For Seven Nights Only - Sarah Ballance Page 0,3

jerk didn’t relent. He couldn’t have weighed five pounds, but every ounce seemed determined to tear Sawyer apart.

She managed a watery smile. “Thank you. I don’t usually attempt steak. It’s just… He said it was his favorite, and I wanted to make a good impression and… Well, you know how that ended.”

Yeah. With Sawyer getting his ankle chewed. He nudged the dog again to no avail, so he gave up and reached for his knife—to attack the steak, not the dog. He managed to remember to tuck the cloth napkin onto his lap before diving in. Or trying to. His attempt to stab the meat with his fork failed when the steak held its ground. He pushed harder, managing a shallow dent. Not exactly enough penetration to get the job done, but maybe it would at least hold the meat in place. With that hope, he tried to cut into the meat with his knife, but the knife didn’t do it. Perplexed, he sawed harder, only managing to score the surface.

Barely.

He glanced at Kelsie. Finding her watching him, he shoved the meat to the side and snagged a forkful of mashed potatoes. “Maybe you’re just looking in the wrong places,” he said.

“Where are the right places?” she asked, eyeing his plate before meeting his gaze. “I need to know. Because my sister is marrying my ex-boyfriend’s brother in two weeks, and I’m the maid of honor. Guess who the best man is?”

Sawyer put his fork in his mouth so he wouldn’t have to answer. Bad move. That meant she was looking at him when he almost choked on the sour garlic taste that assaulted him.

She threw down her fork. “See?”

“Actually, no,” he choked. “I can’t see a thing. My eyes are watering.” He swallowed and immediately regretted it. “Here’s a tip. If you want romance, lay off the garlic.”

She stared at him, openly wounded. “It’s supposed to complement the buttermilk.”

Buttermilk?

“Just great.” She frowned, fastening a death glare on him he wasn’t sure he deserved. “I can’t even mash potatoes. Of course I can’t find a guy. If the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, I’m beyond screwed. And that’s a direct quote from my grandma, by the way. Even my sister told me not to bother trying to catch her bouquet—that I should leave it for someone who stands a chance of landing a decent guy. Like it’s my fault my ex thought cheating was a good idea. Like I want to waste time on jerks.”

He didn’t touch the food, having decided the topic of relationships was far less dangerous. “Consider this near miss a win. Did you see that idiot? He wasn’t even willing to give you a chance to explain. That’s not your guy, and if this is a consistent thing, then clearly you haven’t tapped into the right market.”

One of her eyebrows rose. She sniffled. “The right market?”

He leaned back against the thickly padded dining chair, putting some much-needed distance between him and the plate. Marma-what’s-his-face released Sawyer’s pant leg and looked up, head quirked, not unlike Kelsie’s. Sawyer bit back a grin. “For starters,” he said, “your so-called date needs to have his balls revoked. I’ve yet to meet a woman I couldn’t seduce, and you can bet your ass I’m not threatened by another guy. He’s a joke.”

“Says who?”

“Me. I am an expert in satisfying a woman.”

Her expression went from dubious to scoffing in a New York minute. “Is that supposed to be a selling point?” she asked. “I’ve seen you around. You have a different woman every weekend. I don’t even want to know how many of them you’ve screwed in the elevator, but here’s a tip for you. Button up before you hit the lobby.”

He did his best to keep his jaw clamped shut, but he failed. The dig at his social life was one thing, but the other… Was she rejecting him? He couldn’t think of the last time he was turned down. By anyone. Which probably meant he needed to raise his standards, but sex was sex.

And this was almost certainly rejection.

She smirked. Score one for the dating disaster.

He ever so casually checked his zipper, just in case, and looked back to find her following his gaze. The unfamiliar heat of embarrassment toyed with him, but he shoved it away. Too bad the mutt wouldn’t bolt so easily. “You should be a little nicer to me, Kelsie. As you’ve so eloquently pointed out, I have experience. Lots of