"Huh. I don't know a single person in the world that ever stopped," I said with a grin. "You don't mean to sit here and tell me you gave your virginity to some random guy you met when your car broke down in Texas?"
She rolled her eyes. "Okay, so I've had boyfriends, but that doesn't mean they were anything interesting enough to talk about."
"What was the last one like? What was his name?"
"Why? You the jealous one now, Luke?" She shot me a tight grin. "You gonna go fight him?"
I laughed. "Depends on how things ended. Was he mean to you?"
She turned to look out the window again. "His name was Prescott."
This time I laughed even louder. "Are you for real?"
She blushed. "It was a family name."
"Which means he was actually Prescott Moneybags the what? Fourth? Fifth?"
"Prescott Billingsley." She cleared her throat and added under her breath, "The sixth."
"Wow, the sixth." I let out a low whistle. "So, he's old money then. Big score."
She frowned. "Like I said, nothing to write home about."
"You mean to tell me your parents didn't do a happy dance when you told them who you were dating?"
"Look, it's not important."
She rubbed her palms over her thighs, and I did my best not to roll my eyes.
"How did things end?"
Another heavy silence filled the cab of the truck, and she shifted in her seat. "It was fine. Things just didn't work out. Look, I don't want to talk about it," she practically snapped, then smoothed a hand over her hair. "I'm sorry. You were so open. I shouldn't-"
"No, no." I shook my head. "It's fine. If you don't want to talk about it, we don't have to."
I couldn't deny, though, that her replies intrigued me and sent my sixth sense tingling. While I wasn't jealous, exactly, I was much more invested in her answers than I should have been.
This is a fling, Luke. Don't forget it.
I gripped the wheel more tightly and turned my attention back to the road. "Look, I normally meet a couple of old friends at the bar after the game, but I can call and cancel if you'd rather not go-"
"No, don't cancel. You had no way of knowing I'd be here, and I don't want you to bail. That said, I'm really tired. Why don't you just drop me off? I'll get a nice up-close-and-personal look at that big claw-foot tub of yours, and have some popcorn. A nice little 'me' night."
The image of her shimmering with water as she stood from the bathtub, her pearly-white skin free of a towel, made another rush of need surge to my cock, but I nodded all the same. Suddenly, I felt like I needed the space.
"Okay, if you're sure. I won't stay out long."
"I'm sure."
I dropped her off and headed for the bar, thinking about Sarah . . . and Prescott Billingsley the Sixth.
Prescott was exactly the kind of name for a guy like that. The ritzy New York royalty that she'd inevitably marry someday. Then, when they had their penthouse and she slid into their claw-foot tub, maybe she'd think about the one in my house and remember . . .
Or maybe not.
Either way, it didn't matter. This thing we had? It had an expiration date stamped on it, and nobody was more okay with that than me. Charlotte was probably itching to get back to city life, and Lord knew I had enough to do with the distillery to keep me busy for another few years at least.
It was a shame, though. If she were something else, someone else . . . if she were the girl who'd pulled me beneath the bleachers earlier tonight? Well, I might have been able to fall in love with someone like that.
• • •
When I got to the Drunk Skunk, it didn't take me long to find Case and Ranger already bellied up to the bar and waiting with a third beer in front of the empty stool beside them. As I made my way nearer, Case made a whooping sound and Ranger patted the stool.
"The prodigal quarterback returns," Ranger said. "Why are you so late?"
"I had to grab Charlotte's stuff and drop her off."
"Oh, she headed out of town tonight?" Case asked, but Ranger cut in before I had the chance to answer.
"Of course not. You know Wayne was at the game."
"Which means if she's not at the inn and she's not out of town . . ." Case eyed me as he pieced it all together. "Aw, shit."
"Shut up," I muttered, but Ranger hooted again.
"Sure you want to spend your night with us when you got better prospects waiting for you at home?"
"This is why nobody tells you anything," I said, and then took a swig of my beer.