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Shit Maybe he was turning this into a game Despite his mortification, he looked at her “What do you want from me?”

“I can tell you what I don’t want from you I don’t want to neck with you in your pickup at the local et all hot and bothered I don’t want to watch you racing around half-naked on a basketball court and get all hot and bothered I don’t want to sit on your lap after your dart gaet all hot and bothered I want h school kids anymore, Tell There’s no reason for us to be worried we’re taking it too far, too fast My biggest worry is you see in and you won’t take it far enough”

Silence

Unable to come up with a clever response, he just said, “I think it’s best if I take you hootdahed “Look, it’s obvious I’ht? Can we just go?”

After he helped her into his rig, she said, “Such a gentleia And for soentlemanly qualities far more frequently than any woman I’ve met”

She touched his face and he felt as if he’d been zapped by a cattle prod “Knohat’s funny?”

“What?”

“Your gentlehed softly, appreciating her atteht?”

“Yes So no wonder we’re at cross-purposes”

The ride back to her place was ia to blather on So her next question surprised him

“Do you remember when you took et Seeing her crying outside the gy to soothe her, trying to get her to talk to him It’d shocked him that she had talked about bad choices and no choices Then she’d asked him for a ride home and climbed in his dirty, piece-of-shit pickup She’d left theopen and literally let her hair down, allowing all that black silk to flutter in the breeze Georgia had been so preoccupied that she hadn’t noticed hi at her She hadn’t noticed that he’d al at her

“Do you knohat I wantedTo drive until ere a long way from Sundance”

“I would’ve said yes I would’ve taken you anywhere you wanted to go” He’d ended up on the receiving end of Deck’s fists for that anyway Getting to spend ia would’ve made those bruises a little less painful to bear

Tell pulled up in front of her house She hadn’t left the light on, so he walked her to the front door

She faced hireat tio fro you to the reunion?”

“No I’ you if you plan to take ht now”

Chapter Nine

Georgia watched the muscle in his jaw flex and his eyes darken