Hunt Me! (I Crave The Chase) - Page 165

Made me forget all about my fate.

“So…” Jeffrey blinked his lovely eye up at me again. “Can I take you on a date?”

I was nervous.

That was the honest to God truth.

This wasn’t my first date by any means, but it was the first date that really mattered. Especially because I’d already decided by the end of tonight I was going to lay everything on the line.

Blair, Richard, Collin, and even Avery had banded together to help me prepare for tonight. While Avery was off in the woods prepping his side of things, Blair and Richard were in the kitchen cooking.

“The meatballs need to be bigger,” Blair coached from the sidelines, because he knew jack shit about cooking but was apparently an expert anyway.

“That’s what she said,” Collin hollered from out in the back of the shop where he was helping move the chairs out of the way.

“Are you sure these are gonna be fine outside for a few hours?” I yelled loud enough that Blair could hear through the open door.

“I already said yes. Shut the fuck up,” Blair shouted back. I didn’t question him again as Collin and I hauled everything out the back door and stacked them in neat piles.

“Tell me why we’re uprooting the whole restaurant?” Collin squinted at me, sweat beaded on his temple, his auburn hair damp.

“It’s more accurate.”

“It would be more accurate if you were eating in an alley,” Collin huffed.

“Yeah, but this is Elmwood.” I dropped my pile of chairs, then carefully, systematically began stacking them to the side. “I don’t wanna get rained on when I’m in the middle of wooing my man.”

Wow. That was weird as fuck.

“That was weird as fuck,” Collin echoed my thoughts. “Wooing my man? Lame.”

“What else would you call it?”

“I dunno.” Collin shrugged. “Something less…cringey?”

“Oh, fuck off.” I flipped him off and he snorted, but dutifully followed me inside to grab more chairs.

“Leave that one—” I instructed him, gesturing toward the little table and chair set I’d pushed in the corner. Collin had been reaching for it, his grubby fingers ready to sabotage my plans unknowingly.

“Why that one specifically?”

“Because.” I couldn’t explain it. I just…liked that one. It had a little chip in the wood on the corner and it was cute. Mutt would like it too.

“Fine.” Collin grabbed a different table and waddled his way down the long hallway that led out back to the parking lot again. “You know what’s dumb?” He panted as I followed after him, arms equally full.

“What?”

“The fact that you’re worried about rain and yet you’re putting all this furniture out here.”

I shrugged. “I asked and Blair told me to?—”

“Shut up, I know.” Collin snorted, hands on his hips. Then he shrugged. “Oh well.” He twisted around to grin at me. His eyebrows raised and his lips curled into a smirk—and I knew before he opened his mouth he was about to say something dirty—or ask me about knots or some shit.

So I just turned back around and walked inside again.

Four hours later, Richard had perfected his special sauce. Ew, fuck. I did not mean to say that. Gross. Blair had approved the meatballs. Fuck, that was even worse. And all three of us had set up the dining area perfectly to plan.

Now I just needed to get ready.