“In the medical field,” she pointed out.
“Are you worried or embarrassed over something?” he asked, tilting his head.
“I’m not as smart as you,” she said back, poking at his side with her finger. The minute she did it, she wished she hadn’t. Nerves were building now too. They’d be locked in a room together for thirty minutes and no one could or would interrupt them.
That was where the issue was for her.
So far they’d been in public together. Though she did get naked in his bathroom with him down the hall.
And when she was at his place she couldn’t cool off one bit and worried she’d be emitting the scent of arousal to him.
“Please,” he said. “I’m willing to bet you’ve got more street smarts than I’d ever have.”
“Now you are trying to just butter me up,” she said back.
“Is it working?”
“I think it might be.”
17
Probably Smart
Wyatt couldn’t have asked for a better day so far.
He got to see Adriana in motion and admire the way her body moved and glided through the course.
The flexing of her muscles, the curves of her body.
He’d felt her eyes on him too and not for safety and spotting measures either.
She’d been laughing the whole time. They’d been talking. Joking. Maybe even a touch of flirting in there too.
He was wearing her down whether she wanted to admit it or not.
Was she going to be stubborn and make him work more for it? Yeah, he figured she would.
What he hadn’t expected was for her to feel almost self-conscious over doing the escape room though.
Someone like her, he didn’t think she doubted much in life. He’d put her right up there with his sister Jade and cousin Ella when it came to confident strong women.
Yet she was hesitating over this.
“We’re up,” he said. “You’re not afraid of closed-in places, are you?”
“Nah.”
“Being locked in?” he asked.
“Not really.”
“But yes, really?” he said. “We don’t have to do it if you don’t want to.”
“It’s fine. It’s not the room itself. I mean I know we can get out if we need to. And you’re a doctor, I’m a nurse. If one of us passes out, the other will take care of it.”
Now she was busting on him. “I might do that to get some mouth to mouth.”
She reached her hand out to start to punch him and then stopped herself. She was getting touchy feely and trying not to.
He flexed his arm and said, “Give it your best.” He’d do anything to get her hands on him.
“I don’t want to break a finger on that rock.”
“Now I know you are flattering me. You just want to get my guard down so you can kick my ass at something again.”
She laughed at him. “Maybe.” But she didn’t touch him again. Bummer.
Once they were in the room, the door clicked shut and the lock sounded as it went into place. A clock on the wall started to count down.
“Here we go,” he said, moving to the piece of paper on the table and reading the instructions.
One by one they figured out all the clues and were able to let themselves out with eight minutes to spare.
“I’ll be damned,” she said. “That was more fun than I thought it’d be. I almost jumped in your arms and gave you a hug when the lock released.” She said that when they were walking out of the door, so he grabbed her hand and pulled her in the other direction. “Where are we going?”
“I’m buying tickets for another room,” he said.
“I was kidding.”
“I don’t think you were though,” he said back. She held his stare and didn’t say anything else for about five seconds. “I’m hungry now. How about food?”
He dropped his shoulders in an exaggerated move. “If that is what you want.”
“Yes,” she said. “It’s probably smart.”
She’d said it quietly, but he heard.
When they got to the restaurant on the grounds, there wasn’t much to choose from. It was more like a cafeteria line. He got a burger and fries and she got a chili dog and fries.
They grabbed their drinks and he paid. They’d had a little argument over the last tickets for the escape room and he told her the day was on him. Other than lunch, this was the first time they’d done something that cost any money and he wasn’t having her pay for the day.
If she wanted to buy them lunch, she could do that another day, but this was going to be a couple hundred today for sure, which was more than lunch would be.
Yes, friends split things, but it was still more than he wanted her to pay.
His mother would skin him alive on top of it if he allowed a woman to pay for a day like this. Date or not, he was still pulling out his credit card.
Once they had their food and were sitting at a table eating, he asked, “So, worth the wait?”
She started to cough on the dog she’d just taken a huge bite of. Yeah, he loved a woman with a big appetite. “What?”
“The adventure park. I know you said you’ve never done it before. Was it worth the wait?”
* * *
Adriana had no idea what Wyatt was asking her and of course like an idiot her mind went right toward sex when it never had before.
Not that they were anywhere near sex because this was a day with a friend.
Not a date.
Though she touched him once and had to stop herself from doing it again.
She wondered if he had some pheromone seeping out of his pores that had her acting like she’d never done before.
“Oh. Yeah. This is great. I take it you’ve been here before?” He knew the course too well
