Hard and Fast(40)

"I met him at Tamara and Elec's wedding, very briefly. Then again in the  gym." She pushed her glasses up. "He, well, has been pursuing me."

Ty supposed it wasn't anything he didn't already know, but he didn't  like hearing it out loud. "What does that mean? He's harassing you?"

"No, of course not. He's merely asked me out to dinner, and this phone  message was following up on that, offering specific time options."

Then she said nothing else, bending over and riffling in his backpack.

Ty felt a wave of jealousy wash over him, but he took a deep breath and  tried to stay calm. "Are you going to go? Do you like him?"

"I don't know him well enough to determine one way or another if I like  him. But no, I am not going to go out with him." She pulled out a  sweatshirt that had his car emblazoned across the front.

It always made him feel ridiculous to wear a shirt with his own car on  it in his leisure time, but his mother had given it to him, which was  sweet. So he put it to use for camping and hiking, where he wasn't  likely to encounter a ton of people. But for some reason, as Imogen  pulled it on, he liked that sweatshirt a whole lot better than he ever  had before. It swallowed her whole and she quickly cuffed the sleeves,  and fussed with the hood, but seeing that car across her chest brought  out those feelings again. Weird happy feelings, along with a healthy  dose of possessiveness.

"So why aren't you going out with him?" It was stupid to poke at her,  especially given he might not like the answer, but he couldn't seem to  stop himself.

"I have altered the basis of my thesis. I was not finding it time  effective, practical, or honest to pursue the dating rules myself.  Instead, I'm focusing on interviewing both drivers and their wives about  their courtship, whether or not stock car racing played a role in their  meeting, and whether the path to marriage in any way resembled the  rules laid out in the dating manual."

"I like that better," he said honestly. It had made him feel all sorts  of unhappy to think that she was flirting with random men like Evan. Men  he had to see at the track, who couldn't be trusted to understand just  how special Imogen was. They might just see her as a different pond to  dip their toe in. Nothing more than a hookup.                       
       
           



       

Ty snapped a twig in his hand. Holy shit. He had been one of those guys.  Sort of. Definitely not that crude about it, but he hadn't expected  that he would want a relationship with Imogen, and he did.

He really frickin' did.

"Do you think it sounds more legitimate? I'm not sure I'm satisfied with  it as such either, but honestly, for someone who thrives on academia,  homing in on a research topic has been a nightmare. I've had zero  self-confidence and have talked myself around in circles until I can't  decide if I have a legitimate thesis or a ginormous mess."

Ty barely heard her, so stunned was he by his own thoughts. "Ginormous?" He didn't think he'd ever heard that word before.

"Sorry. It's like gigantic and enormous meshed together."

"So really big?" Sort of like the heart attack he was about to have.  Because he was about to lay it all on the line and make a ginormous  jackass of himself.

"Exactly."

"Um, Imogen?"

"Yeah?" She blinked at him, tugging on the drawstrings of his hooded sweatshirt.

"I was thinking that, you know, I'm having a really good time with you,  and well, I know that you have every right to date other guys or  whatever, but just so you know, I'm not going to be dating anyone else.

I'll just be dating you." Ty felt a sweat breaking out on his forehead. Oh, yeah. Serious jackass-age.

"That is, if you will let me. Date you, I mean."

"Are you suggesting that we exclusively date one another from here  forward in order to really get to know one another without fear or  jealousy creeping into the equation?" What she said. "Yes."

Imogen's face broke out into a shy, sweet smile that she seemed to be struggling to contain, but couldn't.

"I believe that arrangement would work."







Ty grinned back, his shoulders relaxing. So they were dating. For real.  "Drop the professor talk and tell me you're cool with this."

She walked over to him where he was sitting by the fire circle and  looked down, taking his cheeks between her hands. "I like you. A lot,"  she said with more simple honesty than he thought he'd ever received in  his life. "So yes, I'm cool with this."

Ty pulled her down onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her. "Good,  because I like you, too." He kissed her, again feeling that ridiculous  happiness rising in him. "I know my schedule is crazy, but I'll make  time for you. How are your Mondays?"

"I'm busy during the day, but usually Monday nights aren't too bad. No  papers to grade." She was boldly nibbling on his bottom lip and it was  causing a heat to rise in him that had nothing to do with the fire  burning behind him. "There's only four more races. Then I have some  downtime in November and December before we start prepping for next  season." Maybe he should have kept his month shut. Saying the only time  your weekends will ever be free is two months out of twelve had to be a  little off-putting.

"Can I come to another race?" she asked. "I've only been once, and I  think I have a little better understanding of the sport now than when I  attended because of the research I've been doing. Besides, I can pepper  you with questions before and after this time." Imogen had stopped  kissing him, but she was stroking the back of his hair, which he found  incredibly pleasant. "Of course you can go. I'll get tickets for you.  You can stay in my coach with me."

"Where are the upcoming races? This weekend is out. We have midterms to  grade." Ty needed to pause and think about it, which he found odd,  because usually the schedule was seared into his brain, but Imogen was  such a nice distraction. "Uh, Texas, Phoenix, Miami. Why don't you come  to Texas? And hell, why don't you invite Tammy and Suzanne to come with  you? I'm guessing Tammy would love to see Elec driving, and then you all  can hang out when we're busy."

"Yeah, that would be fun. But Tamara has the kids."

"She can bring them with her. They're used to being around the track.  Hunter is my godchild, you know, and I haven't seen her in a while. It  would be nice to see the kids." Ty did like hanging out and playing with  Tammy's kids. There was something about the way kids just bounced  around and said whatever they were thinking that always appealed to him.

"Okay, I'll ask her. That way we can fly down on Friday night and it  won't conflict with school for the kids or for Tamara and I."

"Sounds like a plan." Ty ran his fingers over her thigh. "And if Tammy can't make it, you'll still come?"                       
       
           



       

"Yes, I'll still come." Imogen wrapped her arms around his neck. "I will  definitely come." Ty caught the change in her voice. "Are we talking  about next week or are we talking about now?"

"Both," she said with a sly smile.

"Perfect answer."

Screw the fire. Ty stood up with Imogen in his arms, amused at the squeal of surprise she gave.

They were going back to the sleeping bag.





SUZANNE stared at Imogen across the table at their favorite Mexican  restaurant, suddenly envying the bliss on her friend's face. It had been  a long time since Suzanne had felt that kind of moony-eyed happiness.  "So I take it you had fun camping?"

Imogen sighed, her cheeks pink, eyes glassy. "Yes," she said, and burst  out with a short laugh. "I really, really did. We went fishing and  swimming and hiking. We had lots of great sex, and, Suz, he quoted  Shakespeare for me."

Pausing with her margarita to her mouth, Suzanne felt her eyebrows head  for the ceiling. "Ty quoted Shakespeare? Are you shitting me?" In all  the years she'd known him, Suzanne had never once seen Ty with a book,  let alone something like the Bard.

"I'm serious." Imogen pushed her glasses up on her nose and leaned onto her palm at the table, like she





was too boneless to hold herself up. "Oh, it's so dangerous, but I do  like him." The old green-eyed monster rose up in Suzanne again,  irritating the shit out of her. She was happy for Imogen, even if she  hadn't figured Ty would be the type of guy to rev her engine. But it was  clearly working for both of them, and if Suzanne had learned anything,  it was that you couldn't find any rhyme or reason for attraction. Look  at the fact that she herself still couldn't shake the weak-in-the-knees  feeling whenever she saw Ryder and they'd been divorced for damn near  two years. Not to mention he almost always pissed her off.