Lexi shook her head hard to rattle her churning thoughts into a coherent sentence. “So you planned this…photo shoot? For me? Like, you put jugs of water out here, and those shorts are on purpose?”
Ryder scrunched up his face in a cocky-male expression and said, “Yeah.”
Lexi scratched her head and murmured, “Okay, I’m going to go home now.”
“Cool. Do you want me to ride with you or follow behind? I can fly, but I’ll be losing the shorts, and when I Change back, I’ll be bare-ass naked. The choice is yours.”
“No, you aren’t coming home with me.”
He offered her an utterly offended frown. “Wait no. I have questions.”
“What questions?”
He pulled a small notebook from his back pocket and slung water off of it before he held up the first scribbled page for her to see. “Interview questions. I’m shopping for a third best friend.”
“Friends,” she said suspiciously.
“With benefits who like to pet each other’s—”
Lexi shook her head in warning, so Ryder amended, “Friends who are just friends.”
Better. Lexi rubbed her hand over her forehead and looked around. With a sigh, she gestured to his notepad. “Okay, ask me.”
“Number one. On a scale of one to ten, how much do you like giving blow jobs to—”
“Ryder.”
“So a ten,” he murmured, making a note.
Lexi pursed her lips against her smile because he didn’t need encouragement.
“Number two. Do you like dogs?”
Good, a normal question. “Yes.”
“Three. What percentage of time do you spend in the mornings on choosing lingerie versus the clothes you wear?”
She gave him a dead-eyed look.
“Fine, pass. Four, multiple choice. Do you want seven, eight, or twelve children?”
She refused to answer that one, too, but now it was getting harder not to laugh, and Ryder wasn’t helping because he wasn’t keeping a straight face either. She rested her fingertips nonchalantly over her lips to hide the smile there.
“Five…” He cracked a smile, then smoothed back out his face and tried again. “Five, what cup-size are your tits?”
Okay, now that she knew this was a big joke to him, she wanted to play. “I’m a B-Cup.”
Ryder ticked his mouth in mock-disappointment and jotted down some notes.
“But,” she joked, “they swell to full Cs when I’m on my period.”
“Mmm,” he said, fighting a grin. “I’ve never been so excited about a woman’s menses before.”
He stood there staring at her, his eyes dancing with the smile he was trying to stave off, and she couldn’t do it. Couldn’t hold his gaze, or she would lose it. She stared off into the woods and clenched her teeth against the laughter that was bubbling up her throat.
“I have questions for you now,” she said.
“I’m an open book and have no shame. Hit me.”
“Where did you find those tiny shorts?”
“Someone from my old crew showed me how to make them out of jeans.”
“Great, how did you find me?”
The ghost of the smile dipped from his lips. “I asked around about you.”
“From Alana?”
“No.” He narrowed his eyes. “Yes, but she wouldn’t dish any dirt, which is pretty shitty of a second best friend.”
“So I would be your best friend after Alana?”
“Yeah,” he said, as if the answer should’ve been obvious. “We hardly know each other. I found you on the Internet.”
“You mean you stalked me.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, lady,” he said, holding up his hands. “I didn’t stalk you. I just tracked down your job, where you would be working today, and the road…you…take home.” He frowned. “It’s not weird until you say it out loud.”
“Well, you didn’t have to go to the trouble because I planned on stopping by Alana’s café on Tuesday to watch the train wreck that is your love life and possibly sit with you to offer my support while your ex reams you.”
His answering grin was stunning. His freckles stood out against his pale skin, his eyes were a bright and beautiful blue color, and dimples sank into his cheeks as his smile lines deepened. It didn’t help her hormones that he was shirtless and his nipples had tightened to sexy little bitable buds right now.
She was staring. When she forced her eyes back up to Ryder’s, he had the cockiest smile she’d ever seen on a man’s lips. Shaking her head, she prepared to make her exit because this man was trouble with a capital T. “It’s been nice chatting with you, but I have to get home.”
“Say no more.”
Good, at least he got the hint. But when Ryder slid back into the passenger’s seat, she leaned on her open window and shook her head in exasperation. “Out.”
“When should I pick you up for our first friend-date then?”
Lexi narrowed her eyes at him, but Ryder only relaxed back and rested his feet on her dashboard, and now his muscular butt-cheeks were hanging out of the shorts. Ridiculous man. Sexy, yes, but ridiculous first. Why did she find his behavior so amusing? She’d always been one to date serious types. But this wasn’t dating. It was just friendship with a funny guy who made her laugh.
“How about you drop by my booth during Taste of Bryson City on Saturday morning? I’ll be giving out samples of food in a purple tent near the middle of Main Street. You can hang out with me there if you want.”