Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45918 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45918 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
He clears his throat. “Dancing, ma’am.”
“Okay, drop the ma’am. I’m pretty sure you’re older than me.”
He nods. “I am older than you. I’m thirty-four.”
I grit my teeth. What the heck is happening here? “Right, so uh, quit calling me ma’am, and when you dance, you put your hands on the girl’s waist.”
I release his shoulders long enough to push his hands onto my waist, and then I put my hands on his shoulders again. He’s completely tense, and I’m not sure what is happening because he acts like he’s being punished or something. I hear Bethany’s squeal of laughter from across the room, and I grit my teeth. I’m not even going to look over there.
Mark is looking over my head, holding himself tensely, and I’m starting to get a bad feeling about this. “Mark?”
“Yes, ma’am? I mean, yes, Christine?”
I clench my eyes shut and then peel them open. “Mark, did Gabe have to beg you to go on this date?”
He shakes his head. “No, ma’am.”
He’s about to apologize for calling me ma’am again, but I wave him off. “Okay, did he pay you?”
“No, ma—”
I hold my hand up. ‘Stop with the ma’am. Okay, what are you doing then? Because you sure don’t seem happy to be here.”
He’s still tense, standing like an oak tree. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I chance a look over at Gabe and Bethany, and Gabe has positioned them so he’s staring at me. He’s scowling, and I nod at him, but his gaze doesn’t falter. I look back at the man in front of me, and I know something is up. “Okay, so it’s obvious you don’t want to be here. What happened? How did Gabe talk you into doing this?”
He shakes his head. “He didn’t talk me into it.”
“Right.” I blow out a breath. “Okay, so what’s going on here? Did Gabe ask you to be my date?”
He scrunches up his nose. “Not exactly.”
Half out of patience, I demand, “What do you mean, not exactly? What did happen?”
He blows out a breath. “Gabe got us all together and said he wanted someone to go out with you.”
“Oh my God. And? What? Did you draw the shortest straw?”
“No, ma’am.”
I growl. “Okay, I’m over this. Tell me what happened. How did you end up here tonight?”
He doesn’t want to tell me, that much is obvious, and I’m having to drag it out of him. Slowly, he shakes his head. “The captain said he needed a date for you. Over half the squad volunteered. Even Jack Peters volunteered.”
I search my mind trying to recall who Jack Peters is. “Jack Peters? Isn’t he married to Raemi, who works at the grocery store?”
“Yes, he is.”
I nod. “Okay, and then what happened?”
He speaks slowly, like he’s not sure if he should tell me or not. “Well, Gabe automatically told some of them no. Like Rick and Keaton. I told them they messed up because they’re always coming into the station talking about their conquests from the weekend, and I knew there was no way Gabe was going to fix one of them up with you. A few of them were maybes.”
Still confused, I shake my head. “Maybes?”
He nods. “Yeah, he then brought us all in the room and went over the rules.”
I gasp. “The rules? He had rules? What are these rules?”
“Uh…” Mark looks around the dance floor. “Maybe you should ask Gabe.”
“Oh no, we’re this far into it now. Spill it. What are the rules?”
He shrugs. “They were pretty simple and straightforward.”
He’s looking over my head, and it’s obvious he’s searching for Gabe. I spin us around so he’ll have his back to his boss. “Give it up, Mark. What were the rules?”
He swallows hard. “Well, for starters no touching, and I’m already breaking that rule, so I’m probably going to be without a job by tomorrow.”
“No touching? We’re dancing.”
“He didn’t care. He said absolutely no touching.” He takes a deep breath and then starts to ramble. “I’m not allowed to be alone with you. I could ask you questions but nothing too personal. Don’t get attached to you. No kissing. No hugging. No asking for your number. Compliments are okay, but nothing sexual. And if I break a rule, if I touch you, I’m done.”
Aghast, my mouth drops. “I’m sorry. Do you have that memorized?”
He nods. “Yes, it was a requirement.”
“Oh my God, okay, you know he’s not going to fire you.”
“Ma’am, I’m not worried about him firing me. I’m worried about him killing me.”
I practically screech. “Kill you? That’s ridiculous. He wouldn’t…”
For the first time, his voice is firm and secure. “Actually, he would. I believe his exact words were ‘If you touch her, I will end you.’”
I peek around Mark and look at Gabe. He’s moved closer to Mark and me, and as soon as he sees me looking at him, he calls out to us, “Everything okay over there?”