutely! That’s what I usually do too.”

  “Really? I thought you normally flew down to Florida.”

  “Most of the time, yes. But when we were kids, my father used to like to drive rather than fly.”

  “Well, with three kids it was probably expensive.”

  “Yeah, no,” she said with a soft laugh. “It was more like he wanted us to have time in the car–uninterrupted–so he could talk to us about the importance of education and then challenge us to all kinds of IQ and personality tests.”

  “Sounds…fun?” he asked lamely.

  “It was exhausting. I swear, I think the reason I hated college so much was because of him. He put so much pressure on us, but I’m the only one it caused a negative reaction.”

  “You said your brother and sister were…”

  “Miles is a doctor and Audrey is a lawyer.” She looked over at him, her hand still in his. “Prepare yourself to have to listen to all the bragging my parents are going to do. No doubt you’ll hear about some crazy, life-saving medical procedure Miles performed and how Audrey won some major legal victory.” Groaning, she shook her head. “Then they’ll both look at me expectantly and want to know why I still haven’t found a practice to join before reminding me I can move to Seattle and join theirs.” Another groan. “No, thank you.”

  “So that’s what they’re really after–having a big family psychology practice?”

  “Something like that,” she murmured.

  “And other than not wanting to be a psychologist, how do you feel about moving to Seattle?”

  He knew how he felt about it.

  Miserable.

  They were just getting to know each other and even though this was a fake relationship, Levi had a feeling a real one would be pretty amazing.

  “There’s no way I’d move to Washington. I’m a New York girl through and through. Even if I didn’t join their practice, it’s not someplace I want to live.” She paused before explaining further. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s really nice there and I love all the food and the city of Seattle, but…I don’t know…this is home.”

  “I get that.”

  “Plus, I’ve lived on Long Island my whole life and I still get lost pretty much everywhere I go. And don’t even get me started on how many times I’ve gotten lost when I go into the city. Everyone tells me it’s so easy to find my way around, and yet no matter what, I end up getting turned around and completely overwhelmed.”

  “Maybe you just need someone who’s good with directions to go with you,” he suggested, hoping she’d take the hint that he was good with directions.

  “Donna can get us anywhere with her eyes closed, and I even manage to get her lost.”

  Okay, hint not taken…

  “Anyway,” she went on, “the reason I’m bringing this up is that I want you not only to be prepared to hear about my siblings, but for them to be a little…snarky toward you.”

  “Me? What did I do?”

  “They’re going to grill you on why you’re a bartender and how you should be aspiring to do more with your life.”

  “Um…” At that moment, he realized he probably should have corrected her on all her earlier assumptions that he was just the bartender. He o
wned the pub and had worked really hard to make that happen! Why didn’t he open with that when he first met her?

  “Personally, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. I think it’s great that you’re doing something you love.” Then she paused and turned her head toward him. “You do love it, don’t you?”

  “Well…yeah. But that’s not…”

  “I envy you, Levi,” she went on, ignoring how he was trying to explain his response. “I don’t even really know what I’m passionate about. I mean, I love walking the dogs, but…that’s not something I can make a career out of. Or at least, that I shouldn’t make a career out of. Ugh…can you imagine how that would look. I can hear my parents now. Our son Miles is a doctor, our daughter Audrey is a lawyer, and Willow picks up dog poop.”

  Don’t laugh…don’t laugh…

  “They sound like the kind of people who are too uptight to say poop…”

  “Seriously?” she cried, pulling her hand away. “That’s all you can say?”

  Levi didn’t release her hand and knew he needed to think fast. “I was trying to lighten the mood, Willow. And for the record, the issue is with them, not you.”

  “Yeah, that’s what Gammy says too.”

  “So then why don’t you believe it?”

  “Because everyone wants their parent’s approval. Don’t you want yours?”

  He shrugged. “I have it. They’re very proud of me. I make a very good living and I’m happy. That’s all they’ve ever wanted.”

  “They never pushed you to do something different? Something other than making drinks?”

  “You seem fixated on that one fact,” he said thoughtfully. “Bartenders happen to make very good money.”

  “Apparently.”

  Narrowing his gaze, he asked, “What does that mean?”

  “It means you must! You were able to take a week off without even giving it a second thought and look at this car! I don’t pay a lot of attention to the price of sports cars, but even I know this is brand new and expensive.”

  “Well, I saved up for a long time for this. Up until six months ago, I was driving the car I bought in high school. A pickup truck, actually.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. Don’t get me wrong, I loved that truck and probably would have kept driving it, but I decided it was time to grow up a little and get a real car.”